Exhibit 99.1

       SERVICE CORPORATION INTERNATIONAL DECLARES QUARTERLY CASH DIVIDEND

    HOUSTON, May 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Service Corporation International
(NYSE: SCI), which owns and operates funeral service locations and cemeteries,
today announced that its Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend
of two and one-half cents per share of common stock. The quarterly cash dividend
is payable on July 29, 2005 to shareholders of record at the close of business
on July 15, 2005.

    Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Statements The statements in this
    press release that are not historical facts are

forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements have been made in
reliance on the "safe harbor" protections provided under the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements may be accompanied by words such
as "believe," "estimate," "project," "expect," "anticipate," or "predict," that
convey the uncertainty of future events or outcomes. These statements are based
on assumptions that we believe are reasonable; however, many important factors
could cause our actual results in the future to differ materially from the
forward-looking statements made herein and in any other documents or oral
presentations made by, or on behalf of us. There can be no assurance that future
dividends will be declared. The actual declaration of future dividends, and the
establishment of record and payment dates, is subject to final determination by
our Board of Directors each quarter after its review of our financial
performance. Important factors which could cause actual results to differ
materially from those in forward-looking statements include, among others,
restrictions on the payment of dividends under existing or future credit
agreements or other financing arrangements; changes in tax laws relating to
corporate dividends; a determination by the Board of Directors that the
declaration of a dividend is not in the best interests of the Company and its
shareholders; an increase in our cash needs or a decrease in available cash; or
a deterioration in our financial condition or results.

    For further information on these and other risks and uncertainties, see our
Securities and Exchange Commission filings, including our 2004 Annual Report on
Form 10-K, as amended. Copies of this document as well as other SEC filings can
be obtained from our website at http://www.sci-corp.com . We assume no
obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements made
herein or any other forward-looking statements made by us, whether as a result
of new information, future events or otherwise.



    Service Corporation International (NYSE: SCI), headquartered in Houston,
Texas, owns and operates funeral service locations and cemeteries. We have an
extensive network of businesses including 1,169 funeral service locations and
390 cemeteries in North America as of March 31, 2005. For more information about
Service Corporation International, please visit our website at
http://www.sci-corp.com .

     For additional information contact:

     Investors:
     Debbie Young - Director of Investor Relations
     (713) 525-9088

     Media:
     Terry Hemeyer - Managing Director / Corporate Communications
     (713) 525-5497

SOURCE  Service Corporation International
    -0-                             05/11/2005

    /CONTACT:  investors, Debbie Young, Director of Investor Relations,
+1-713-525-9088, or media, Terry Hemeyer, Managing Director - Corporate
Communications, +1-713-525-5497, both of Service Corporation International/
    /Web site:  http://www.sci-corp.com /