Jeff Miller: “the provisions in title two originated in the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs. Section 201…”

“the provisions in title two originated in the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs. Section 201 would allow tribal governments to participate in the State Cemetery Grants Program to establish, expand, and improve veterans' cemeteries on trust lands. The Department of Veterans Affairs' State Cemetery Grants Program was established in 1978 to complement VA's National Cemetery system. VA will pay for the construction costs, and states are responsible for providing the land and ongoing operating and maintenance expenses. There are currently 60 state cemeteries and two under construction, and states are planning to open 18 new state veterans' cemeteries between 2007 and 2010. Owing to the success of the State Cemetery Grants Program, Congress made it permanent in Public Law 108-183. However, tribal governments are not considered eligible for these cemetery grants. This section will provide Native American veterans the opportunity to be buried in a veterans' cemetery on trust land. Madam Speaker, I'd like to thank Representative Tom Udall, a member of the Subcommittee, for bringing this issue to our attention so we could include it in the bill under consideration today. Section 202 would make permanent the Secretary's authority to furnish a government marker for veterans interred in a marked grave at a private cemetery, as well as offering a headstone in lieu of a marker, if requested by the family.…”