Bill Summary
This legislation, known as the "Burial Equity for Guards and Reserves Act of 2020", aims to amend title 38 of the United States Code in order to ensure that grants provided by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for State veterans' cemeteries do not restrict States from authorizing the interment of certain deceased members of the reserve components of the Armed Forces. The bill also prohibits the Secretary from denying an application for a grant solely based on the use of funds for expanding, improving, operating, or maintaining a veterans' cemetery to allow for the interment of these individuals. Additionally, the legislation prohibits the Secretary from enforcing conditions on grants for State veterans' cemeteries that were established before the enactment of this Act. This bill aims to provide equal burial rights for members of the reserve components of the Armed Forces and their spouses, as well as members of the Army National Guard, Air National Guard, and the Reserve Officers' Training Corps.
Possible Impacts
1. This legislation could affect people by ensuring that certain deceased members of the reserve components of the Armed Forces are allowed to be buried in state veterans' cemeteries, instead of being restricted to only open national cemeteries. This would affect families and loved ones of these individuals, as they would have the option to be buried in a cemetery close to home or in a cemetery with personal significance.
2. The legislation could also impact state governments, as it prohibits the Secretary of Veterans Affairs from restricting the use of grants for state veterans' cemeteries to only certain types of individuals. This could potentially lead to more funds being allocated towards expanding, improving, and maintaining these cemeteries for the interment of a wider range of individuals.
3. Additionally, the legislation prevents the Secretary of Veterans Affairs from enforcing any conditions on grants for state veterans' cemeteries that were established before the enactment of this Act. This could affect the operations and funding of these cemeteries, potentially allowing for more flexibility in their use and development.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7727 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7727
To amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure that grants provided
by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for State veterans' cemeteries do
not restrict States from authorizing the interment of certain deceased
members of the reserve components of the Armed Forces in such
cemeteries, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 22, 2020
Mr. Pappas (for himself, Mr. Palazzo, and Ms. Kuster of New Hampshire)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Veterans' Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure that grants provided
by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for State veterans' cemeteries do
not restrict States from authorizing the interment of certain deceased
members of the reserve components of the Armed Forces in such
cemeteries, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Burial Equity for Guards and
Reserves Act of 2020''.
SEC. 2. PROHIBITIONS ON RESTRICTING INTERMENT OF CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS IN
CERTAIN STATE VETERANS' CEMETERIES.
Section 2408 of title 38, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (c)(2), by striking ``The Secretary may''
and inserting ``Except as provided in subsection (e), the
Secretary may'';
(2) by redesignating subsections (e) and (f) as subsections
(g) and (h), respectively; and
(3) by inserting after subsection (d) the following new
subsections:
``(e)(1) The Secretary may not establish a condition for a grant
under this section that restricts the ability of a State receiving such
a grant to inter in a veterans' cemetery owned by that State any
individual described in paragraph (2) solely by reason of the
ineligibility of such individual for burial in an open national
cemetery under the control of the National Cemetery Administration
under section 2402(a) of this title.
``(2) An individual described in this paragraph is the following:
``(A) Any member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces
whose service was terminated under honorable conditions.
``(B) Any member of the Army National Guard or the Air
National Guard whose service was terminated under honorable
conditions.
``(C) Any member of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps of
the Army, Navy, or Air Force whose death occurs under honorable
conditions while a member of the Reserve Officers' Training
Corps of the Army, Navy, or Air Force.
``(D) Any spouse of any member described in subparagraphs
(A) through (C).
``(f) The Secretary may not deny an application for a grant under
this section solely on the basis that the State receiving such grant
may use funds from such grant to expand, improve, operate, or maintain
a veterans' cemetery to allow for the interment of individuals
described in subsection (e)(2).''.
SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON ENFORCING CERTAIN CONDITIONS ON GRANTS FOR STATE
VETERANS' CEMETERIES.
The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may not enforce a condition on a
grant described in subsection (e)(1) of section 2408 of title 38,
United States Code, as added by section 2(3), that was established
before the date of the enactment of this Act.
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