[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2951 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2951

To amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure that the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs is informed of the interment of deceased veterans, and 
                          for other purposes.


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                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           November 20, 2014

  Mr. Heller introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
             referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure that the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs is informed of the interment of deceased veterans, 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 ``Veterans Dignified Burial Act''.

SEC. 2. INFORMATION CONCERNING SCHEDULED INTERMENTS OF VETERANS.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 24 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``Sec. 2415. Information concerning scheduled interments
    ``(a) Scheduled Interment.--(1) At the same time that the Secretary 
confirms to a covered entity the veteran status of a deceased veteran 
in the custody of the covered entity, the Secretary shall request from 
the covered entity the specific date of the scheduled interment of the 
deceased veteran.
    ``(2) During each 30-day period following the date of a request 
made under paragraph (1) concerning a deceased veteran, the Secretary 
shall repeat such request until the date on which the covered entity 
confirms to the Secretary that the deceased veteran has been interred.
    ``(b) Annual Report.--(1) Not later than January 31 of each year, 
the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the 
Senate and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
Representatives a report on deceased veterans who were interred after 
the 30-day period following the date on which the Secretary made a 
request under subsection (a).
    ``(2) Each report submitted under paragraph (1) shall include the 
following:
            ``(A) During the year prior to the year in which the report 
        is submitted, the number of deceased veterans who were not 
        interred during the period described in paragraph (1), 
        including the covered entity that had custody of each deceased 
        veteran.
            ``(B) The number of such deceased veterans who, as of the 
        date of the report, are not yet interred, including the covered 
        entity that has custody of each deceased veteran.
    ``(c) Covered Entity Defined.--In this section, the term `covered 
entity' means a local medical examiner, funeral director, county 
service group, or other similar entity.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 
2414 the following new item:

``2415. Information concerning scheduled interments.''.
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