Public cemeteries required to allow individuals to be buried in accordance with their recognized religion, and public cemeteries required to allow green burials.

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by John Huot and 1 co-sponsor

Public cemeteries must honor religious burial rites, including allowing green burials, and follow state green burial standards with density limits.

Author added Jones

#funeralsandcemeteries #religionandreligiousbeliefs

Summary of HF5150 (2025-2026) – Minnesota

Purpose and intent

HF5150 requires public cemeteries to accommodate burial practices in line with an individual’s recognized religion, and to explicitly permit green burials. The bill adds duties for municipalities, towns, and other cemeteries governed by Minnesota’s cemetery laws to honor religious burial rites and to implement green burial options in compliance with applicable green burial standards.

Key provisions and changes

New burial rights for religious rites

Cemeteries must permit burial in accordance with the rites of the individual’s recognized religion.
This includes allowing green burial when that is part of the religious rites, provided the burial complies with applicable green burial requirements (chapter 149A and, for green burials, section 306.991).

Green burial requirements codified

Green burials are defined by reference to Minnesota’s green burial framework (as defined in section 149A.02, subdivision 42).
Cemeteries must comply with the state’s green burial requirements when offering green burials.

Burial density limits for green burials

Green burial plots are limited to a maximum density of 300 burials per acre over a 100-year period (subdivision 6(a)).
There is an exception: cemeteries must permit green burials at a greater density than 300 per acre per the needs of individuals for whom green burial is an element of their recognized religious rites (subdivision 6(b)).

Scope and applicability

Applies to municipalities, towns, and other cemeteries governed by Minnesota cemetery statutes (chapter 306).

Who is affected

Public cemeteries and other cemeteries under Minnesota’s jurisdiction (municipalities, towns, and similar entities) will need to adapt policies and operations to:

Honor burial rites of recognized religions, including green burial options.
Comply with green burial standards and density rules.

Families and individuals seeking burial according to their religious practices, including green burials, would have clearer access and legal protection to ensure their rites are respected.

Procedural and timeline aspects

Status and process: Introduced and referred to Health Finance and Policy for consideration (as of May 16, 2026).

Sponsorship: Co-sponsor John Huot.

Implementation timeline: The bill text does not specify a precise effective date in the excerpts provided; typically, Minnesota bills include an effective date (often July 1 following enactment or a later date), which would be clarified in the final enacted version.

Notable details

The bill explicitly ties green burial permissions to compliance with existing green burial statutes (chapter 149A and section 306.991), ensuring alignment with established regulatory frameworks.

The density provision balances spiritual/religious burial practices with land-use capacity by setting a general cap while providing a religious-rite-based exception.

If you’d like, I can provide a side-by-side comparison with current statute to highlight all changes line-by-line, or track potential fiscal or administrative impacts based on typical cemetery operations.