24-13-5: Payment of burial or cremation expenses; commissioners' liability.

The board of county commissioners of any county within this state may authorize payment for the burial or cremation of an unclaimed decedent, as defined in Section 24-13-1 NMSA 1978. All available assets of the deceased may be used to reimburse the county for the cost of burial or cremation. Should the county be required to pay expenses for burial or cremation of an unclaimed decedent who has left an estate, the estate shall reimburse the county for those expenses. The county commissioners may be liable officially to the county they represent in double the amount they have paid toward the burial or cremation of a person other than as authorized by this section.