PRINTER'S NO. 1300
No. 1140 Session of 1989
INTRODUCED BY CALTAGIRONE, RYBAK, STABACK, NAHILL, KOSINSKI,
JOHNSON, PHILLIPS, VEON, PISTELLA, LEH, MORRIS, ANGSTADT,
BILLOW, ROBINSON, DORR AND LaGROTTA, APRIL 11, 1989
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON BUSINESS AND COMMERCE, APRIL 11, 1989
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of August 14, 1963 (P.L.1059, No.459), entitled
2 "An act prohibiting future need sales of cemetery merchandise
3 and services, funeral merchandise and services, except under
4 certain conditions; requiring the establishment of and
5 deposit into a merchandise trust fund of certain amount of
6 the proceeds of any such sale; providing for the
7 administration of such trust funds and the payment of money
8 therefrom; conferring powers and imposing duties on orphans'
9 courts, and prescribing penalties," further providing for
10 merchandise trust fund deposits.
11 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
12 hereby enacts as follows:
13 Section 1. Section 2 of the act of August 14, 1963
14 (P.L.1059, No.459), entitled "An act prohibiting future need
15 sales of cemetery merchandise and services, funeral merchandise
16 and services, except under certain conditions; requiring the
17 establishment of and deposit into a merchandise trust fund of
18 certain amount of the proceeds of any such sale; providing for
19 the administration of such trust funds and the payment of money
20 therefrom; conferring powers and imposing duties on orphans'
21 courts, and prescribing penalties," is amended to read:
1 Section 2. (a) Any person entering into any such contract
2 as the seller shall deposit into a merchandise trust fund,
3 established for that purpose with a banking institution in the
4 Commonwealth authorized to perform trust functions, as trustee
5 of such fund, [seventy] one hundred per cent of the retail sale
6 price of the personal property or personal services so sold for
7 future need.
8 (b) The deposit herein required to be made into such
9 merchandise trust fund shall be made within thirty days after
10 the end of the month in which the final payment of the purchase
11 price provided for under such contract is received by the seller
12 from the purchaser or otherwise. Prior to receipt by the seller
13 of final payment of the purchase price provided for under any
14 such contract, the seller, at the end of each month, shall
15 deposit, in a special account in a banking institution properly
16 identified as being for such purpose, all payments on account
17 received under any such contract during the month and ensuing
18 months commencing thereafter[, after first deducting the
19 percentage permitted to be retained by seller]. Withdrawals from
20 such special account shall be made by seller only for the
21 purpose of transfer to the merchandise trust fund upon final
22 payment of the purchase price by the purchaser under the
23 contract.
24 [(c) If, prior to final payment of the purchase price under
25 the contract, the purchaser shall default in making payments on
26 account thereof, the seller shall be entitled to retain as
27 liquidated damages and withdraw from the special account thirty
28 percent of the contract price, and shall refund to the purchaser
29 the balance in the special account, if any.]
30 (d) Each deposit into the merchandise trust fund shall be
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1 identified by the seller by furnishing the trustee with the name
2 of the purchaser, the amount of the retail sales price [and the
3 percentage thereof herein required to be deposited], together
4 with a statement of or a copy of the contract and the personal
5 property and services to be furnished by the seller thereunder.
6 Nothing herein contained shall prohibit the trustee from
7 commingling the deposits in any such trust fund for purposes of
8 the management thereof and the investment of funds therein.
9 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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