After approving a $50 cremation permit fee in April 2014 and then rescinding the fee one month later following public criticism, Grand Traverse County commissioners Wednesday once again approved enforcing the fee beginning January 1, 2015.

Commissioners voted unanimously at a county budget meeting yesterday to charge a $50 cremation fee for residents of Grand Traverse County. Fees would be waived in the deaths of infants one year or less, indigent families and indigent veterans. Grand Traverse County Health Officer Wendy Trute estimates that of 800 county resident deaths processed annually, 75 percent utilize cremation. Because cremations require a medical examiner review and generate costs not paid by the family, Trute says taxpayers subsidize those who choose cremation – unlike those who are buried or donate their bodies to science.

Comparing it to any other elective county service for which residents pay fees, Trute told commissioners: “It's a reality you typically pay for the service you request."

The new cremation fees are expected to generate an estimated $45,000 annually in revenue.