Gov. Jared Polis signed legislation on Monday to allow the state to inspect funeral homes and crematories without getting an operator’s permission to enter the premises.

House Bill 1073, which will go into effect in August, is a response to multiple cases of malpractice recently uncovered in Colorado’s funeral industry.

Bill sponsor Rep. Dylan Roberts said these cases were a result of “a complete failure of our state regulatory system” since the state was aware of the complaints for years but could not investigate them because the operators of the funeral homes wouldn’t let inspectors inside.

“When I heard about the horrendous atrocities being perpetrated upon my constituent’s family members and across the region, I knew I had to do something,” Roberts, D-Avon, said. “By closing this loophole, we will ensure that these atrocities do not happen to any more Colorado families, and we can protect the honorable and sensitive work that funeral homes and crematories do from bad actors.”

In 2020, the owners of Sunset Mesa Funeral Home in Montrose were arrested for allegedly selling body parts, and sometimes full bodies, of deceased individuals whose families had brought them to the funeral home to be cremated. Investigators said, from 2010 to 2018, hundreds of unknowing families received ashes composed of concrete, kitty litter and the cremations of strangers.

The next year, two counties away, Lake County Coroner Shannon Kent was arrested after investigators said they found severely decomposed bodies in his funeral home – one which had been dead since 2013 and another, an infant, which was so decomposed it could not be identified. Kent was also accused of keeping unrefrigerated bodies and bags of unlabeled cremains in his funeral homes in Silverthorne, Leadville and Gypsum.

Under the bill, the Division of Professions and Occupations will have the authority to inspect registered funeral establishments and crematories without getting an operator’s permission to enter if a complaint has been made.

“While I wish we did not have to pass bills like this, I am proud to have gotten this done because this is a true constituent bill and it was needed as soon as possible,” Roberts said. “I am also proud of the broad bipartisan support in both chambers. Ensuring our loved ones are treated responsibly is far more important than politics.”

The state Senate approved the bipartisan bill – also sponsored by Delta Republican Rep. Matt Soper – unanimously, while the state House of Representatives passed it in a 53-10 vote.

The 10 opponents to the bill – all Republicans – argued that the bill is unnecessary because law enforcement can already enter funeral homes if they get a warrant. The bill sponsors said complaints aren’t always criminal and receiving probable cause for the prior criminal acts required entry to the premises.

The requirement that inspectors first get an operator’s permission to enter doesn’t apply to other establishments, such as hair salons and restaurants.