Hello fellow MFDA members,

It seems like time has flown by and the new year has rapidly approached! I want to start by saying thank you to our membership, vendors and sponsors for making our association the success it has been. To our executive director, James Brown, our executive assistant, Terri James, and the executive board, thank you all for your insights and dedication to being an advocate for the funeral homes and families we serve.

I had the pleasure of attending the NFDA conference in New Orleans in October and seeing the historic city of New Orleans for the first time. We had a very nice state dinner at the Olde Nola Cookery on Bourbon Street, and it was well-represented by Montana directors, staff and vendors. If you are a student of American history, New Orleans has abundant options to explore.

The exposition hall gave folks the opportunity to visit with individual vendors and sponsors. Of note is the frustration with shipping human remains from airports in Montana. Delta and United cargo operations were present in the hall, and many had the opportunity to express a desire for improvement in airport operations. The airlines seemed receptive to the concerns and frustrations and promised to report our position back to those corporate positions responsible for the cargo side of their operations. What happens from there is impossible to predict, but, in visiting with some local firms, I find very little has changed up to this point. We are able to, on a general basis, receive remains with more certainty than we are to ship remains out of Montana. This is untenable on many levels as firms are forced to drive to major airports in Denver and Salt Lake City, driving up costs for families and firms while at the same time stressing manpower.

Also, the nation’s funeral firms are watching and waiting, not only for rulings on the updated FTC Funeral Rule and permissible formaldehyde exposure limit, but also for the advocacy and possible legal response by the NFDA and other member organizations to any administrative ruling deemed harmful to us as an industry. I believe with some certainty that the same thing you already know regarding the FTC is that online price disclosures will be one of a few changes that will be proffered. 

The MFDA trust committee and executive board has been working diligently to search for a new administrator for the Montana Funeral Trust. As you may now know, the New York Funeral Trust has informed the association that they will no longer be administering the trust, effective Oct. 1, 2025. With due diligence, we feel there are viable options for us moving forward. James Brown has been instrumental with his legal knowledge and ability to navigate the complex issues that affect the trust as a whole and the association as a fiduciary. In the future, it may be necessary to address the investment side of the trust through a Montana legislative bill that focuses on allowing different options in terms of what products we can invest in rather than relying solely on government securities. The board has also retained outside counsel to ensure the transition will comply with Montana law.

By the time you peruse this article, we will have been through the fall 2024 District Meeting together via Zoom. The platform seemed to be well-received by our members, with fall sessions online and spring meetings held in person. The MFDA wants you to know that our advocacy is dedicated to protecting our members from things like the elimination of the BFS and creating opportunities for individual members to get their continuing education credits with quality offerings in terms of educational topics.

I am glad we can now relax in front of the television, after months of siege from political advertisements! Thank you, members, for all you do. We hope to some of you at the 2025 Mid-Winter Conference on Feb. 5-6, 2025, at the Great Northern Hotel in Helena.

Have a meaningful and blessed holiday season with family and friends.

My Best,
Steve Kirkegard