AUGUSTA (AP) – Funeral directors think Maine should get in sync with most other states on how long they must hold on to unclaimed cremated remains, and lawmakers appear to agree.

The House on Thursday gave final approval to a bill that decreases the time a funeral director must keep cremated remains from four years to one year. A final vote is pending in the Senate.

Earlier this year, Jim Fernald of the Maine Funeral Directors Association told the Business, Research and Economic Development Committee that one year should be enough time for families to claim the cremated remains of their loved ones. He said a one-year retention requirement is the national norm.

The bill’s sponsor, Democratic Rep. Benjamin Pratt of Eddington, called the current four-year rule “arbitrary and unnecessary.”

AP-ES-04-09-09 1312EDT