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Cusseta-Chattahoochee County adopts ordinance to regulate public cemeteries
Summary
The commission unanimously adopted Ordinance No. 2025-1 to amend Chapter 20 (Article III) of the county code, establishing definitions, designating the County Manager as cemetery superintendent, setting recordkeeping and interment rules, regulating markers, and authorizing fines and civil enforcement.
The Commission of the Unified Government of Cusseta-Chattahoochee County voted unanimously Oct. 7 to adopt Ordinance No. 2025-1, revising Chapter 20 of the county code to regulate public cemeteries.
Commissioner Damon Hoyte moved to approve the ordinance; Commissioner Gerald Douglas seconded the motion. The ordinance, as adopted, adds Article III (Cemeteries) to the county code and includes definitions, establishes the County Manager as cemetery superintendent, and requires the superintendent to maintain records of lot ownership and interments.
Key provisions in the ordinance include: county control of cemetery operations and improvement of grounds; sale and transfer procedures stating that lot sales convey the right of interment but not title to land; a requirement that interments occur only with county approval and a burial permit in accordance with Georgia law; standards for markers and monuments (durable stone or metal, temporary markers to be replaced within 12 months); and routine county maintenance of common areas with lot owners responsible for individual-lot upkeep. The ordinance also authorizes fines—up to $500 per offense—and civil enforcement; each day a violation continues constitutes a separate offense.
The ordinance text states it takes effect upon adoption unless otherwise specified and that it does not affect Article II concerning public conduct in parks. Enforcement authority is assigned to the County Manager and the county Code Enforcement Department. The adoption was recorded in meeting minutes and the ordinance text was included in the meeting packet.
