In observance of Presidents’ Day, the office of the New Jersey State Funeral Directors Association will be closed on Monday, February 16, 2026.

The office will reopen at 9:00 a.m. Tuesday, February 17, 2026.

The number of deaths in New Jersey in 2025 dipped to levels not seen in 10 years, according to state Department of Health statistics.

The preliminary total of deaths in the state was 74,851, marking the fifth straight year the number has declined since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The final number of deaths during that year was 95,994, more than 20,000 above the 2025 figure.

The last time the total was below the 2025 number was in 2016, when 73,215 deaths were recorded. In 2024, 74,971 deaths were recorded.

The death totals for 2023 through 2025 mark a return to historical norms after three years of elevated totals attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the 2020 increase, more than 84,000 died in 2021 and 81,573 died in 2022, according to DOH statistics.

Following typical trends, the greatest monthly number of deaths in New Jersey occurs in January. In 2025, 7,329 people died in the first month of the year, compared to 7,418 in 2024. January is considered the height of the season for flu and other respiratory illnesses. Summer months typically see a drop in the death totals, and 2025 was no exception. From June to September, the state averaged fewer than 6,000 death per month.

The 2025 total is also lower than the number of New Jersey deaths recorded in 2000, even though the state’s population is 13.5 percent greater than it was 25 years ago. The continued comparatively lower number of deaths can be attributed in part to the “excess deaths” that occurred during the pandemic years of 2020 through 2022, when the state average more than 87,000 deaths per year.

More than 36,000 New Jerseyans have died because of COVID-19 or coronavirus-related causes, according to DOH statistics. Those deaths roughly mirror the increase in the numbers of deaths recording from 2020 to 2022. 

Many who died of COVID-19 suffered from comorbidities such as heart disease, diabetes and hypertension. Those deaths could be considered “deaths before their time,” Barbara Kemmis, the executive director of the Cremation Association of North America, said in 2021. Because of those excess deaths, the numbers in subsequent years will naturally drop.

Kemmis argued that the drop in the number of deaths could have a financial impact on funeral directors in the five years after the pandemic because of the significant number of excess deaths recorded during the COVID-19 outbreak.

John J. Sperling IV, a Monmouth and Ocean Funeral Directors Association member, died on January 31, 2026. He was 62.

Born in East Orange and raised in Morganville, Jackie was a long-serving funeral director at Laurel Funeral Home in Hazlet, where he worked with his father, John J. Sperling III.

Jackie was fond of the outdoors and could be found hunting, shooting, cooking or just enjoying time with his family.

He is survived by his wife, Yvonne; his children, Nicole and Jack; his father, John J. Sperling III; and his sister, Bonnie Cummings.

Union County is considering merging its medical examiner’s office with the Northern Regional Medical Examiner’s Office in Newark.

The NRMEO currently serves Essex, Hudson, Passaic and Somerset counties. In 2024, Hudson and Passaic counties were considering leaving the NRMEO by executing a shared services agreement with the Bergen County Medical Examiner’s Office.

The NRMEO recently underwent extensive renovations to fix faulty refrigeration units and other infrastructure issues.

Funeral homes wishing to provide opinions on the Union County merger should contact:

Ed Oatman, County Manager
Union County Administration Building
10 Elizabethtown Plaza
Elizabeth NJ 07207
Telephone: 908.527.4200
Fax: 908.289.0180

The information contained in this column is a report of the actions taken by the board members who were present during the open public session portion of the meeting only. It is not a transcript of the official board minutes or an official record of attendance. It does not address board member attendance or actions taken during the executive session that typically follows the open session and is closed to the public.

February 3, 2026

Members Present

Charles F. Bechtold, CFSP, President; Bruce Van Tassel, Secretary; Rita Alvarez; Gregory Aseltta; Garrett C. Jones; Aladar Komjathy; Eleanor Rudolph.

Executive Staff Present

Quin Archer, Executive Director; Dan Roman, Deputy Attorney General; Nytanio Romulu, Regulatory Analyst.

Public

George R. Kelder Jr., CFSP, Samantha L. Link, Jonathan R. Bender, New Jersey State Funeral Directors Association, and eight members of the public were present.

Executive Director’s Report

The Board received seven complaints in January for a total of seven complaints received in 2026.

A total of 20 candidates registered for the February 20, 2026 Jurisprudence Examination.

Wall certificates were issued to 33 licensees who were licensed from March 7, 2025 to December 19, 2025.

Applications

There were no applications for the month of January.

Approved Internships

• Charles Chiango III, Egizi Funeral Home
• Jonathan Field, Clayton & McGirr Funeral Home
• Jessica Ferrazzano, Flynn and Sons Funeral Home
• Angelyna Scheck, Scanlan’s Funeral Home

New Licensees

By Application

• Yazen Abdallah
• Michael Bennett
• Dana M. Testa

Licensed by Application for 2026: 3
Licensed by Credentials for 2026: 0

New Funeral Home Registrations

There were no registrations approved in January.

Continuing Education Report

The Board approved the courses listed on the meeting agenda, with several exceptions, and will post the approved courses on the Board’s website under the licensee tab.

Correspondence

• Adam Guziejewski, representing SCI/Dignity Memorial, provided the Board with Assembly Bill 6308, which was introduced on January 2, 2026 by Assemblywoman Ellen Park and co-sponsored Assemblyman Singh. This Act requires the Attorney General to create certain model policies protecting personal freedoms and supplementing Titled 52 of the Revised Statutes. The bill was signed into law on January 20, 2026.
• Dalene Paull, executive director of the International Conference of Funeral Service Examining Boards, provided a copy of their 2026 budget that was approved by their Board of Directors on December 23, 2025.
• Marc Giorgiantonio, lead Trust administrator, informed the Board that notification letters were prepared for preneed purchasers of record regarding the change of management for the Leonardis Memorial Home. David Chiacchio intends to execute and mail notification letters.
• Marc Giorgiantonio, lead Trust administrator, informed the Board that notification letters were prepared for preneed purchasers of record regarding the change of management for Evergreen Memorial Home. Eugene Santomauro intends to execute and mail notification letters.
• Marc Giorgiantonio, lead Trust administrator, informed the Board that notification letters were prepared for preneed purchasers of record regarding the sale of the Mark C. Tilghman Funeral Home. Mark Tilghman intends to execute and mail notification letters.

Disciplinary Actions

• Vincent Delle Grotti and Joseph Pula have accepted settlement offers by the Board for violation of N.J.A.C. 13:36-10.3 by failing to complete the required 10 continuing education credits for the 2021-2023 licensing period. Mr. Delle Grotti and Mr. Pula have agreed to pay a civil penalty in the amount of $100 per incomplete credit and make up the missing credits within two months of the settlement.

Items for Discussion

Regulatory Analyst Nytanio Romulus was in attendance to discuss the re-adoption of Chapter 36, the mortuary regulations. He advised that while he was aware that the legislative committee of the Board is working on amendments pertaining to the new licensing and natural organic reduction laws, it is important to re-adopt the regulations “as is” and then submit the regulatory changes to accommodate the new laws to prevent any lapse in the regulations.

Mr. Romulus further advised the Board that Governor Mikie Sherrill has placed a 90-day pause on the introduction of any new rules and regulations; however, the readoption of regulations in their existing form would be exempt from the freeze. The Board voted to re-adopt the regulations as is, with one vote in the negative by Eleanor Rudolph.

Public Comment

Al Komjathy noted for the record that former Governor Richard Codey recently died. Komjathy called Governor Codey the last of the old-time politician funeral directors and that he will be missed.

Next Board Meeting

The Board moved into Executive Session at 9:46 a.m. and noted that the next Board meeting will be held on Tuesday, March 3, 2026 at 9:30 a.m. via Zoom.

The legislature in Utah is considering the legalization of natural organic reduction, adding another state to the growing number that have either approved the method or are contemplating it.

The measure, S.B. 49, establishes the parameters under which natural organic reduction, often called human composting, could be offered in the state. Like New Jersey, which legalized NOR in 2025, the process would be provided and overseen by a licensed funeral director. The bill is sponsored by Senator Jen Plumb, a Democrat and licensed physician.

Under the Utah proposal, recordkeeping requirements for funeral directors would be updated to include NOR and regulations concerning accepting and using the remains from natural organic reduction would be implemented.

Natural organic reduction is the process of controlled supervised decomposition of a human body resulting in the conversion of human remains into a soil-like product.

The Utah bill passed the Senate Health and Human Services Committee in January 2026. It now heads to the full Senate for consideration.