The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been paying attention to comments from consumers, and is taking steps to strengthen the Funeral Rule. We are delighted that FTC now proposes requiring ONLINE posting of itemized prices. This is a major victory. I smile as I read their October 2022 press release: FTC Seeks to Improve the American Public’s Access to Funeral Service Prices Online.
Today I am smiling even more broadly as I read – in detail – what the Commission is proposing. Their complete document in the Federal Register summarizes what was learned from public comments submitted in spring 2020, what the Commission proposes, and what details still need to be worked out. (There are 40 specific questions at the end on which they invite fresh comments; deadline January 3, 2023.)
Our advocacy in 2020 helped. FTC listened! Today I noticed our organization’s name among others in footnote 14, which is attached to this sentence: “Most commenters expressed support for the Rule.” Overall FTC received 785 comments in 2020, the vast majority (689) from individuals. THANK YOU if you submitted a comment then; no need to repeat your comment now. You might even find your name in the footnotes in this 2022 document if FTC mentioned your idea or quoted your exact wording.
Tip: The complete document can be read online (with all 228 footnotes grouped at the back) or can be downloaded as a PDF, which displays footnotes in context, at bottom of each column. I found the PDF easier to read. IF you wish to PRINT it for easier reading, the PDF is more compact: 21 pages instead of 46 (or if printed double-sided, 11 vs. 23 sheets of paper). To obtain the PDF, scroll to the very BOTTOM of the online document, and look for the Download button.
I hope my personal notes here will encourage you to engage with this FTC process. This is a special and RARE opportunity! We’ve been waiting YEARS for a chance to get the Funeral Rule updated. It was written in 1982, implemented in 1984, amended once in 1994, reviewed in 2008 with a decision to retain the Rule without changes. There was supposed to be a review in 2018, but that was not started until 2020. The door is open NOW.
We can advocate for needed changes NOW – until Jan 3. (The next opportunity might not come for another decade or two. ) See our webpage about Updating the Funeral Rule.
For historical perspective, I recommend chapter 15 in Jessica Mitford’s The American Way of Death, Revisited (1998). She wrote, “The mills of the FTC grind slowly… To those involved, the process seemed interminable –– from 1973 when Arthur Angel and colleagues had begun researching the funeral industry, to announcement of the proposed trade rule in 1975, on through the public hearings to final adoption of the rule in 1984.” She then revealed problems with subsequent enforcement, and some industry pushback that weakened the Rule in the 1990’s. Here we are three DECADES later, advocating for stronger consumer protections in the Funeral Rule, which hasn’t really changed since 1994.
