[House Hearing, 111 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
HONORING THE FALLEN: HOW CAN WE BETTER
SERVE AMERICA'S VETERANS AND THEIR FAMILIES?
=======================================================================
HEARING
before the
SUBCOMMITTEE ON DISABILITY ASSISTANCE AND MEMORIAL AFFAIRS
of the
COMMITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFAIRS
U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED ELEVENTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
__________
SEPTEMBER 24, 2009
__________
Serial No. 111-44
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
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COMMITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFAIRS
BOB FILNER, California, Chairman
CORRINE BROWN, Florida STEVE BUYER, Indiana, Ranking
VIC SNYDER, Arkansas CLIFF STEARNS, Florida
MICHAEL H. MICHAUD, Maine JERRY MORAN, Kansas
STEPHANIE HERSETH SANDLIN, South HENRY E. BROWN, Jr., South
Dakota Carolina
HARRY E. MITCHELL, Arizona JEFF MILLER, Florida
JOHN J. HALL, New York JOHN BOOZMAN, Arkansas
DEBORAH L. HALVORSON, Illinois BRIAN P. BILBRAY, California
THOMAS S.P. PERRIELLO, Virginia DOUG LAMBORN, Colorado
HARRY TEAGUE, New Mexico GUS M. BILIRAKIS, Florida
CIRO D. RODRIGUEZ, Texas VERN BUCHANAN, Florida
JOE DONNELLY, Indiana DAVID P. ROE, Tennessee
JERRY McNERNEY, California
ZACHARY T. SPACE, Ohio
TIMOTHY J. WALZ, Minnesota
JOHN H. ADLER, New Jersey
ANN KIRKPATRICK, Arizona
GLENN C. NYE, Virginia
Malcom A. Shorter, Staff Director
______
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
JOHN J. HALL, New York, Chairman
DEBORAH L. HALVORSON, Illinois DOUG LAMBORN, Colorado, Ranking
JOE DONNELLY, Indiana JEFF MILLER, Florida
CIRO D. RODRIGUEZ, Texas BRIAN P. BILBRAY, California
ANN KIRKPATRICK, Arizona
Pursuant to clause 2(e)(4) of Rule XI of the Rules of the House, public
hearing records of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs are also
published in electronic form. The printed hearing record remains the
official version. Because electronic submissions are used to prepare
both printed and electronic versions of the hearing record, the process
of converting between various electronic formats may introduce
unintentional errors or omissions. Such occurrences are inherent in the
current publication process and should diminish as the process is
further refined.
C O N T E N T S
__________
September 24, 2009
Page
Honoring the Fallen: How Can We Better Serve America's Veterans
and Their Families?............................................ 1
OPENING STATEMENTS
Chairman John J. Hall............................................ 1
Prepared statement of Chairman Hall.......................... 36
Hon. Doug Lamborn, Ranking Republican Member..................... 2
Prepared statement of Congressman Lamborn.................... 37
Hon. Joe Donnelly................................................ 4
Hon. Jeff Miller, prepared statement of.......................... 37
Hon. Steve Buyer................................................. 4
Prepared statement of Congressman Buyer...................... 38
WITNESSES
American Battle Monuments Commission, Hon. Max Cleland, Secretary 6
Prepared statement of Secretary Cleland...................... 41
Arlington National Cemetery, John C. Metzler, Jr., Superintendent 8
Prepared statement of Mr. Metzler............................ 43
U.S. Department of the Interior, Katherine Stevenson, Assistant
Director, Business Services, National Park Service............. 9
Prepared statement of Ms. Stevenson.......................... 45
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Steve L. Muro, Acting Under
Secretary for Memorial Affairs, National Cemetery
Administration................................................. 26
Prepared statement of Mr. Muro............................... 58
______
American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO, John
Nicolai, Cemetery Representative, Ft. Logan National Cemetery,
Denver, CO, and Shop Steward, AFGE Local 2241.................. 24
Prepared statement of Mr. Nicolai............................ 56
American Veterans (AMVETS), Raymond C. Kelley, National
Legislative Director........................................... 20
Prepared statement of Mr. Kelley............................. 49
Disabled American Veterans, John L. Wilson, Assistant National
Legislative Director........................................... 18
Prepared statement of Mr. Wilson............................. 47
Gold Star Wives of America, Inc., Vivianne Cisneros Wersel,
Au.D., Chair, Government Relations Committee................... 21
Prepared statement of Ms. Wersel............................. 52
National Funeral Directors Association, Lesley Witter, Director
of Political Affairs........................................... 23
Prepared statement of Ms. Witter............................. 53
MATERIAL SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD
Post-Hearing Questions and Responses for the Record:
Hon. John J. Hall, Chairman, Subcommittee on Disability
Assistance and Memorial Affairs, Committee on Veterans'
Affairs, to John C. Metzler, Superintendent, Arlington National
Cemetery, letter dated October 14, 2009, and Mr. Metzler's
responses...................................................... 65
Hon. John J. Hall, Chairman, Subcommittee on Disability
Assistance and Memorial Affairs, Committee on Veterans'
Affairs, to Katherine Stevenson, Assistance Director, Business
Services, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the
Interior, letter dated October 14, 2009, and response from
Christopher P. Salotti, Legislative Counsel, Office of
Congressional Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior, letter
dated November 13, 2009........................................ 66
Hon. John J. Hall, Chairman, Subcommittee on Disability
Assistance and Memorial Affairs, Committee on Veterans'
Affairs, to John L. Wilson, Assistant National Legislative
Director, Disabled American Veterans, letter dated October 14,
2009, and DAV responses........................................ 67
Hon. John J. Hall, Chairman, Subcommittee on Disability
Assistance and Memorial Affairs, Committee on Veterans'
Affairs, to Raymond Kelley, National Legislative Director,
AMVETS, letter dated October 14, 2009, and AMVETS responses.... 69
Hon. John J. Hall, Chairman, Subcommittee on Disability
Assistance and Memorial Affairs, Committee on Veterans'
Affairs, to Vivianne Cisneros Wersel, Chair, Government
Relations Committee, Gold Star Wives of America, Inc., letter
dated October 14, 2009, and GSW responses...................... 70
Hon. John J. Hall, Chairman, Subcommittee on Disability
Assistance and Memorial Affairs, Committee on Veterans'
Affairs, to Lesley Witter, Director of Political Affairs,
National Funeral Directors Association, letter dated October
14, 2009, and response letter dated November 13, 2009.......... 72
Hon. John J. Hall, Chairman, Subcommittee on Disability
Assistance and Memorial Affairs, Committee on Veterans'
Affairs, to Marilyn Park, Legislative Representative, American
Federation of Government Employees, letter dated October 14,
2009, and response from John Nicolai, Ft. Logan National
Cemetery on behalf of AFGE..................................... 75
Hon. John J. Hall, Chairman, Subcommittee on Disability
Assistance and Memorial Affairs, Committee on Veterans'
Affairs, to Steve L. Muro, Deputy Under Secretary for Memorial
Affairs, National Cemetery Administration, U.S. Department of
Veterans Affairs, letter dated October 14, 2009, and VA
responses...................................................... 79
HONORING THE FALLEN: HOW CAN WE
BETTER SERVE AMERICA'S VETERANS AND
THEIR FAMILIES?
----------
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2009
U.S. House of Representatives,
Committee on Veterans' Affairs,
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs,
Washington, DC.
The Subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:04 a.m., in
Room 334, Cannon House Office Building, Hon. John Hall
[Chairman of the Subcommittee] presiding.
Present: Representatives Hall, Halvorson, Donnelly,
Lamborn, and Miller.
Also Present: Representative Buyer.
OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN HALL
Mr. Hall. Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. The Committee
on Veterans' Affairs, Disability Assistance and Memorial
Affairs Subcommittee, hearing on Honoring our Fallen Heroes:
Are We Meeting the Burial Needs of our Veterans and Their
Families, will now come to order.
I ask that you all join me in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Flags are at both ends of the room.
[Pledge of Allegiance.]
Mr. Hall. Thank you and thank you for being here today.
Thank you to our distinguished witnesses.
From the Revolutionary War to our current conflicts in Iraq
and Afghanistan, American servicemembers have given their lives
for this country.
In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln created a national
veterans' cemetery system and dedicated it, ``For the soldiers
who shall die in the service of the country.'' President
Lincoln's sentiments and our undying gratitude are as palpable
today as they were in 1862, evident in our commitment to
provide benefits to ensure that our veterans are properly
memorialized.
Nevertheless, we may be falling short of our intended goals
on some fronts. Although Congress authorized the U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide veterans the
option to receive burial and plot allowances and reimbursements
to certain burial expenses, these benefits were created decades
ago and have not kept pace with inflation.
The value of the current $300 burial allowance and $300
plot allowance for qualifying veterans has diminished as
funeral and burial costs have increased at a higher rate than
the average inflation rate.
I am also concerned about VA's current cemetery policies,
which seem to leave a large number of veterans unserved by a
burial option.
Under the current standard, new national cemeteries are
established in areas where the unserved population is at least
170,000 veterans within a 75-mile radius. That means several
areas with large numbers of veterans, such as where the
population is more than 110,000, will remain unserved by a VA
burial option.
Moreover, VA's current strategic goal of reaching 90
percent served would require an additional 31 cemeteries beyond
those already in operation or planned as of 2001.
However, according to a study conducted by ICF
International, there are no locations in the U.S. that will
meet the current criteria for the establishment of a new
national cemetery until 2015. Even at that time, only one
community will reach the population threshold of 170,000
veterans. It is evident that changes to the current 75-mile
service area standard may be in order.
All these burial benefits concerns negatively impact the
survivors left behind. I want to further examine this critical
aspect of the issues with the VA as well.
Additionally, the National Shrine mandate holds that, ``All
national and other veterans' cemeteries under the control of
the National Cemetery Administration (NCA) shall be considered
National Shrines.''
Several factors will impact the NCA's ability to meet and
maintain the National Shrine mandate, namely the growing number
of interments, a large change in burial preferences, population
migration, and an aging infrastructure.
I believe that VA should conduct a preemptive review of the
NCA's obstacles in meeting a National Shrine mandate in order
to try to thwart new issues that may arise and ensure that
existing ones do not grow in complexity.
And, lastly, I look forward to hearing from Secretary
Cleland of the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC),
Superintendent Metzler of Arlington National Cemetery, and the
rest of our esteemed witnesses.
I believe that we can bring continuous improvements to our
system of memorializing our courageous veterans by ensuring
that their burial benefits and final resting place reflect the
debt of their service.
I would like to acknowledge that we have been joined by the
Ranking Member of the full Veterans' Affairs Committee,
Congressman Buyer, and ask unanimous consent that he be allowed
to participate in today's hearing. I yield now to the Ranking
Member of the Subcommittee, Mr. Lamborn, for his opening
statement.
[The prepared statement of Chairman Hall appears on p. 36.]
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. DOUG LAMBORN
Mr. Lamborn. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman, for holding
this hearing on America's national cemeteries.
I thank our witnesses in advance for their testimony today
and for their dedication to serving America's veterans and
their families.
Properly honoring a deceased veteran is one of our most
solemn and indeed sacred obligations. These patriots have
earned honored repose in a National Shrine. They and their
families are due the tribute and thanks of a grateful Nation.
As members of the greatest generation pass from our
presence, we are seeing increased demand on all of our national
cemeteries. VA estimates that interments in national cemeteries
will rise from the current level of 2.9 million to 3.4 million
by 2014.
Mr. Chairman, it is for that reason that I thank you for
helping my efforts to pass H.R. 174, which I introduced with my
good friend, Mr. Salazar, earlier this year. H.R. 174 would
establish a national cemetery in southern Colorado and greatly
benefit those veterans and families in this fast-growing area.
One reason for the continued delay in building the cemetery
is that the southern Colorado region does not meet VA's
subjective standards for new construction.
I believe that there is a better way to determine need than
drawing circles in a 75-mile radius around a national cemetery
to determine where the most underserved veterans are.
There are many other factors that need to be taken into
account including travel time to and from national cemeteries,
access to public transportation in the area, and other factors
that are more realistic than a large circle on a map.
However, I know that this problem is not just limited to
southern Colorado and that if we polled other Members, we would
find these problems and concerns extend to many rural and urban
regions like Nebraska, New York City, Los Angeles, Buffalo, New
York, and many other areas that are adversely affected by VA's
somewhat arbitrary rules.
Passing H.R. 174 would be an important first step in
addressing this problem and is identical to H.R. 1660 that
passed this Committee and the whole House last Congress.
Mr. Chairman, I thank you for your continued support of
this bill and I hope that the full Committee will consider it
soon.
I want to thank everyone again for being here today and I
am looking forward to your testimony.
Mr. Chairman, I yield back.
[The prepared statement of Congressman Lamborn appears on
p. 37.]
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Mr. Lamborn. I also support Mr.
Salazar's bill, H.R. 174.
I would like to remind all of our panelists that your
complete written statements have been made a part of the
hearing record, so please limit your remarks so that we may
have sufficient time for follow-up questions once everyone has
the opportunity to provide their testimony.
On our first panel is the Honorable----
Mr. Lamborn. Mr. Chairman, I wonder if it would be
possible, with the Chairman's indulgence, to allow the Ranking
Member to make an opening statement if he has one.
Mr. Hall. Yes. First I would like to recognize----
Mr. Donnelly. Mr. Buyer.
Mr. Hall [continuing]. Okay, with Mr. Donnelly's
acquiescence Ranking Member of the full Veterans' Affairs
Committee, Mr. Buyer.
You are now recognized.
Mr. Buyer. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate the
opportunity to appear here today, but I will prefer to give a
statement after all other Members have given theirs, please.
Thank you.
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Mr. Buyer.
Mr. Donnelly.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. JOE DONNELLY
Mr. Donnelly. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
And, Mr. Cleland, we are honored by your presence here
today and your service to this country.
And, to all the people connected with our national
cemeteries, from the people driving around mowing the lawns
this morning to the Superintendent of Arlington National
Cemetery, we are grateful for your devotion and dedication.
This is a subject of special importance to me. My mom is
interred at one of our national cemeteries. And it has always
been treated as sacred ground by everybody who works there,
everybody connected with it. It is hard to describe the
reverence that everybody treats our cemeteries with.
So to all of you for a job well done since they were first
started, we are in your debt. I look forward to your testimony.
Again, Mr. Cleland, thank you for all you have done for
this country, we are in your debt.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Mr. Donnelly.
Mr. Miller.
Mr. Miller. Mr. Chairman, I have a statement for the
record.
Mr. Hall. We will enter it into the record.
[The prepared statement of Congressman Miller appears on p.
37.]
Mr. Hall. Mr. Buyer.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. STEVE BUYER
Mr. Buyer. Thank you very much.
Max, good to see you. Gosh, when I look back over our years
together, we have done a lot and we have shared a lot.
And these issues in particular, gosh, I can reflect upon
our days when you were on the Senate Armed Services Committee
and we worked on some personnel issues when we were doing the
draw-down back in the 1990s.
And so many of our forces would rely upon those active duty
to provide honors to our comrades. Then as we began to draw
down, we learned about catchment areas and that they would not
go beyond so many miles of a particular fort because they just
did not have the personnel.
If you recall back then, we even, at conference, adopted
the protocols and procedures to do military honors and how we
would work even more so with the veterans service organizations
(VSOs) out there in making sure they had what they needed and
all the way down to how we were going to even create an
artificial bugler. I mean, that was even a controversy on how
that was even going to be constructed.
And all of our earnest and all of our efforts was to make
sure that we set the course and set the proper tone, I guess,
that helps define ourselves by that sacrifice.
So I want to thank you and appreciate working with you over
the years. And I want to thank you for taking on this new
position. The American Battle Monuments Commission, you set the
standards and pace for the world. And I think it helps define
America as who we are as we cherish our heritage.
And so you have accepted a role of great responsibility, I
believe, because you are now the chief steward of so many souls
and they lie in grace far away from their homeland.
What is disheartening to me, though, is that we have four
standards in America. You set the pace. Coming second is
Arlington National Cemetery. Third are the VA national
cemeteries. And fourth is the Department of the Interior. We
should not have four standards.
I have great pride in what we have been able to do with the
National Shrine Program with the VA. And we still have not
completed that.
But years ago, when I had visited Andersonville with the
Department of the Interior, I was pretty stunned with what I
had seen. I did not realize that we were still doing burials,
that it was an active cemetery run through the Department of
the Interior. I did not know that, Max. I just did not know.
And when I looked off in the distance and saw that they
were preparing for a burial on that day, I then began to look
around and saw all the markers completely out of line. They
were stained with time. The wall was in poor condition that was
around the cemetery. Someone had mowed the leaves. Grass was
growing all around all the markers. I was stunned with what I
had seen.
And the Department of the Interior, I had threatened to
take jurisdiction of these active cemeteries away from the
Department of the Interior and pull it into the VA.
I have good conversations with the present Secretary
Salazar who has said that he will conduct a review. What I am
hopeful we can do here is instill a National Shrine Program
within the Department of the Interior to raise their standards.
I wish we could all be at your standard, Max, what you
sought with the American Battle Monuments Commission. We are
not there yet. But let us raise that standard. Let us raise
that standard at the Department of the Interior with regard to
those 14 cemeteries.
So I want to thank you, Mr. Chairman and the Ranking
Member, for bringing the light not only to allow Max Cleland
here to talk about the good things that they do at ABMC and the
VA, but also a lot of things at the Department of the Interior
they do well and they have had their limited budgets.
But let us know what your needs are, and we will work
together here not only with the Appropriations Committee but
also with Secretary Salazar to make it right.
With that, I yield back, and thank you.
[The prepared statement of Congressman Buyer appears on p.
38.]
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Mr. Buyer.
I would like to remind all panelists that your complete
written statements have been made part of the hearing record so
please limit your remarks so that we can have time to follow-up
with questions with everyone.
Our first panel includes the Honorable Max Cleland who has
served this country in many capacities, currently as Secretary
of the American Battle Monuments Commission.
Congratulations on your position, sir, but also as Senator
and a soldier. All Americans, I think, are grateful for your
service.
Also, Mr. John C. Metzler, Superintendent of Arlington
National Cemetery; accompanied by Ms. Lynn Heirakuji. Is that
how you pronounce your name?
Ms. Heirakuji. Heirakuji.
Mr. Hall. Heirakuji. Thank you. Got it right the second
time, I think. Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for
Personnel Oversight, Department of the Army, U.S. Department of
Defense (DoD). And Ms. Katherine Stevenson, Assistant Director,
Business Services of the National Park Service (NPS), U.S.
Department of the Interior. I forgot to mention, former
Secretary of the VA for Mr. Cleland, a long and illustrious
resume.
We go by the 5-minute rule as closely as we can, and,
Secretary Cleland, you are now recognized for 5 minutes.
STATEMENTS OF HON. MAX CLELAND, SECRETARY, AMERICAN BATTLE
MONUMENTS COMMISSION; JOHN C. METZLER, JR., SUPERINTENDENT,
ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY; ACCOMPANIED BY LYNN HEIRAKUJI,
DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE ARMY FOR PERSONNEL OVERSIGHT,
DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE; AND
KATHERINE STEVENSON, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, BUSINESS SERVICES,
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
STATEMENT OF HON. MAX CLELAND
Secretary Cleland. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I will say that the kind words by Mr. Buyer are welcome. I
can take credit for none of that.
The American Battle Monuments Commission has been around
since 1923 when General Pershing led the effort after leading
the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I. He put it
together and was its Chairman for many, many years. I am the
Secretary and I am honored to be part of that.
The role of the American Battle Monuments Commission is
really truly incredible. Most Americans never see an American
cemetery abroad. We invite all of you to come, Members of
Congress, members of the public. If you cannot come, access us
on the internet, we are there, abmc.gov.
Mr. Donnelly, thank you very much for your comments. My
mother is also interred at a national cemetery because my
father served at Pearl Harbor after the attack, so we thank you
for those words.
Mr. Chairman, I will say that coming to the House is an
interesting experience because in the Senate, we are not
limited by the 5-minute rule. However, I will try to control
myself.
The first time I came to this hearing room, I was up for
being head of the VA. I was 34 years of age. That was a time
when I encountered all the issues that you are dealing with in
terms of the VA cemetery system.
Now I am much older, old enough to think that ``Dance With
Me'' and ``You Are Still The One'' authored by our Chairman are
oldies, but goodies. So it is an honor to be here.
We are the overseas guys. If you want to know what the
American Battle Monuments Commission does, it maintains and
commemorates Americans who in many ways died in place and are
buried pretty much where they fell.
We also administer monuments and memorials. As new
generations succeed, the World War I and World War II
generations who are buried in our cemeteries, our main mission
becomes not only green grass and white headstones, and we do
that, as Mr. Buyer pointed out, better than anybody in the
world, but our main mission now is to tell the stories of those
commemorated at our cemeteries so that succeeding generations
will understand why there is an ABMC in Manila, in Hawaii; why
there is an American Battle Monuments Commission Memorial to
veterans from World War II in the Pacific, in Hawaii, in the
Panama Canal, in Mexico City, which honor Americans' service
and sacrifices in the Mexican War, Tunisia, North Africa, and
throughout western Europe.
America's military, especially through the 20th century,
has been all over the world and Americans have lost their lives
all over the world. We inter those who primarily lost their
lives in World War I and World War II and the families did not
want to repatriate their remains to America.
Beginning at the end of World War II, and with the Korean
war, technology made it possible for us to fly the remains of
our troops home. From the Korean war on, through the Vietnam
War, through Iraq, through Afghanistan, we fly the remains
home, but in a certain way that makes the loss of that loved
one and that serviceman or woman even more anonymous.
So it is appropriate that we gather here today to think
about how we can better honor the fallen and how we can better
take care of those who gave, as Lincoln said, the last full
measure of devotion.
For those who want to read up on the American Battle
Monuments Commission, each of you has our annual report and
citizens can get it from us if they request it. We are glad to
provide it.
This is an age-old problem, Mr. Chairman. I have been
looking at some various quotes that I like very much. One dates
from about 2,500 years ago when an orator tried to describe his
feelings about the loss of people from his community and his
Nation.
We remember Pericles' funeral oration, which was recorded
by Thucydides, the historian of the Peloponnesian War: ``For
heroes have the whole earth for their tomb. And in lands far
from their own, where the column with its epitaph declares it,
there is enshrined in every breast a record unwritten with no
tablet to preserve it, except that of the heart.''
In so many ways we have the tablets. We have the
cemeteries. We have the memorials. But we have our heart as
well. And for those who have lost loved ones, their heart will
ache until their death. And for the rest of us, too, there is a
sense in which we all try to make meaning out of suffering. We
try to make meaning out of war.
Archibald MacLeish, the great American poet, lost a
brother, a younger brother in World War I, and he is buried in
one of our cemeteries at Flanders Field. And MacLeish, in
trying to deal with that grief, wrote a poem, and his last
lines of his poem are very meaningful to me. He said about the
young dead, ``They say, we leave you our deaths: give them
their meaning.''
I think that is what we are all about here, Mr. Chairman.
Thank you very much.
[The prepared statement of Secretary Cleland appears on p.
41.]
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Mr. Secretary.
The next witness is Mr. Metzler.
Once again, sir, your statement is entered in the hearing
record, and you are now recognized for 5 minutes.
STATEMENT OF JOHN C. METZLER
Mr. Metzler. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Members of the
Subcommittee. I appreciate the opportunity to testify before
the Subcommittee today on behalf of the Secretary of the Army
in support of our Arlington National Cemetery. It is honor for
me to represent Arlington National Cemetery, our Nation's
premier military cemetery.
With me today is Ms. Heirakuji, the Deputy Secretary of the
Army for Personnel Oversight.
The management of Arlington National Cemetery presents
unique challenges among national and military cemeteries.
Arlington continues to serve as an active burial place for
today's military men and women and serves a very heavily
visited National Shrine honoring the past service of men and
women in our Armed Forces.
In fiscal year 2008, there were 4,123 interments and 2,781
inurnments in our columbariums. In the current fiscal year,
2009, we estimate there will be more than 7,000 funerals
conducted at Arlington National Cemetery.
Ten formal requests for exceptions to the interment policy
were received during this current year, seven of which were for
extended family members to go into existing graves. They were
approved at my level as the Superintendent. Three others were
requested and not approved by the Secretary of the Army, which
would have required a new grave site at Arlington.
Since the funeral of President Kennedy in 1963, Arlington
National Cemetery has become a major tourist attraction. During
this past fiscal year, Arlington accommodated over four million
visitors, making Arlington one of the most visited historic
sites here in our National Capitol region.
Also during this year, there will be conducted almost 3,000
ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery. Thousands of
visitors both foreign and American have come to Arlington to
participate in various events ranging from a simple wreath
ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to our National
Veteran's Day and Memorial Day programs which are attended to
by the President.
Over 127 fallen servicemembers serving in Operation
Enduring Freedom (OEF) and over 445 fallen servicemembers
serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) have been laid to rest
at Arlington National Cemetery.
Among those buried at Arlington is Specialist Ross A.
McGinnis who was awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic acts
in Iraq. Sergeant First Class Paul A. Smith, another Medal of
Honor recipient is memorialized in Section D at Arlington
Cemetery for his deeds in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
On January 1st, 2009, the Secretary of the Army authorized
all servicemembers who are killed in action or died as a result
of wounds to receive full military honors at Arlington Cemetery
whether they are interred, inurned, or memorialized. This would
include an escort platoon, a color team, a band, a caisson, as
well as the firing party, casket team, bugler, and chaplain.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my remarks, and I will be
pleased to respond to your questions.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Metzler appears on p. 43.]
Mr. Hall. Thank you, sir.
Ms. Stevenson, you are now recognized for 5 minutes.
STATEMENT OF KATHERINE STEVENSON
Ms. Stevenson. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you
Members of the Subcommittee, for the opportunity to appear
before you to discuss the national cemeteries that are
administered by the National Park Service.
We consider it a great honor to serve our veterans and
their families at these national cemeteries and we are
committed to ensuring that our cemeteries are maintained at a
standard worthy of those who fought for our country.
We are particularly pleased to be able to appear before you
to tell you and the Committee, about the progress we have made
to improve the condition of the cemeteries we manage since we
last testified here in May of 2007.
In 2007, we reported that $1 million in project funds had
been spent in the prior 5 years on cemetery repairs. In fiscal
years 2008 and 2009, the National Park Service has invested
$4.5 million in cemetery repair projects and this is in
addition to routine maintenance.
Another $1.9 million in supplemental emergency storm and
flood relief funding is being spent on a visitor's center that
serves Chalmette Battlefield and National Cemetery.
In addition to this project money, every park with a
national cemetery has had an increase in their operating funds
in each of the last 2 fiscal years.
Some recent concerns have been raised about the appearance
of national cemeteries managed by the Park Service. I wish to
assure you that the National Park Service takes these concerns
very seriously.
NPS already follows the M40 series of manuals written by
the VA's National Cemetery Administration for operations of
national cemeteries.
NPS also orders headstones from the same facilities that
produce headstones for NCA cemeteries. NPS adheres to standards
for placement and alignment of stones and replaces headstones
that need second inscriptions for spouses.
As the Nation's lead historic preservation agency, the
National Park Service places great value on the historic
significance, historic appearance, and historic headstones of
the national cemeteries we manage.
Consequently, we clean the headstones as gently as
possible. We realign the headstones by hand and we maintain the
historic landscape appearance, the contours and the trees to
the greatest practical extent.
Our maintenance workers avoid using line trimmers near the
headstones as the marble chips and is thus more susceptible to
erosion. We also avoid chemicals in order to preserve the
monuments and the environment.
Finally, in response to recent inquiries, the National Park
Service has just completed an on-site review of four NPS
managed cemeteries. That report is in draft, but the study
found that the NPS managed cemeteries were in good condition
overall.
We look forward to sharing the final report with the
Committee in the very near future.
This concludes my testimony. I would be happy to answer any
questions you may have.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Stevenson appears on p. 45.]
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Ms. Stevenson.
I will now recognize myself for a round of questions
starting with Secretary Cleland.
Your written testimony is just as poetic as your oral
testimony was and covered a lot of extra ground. But I will
just focus on a couple of things.
The Normandy Visitor Center represents the ABMC's efforts
to tell a better story of those brave souls who fought in this
historic and bloody battle. I know that the ABMC was
considering expanding its Interpretive Program to several other
sites so that the many visitors to ABMC properties would gain
even further insight into our overseas' veterans' sacrifice.
Does the Commission still intend to expand its Interpretive
Program to these other sites and could you provide us with a
status update on this effort?
Secretary Cleland. Yes, sir. We do. The wonderful staff
that I inherited has worked very hard to get into the third
phase of what we do.
First of all, we do white headstones and green grass, but
the ultimate story that we tell for succeeding generations is
probably what we will be remembered by. We tell that story in
various ways, through the internet, through interactive
internet access, but we also tell that story through what we
call the Interpretive Program.
We stole that idea from the Park Service. They have a whole
series of Interpretive Programs throughout the Park Service and
they have an Interpretive Promotion System within the Park
Service. So we stole that idea in order to tell the stories of
those honored at our cemeteries and memorials. Now we have an
Interpretive Program.
The first interpretive program for visitors who come to an
American Battle Monuments Commission cemetery is at Normandy.
Some $30 million was spent on the Normandy Interpretive
Program. We thank the House and the Senate for funding that
program. Now Normandy has tremendous visitation. Normandy, in
fact is our most visited cemetery.
I was there with the President on June 6th, and he looked
at me and said ``great job.'' And I said thank you, Mr.
President, but I had been Secretary of the American Battle
Monuments Commission for just 48 hours.
So the Interpretive Program is underway. We want to have an
interpretive center at Cambridge outside of London ready for
the 2012 Olympics. There are other interpretive programs we
want to put together around the world--in our biggest cemetery
in Manila, for example.
So the Interpretive Program is well underway, as are the
brochures which we have accelerated in terms of production that
will go to these cemeteries in multiple languages. I guess the
only language that is not covered is Southern. We have
visitors, primarily in our western European operation, who
speak two or three languages.
So we will be telling stories of our honored deads'
contribution to America's security and safety through the
Interpretive Program at our visitors centers and through the
brochures that we put together. Both initiatives are well
underway, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Hall. Thank you, sir.
In June 2009, the U.S. Government Accountability Office
(GAO) released a report on the ABMC identifying 13 deficits in
its internal control procedures. Several of them involved its
trust funds and banking investments and transactions. GAO then
recommended 24 corrective actions.
What is the status of the ABMC's response to this report
and what steps have been taken to fix these problems?
Secretary Cleland. First of all, Mr. Chairman, you are
correct and the GAO is correct. We will provide that
information for the record.
One of the things that I found when I came to the ABMC was
there were a number of GAO recommendations. Some of them have
to do with our automatic data processing operation in western
Europe. I just determined that the Chief Information Officer
for the ABMC should be in western Europe and help us get on top
of this.
So we will be glad to provide that information for the
record, Mr. Chairman.
[The ABMC subsequently provided the following information:]
L Since 1997, GAO has been our auditor. Each year, ABMC
has achieved a clean audit where in all material respects it
has maintained effective internal control over financial
reporting, including safeguarding of assets, and is compliant
with laws, regulations, and directives as of the end of each
fiscal year. In conjunction with each audit, GAO makes several
management recommendations to us each year. Accordingly, ABMC
develops a plan of action to resolve these recommendations, and
follows up to ensure that recommendations have been
implemented.
L Over the past 4 years, ABMC has resolved more than 94
percent of these recommendations; many were resolved on the
spot when GAO identified the issue. Of those not resolved, ABMC
has a plan in place to fix them over time.
L In the fiscal year 2008 management report, we had
several recommendations relating to managing our trust fund.
All of these recommendations have had actions taken to resolve
the issues identified by the GAO.
Mr. Hall. Since I only have 45 seconds of my time left----
Secretary Cleland. All right. Thank you.
Mr. Hall [continuing]. It is not being dissented. But I
will just ask you one more question. I have questions for the
other witnesses----
Secretary Cleland. Yes, sir.
Mr. Hall [continuing]. After our other Members have a
chance to ask theirs. But, Secretary Cleland, one final thing.
Could you explain for us how the current economic climate has
impacted the ABMC's foreign currency fluctuation account and
has Congress given you enough authority to manage those
fluctuations?
Secretary Cleland. Yes. We do pay Foreign Service
Nationals, FSNs as we call them, to help us maintain these
cemeteries around the world as monuments, as memorials that
are, as was pointed out, the gold standard around the world.
In terms of that, we do have to adjust our currency to
theirs, to the host Nation, shall we say, and to the foreign
labor force and contractors that we deal with. The Congress has
given us sufficient authority to manage the currency
fluctuations. We are in good shape in terms of our foreign
currency fluctuation account.
Mr. Hall. Thank you so much.
I will now recognize Ranking Member Lamborn for 5 minutes
of questions.
Mr. Lamborn. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I am going to give my time to the Ranking Member of the
full Committee, Mr. Buyer, in addition to whatever time he
might need on his own if that is the case.
Mr. Hall. Mr. Buyer.
Mr. Buyer. Thank you.
[Slide of Normandy]
Mr. Buyer. This is Normandy. And I assume this picture was
taken some time back. But what is extraordinary for Americans
who have an opportunity to be here on the coastline at Normandy
is that it is truly extraordinary. When you step upon the
grounds, the grass is as though you are on a--it is like a golf
course. It is finely manicured. It is absolutely extraordinary.
All the markers in perfect alignment.
It is absolutely an extraordinary place. It is true
dedication to the sacrifice that so many of these men not only
as they came upon the beaches to make it above this ridge line
but those who also then lost their lives in the fight at
Normandy.
Then to the rear back here, they also then have a memorial
to so many of whom had lost their lives at sea and are
unaccounted for. So the American Battle Monuments Commission,
you, as I said in the opening statement, you set the pace and
you are extraordinary.
[Slide of Arlington]
Mr. Buyer. Next comes Arlington. So many people recognize
in America with regard when we think about a national cemetery,
we think of Arlington. And there have been so many burials
given the fact that we are in a two-front war. With Arlington,
there have been so many visitors. People really feel the pride
of a Nation that those of whom have sacrificed in the name of
liberty are well taken care of and the families feel pretty
good about it. That is the second standard.
[Slide of Fort Rosecrans, San Diego]
Mr. Buyer. The third standard here is our VA National
Cemetery. I just chose this one in particular, Fort Rosecrans
out in San Diego. And the same type, laser shots with regard to
alignment of all the markers and it is beautiful. The National
Shrine Program does an excellent job in making sure that we
have the one standard and I appreciate that.
[Slide of Andersonville 2004]
Mr. Buyer. Next let me show a national cemetery by the
Department of the Interior. Are we getting a sense that there
might be a difference? It should not matter that this is the
marker of someone that died in the Civil War. It should not
matter if it was someone that died in the Revolution or someone
who died that is interred in Mexico City, Mr. Cleland, one of
your cemeteries in Mexico City, or in the Philippines.
[Slide of Andersonville 2009]
[The slide presentation is attached to Congressman Buyer's
prepared statement, which appears on p. 39.]
Now, the day what I describe when you look at--look around
the stones. So when you said in your testimony that we gently,
finely clean the markers, that is going to take you a lot of
time. This is not the standard for which we should have in
America.
I think, Mr. Cleland, if you saw that in one of yours, you
would just freak out. How is that for an articulation? I would.
I did.
Secretary Cleland. That is Georgia, my home State.
Mr. Buyer. And point out that this was an active cemetery.
Now, here is what I love about if you make a lot of noise and
you complain about something, you will get a reaction, right?
It is physics. It is nature. So I complained about all these
weeds and stuff around them also.
Now, you want to see what happens when you complain? I will
show you what the response is. We do not have weeds around them
anymore because we took a weed whacker to them and we took it
to the dirt. Now you do not get any grass.
So I just want to make sure. I mean, look at this. We are
doing better, but are we where we need to be? And that is the
purpose here of the hearing. It is the purpose of tell us what
your needs and requirements are. If you need a Shrine Program
to bring us up to the standards, let us know and we will help
you do that because we want to make sure that this is not----
this is an active cemetery. We want there to be the standard
for which these men and women deserve. Okay?
And this is classic that a picture is very powerful. And it
is one thing, I could have tried to articulate that, but when
you see it, then you can understand why I am so disturbed and
so bothered.
So let me ask you, Ms. Stevenson, tell the Committee here
what are your needs? What do you believe your needs are to
raise the standards within the Department of the Interior?
Ms. Stevenson. The report that I just mentioned will have
some recommendations for funding and it will have
recommendations for increased treatment of cleaning and so on.
Mr. Buyer. What are your goals?
Ms. Stevenson. Our goals are the same as the goals set by
the National Cemetery Administration. We have the same three
standards, height and alignment, clean stones, and level grave
sites, as they do.
Mr. Buyer. How many cemeteries did you go to and review?
Ms. Stevenson. Four.
Mr. Buyer. How many do you have in your system?
Ms. Stevenson. Fourteen.
Mr. Buyer. Why would you not go to all 14 cemeteries?
Ms. Stevenson. We wanted to do it as quickly as we could
and get some sense of what was going on and one, for example,
that you mentioned, Andersonville was one of them. So we took
ones that were fairly close to Andersonville.
Mr. Buyer. What are the four that you went to?
Ms. Stevenson. Andersonville, Andrew Johnson, Fort
Donelson, and Stones River.
Mr. Buyer. Andrew Johnson. That is in Tennessee? That is
the one in Tennessee? Have you sent inquiries out to the other
ten?
Ms. Stevenson. No, sir. No more than usual. I mean, we talk
to them a fair amount.
Mr. Buyer. All right. You have got 14. There is a
disconnect here. I am not in a fight with you. Okay? I want us
to raise the standards so when this report comes out, I am
going through it.
Ms. Stevenson. Good.
Mr. Buyer. The light is on you. Okay? So what my immediate
sense here is, is when I think the Secretary tells me he is
going to do a review that it is going to be of all 14
cemeteries. I do not want something done quick and easy. All
right? I want this to be done correctly.
And if your sense is and your counsel to us is that four is
going to be sufficient, that is fine. But is what you are
asking me is, ``Steve, just pause here. When you get the
report, you are going to be satisfied?''
Ms. Stevenson. You know, you can choose a photograph in any
of these cemeteries and any, I bet, of the veteran cemeteries
that are managed by other people and we will have some scenes
that are perfect and some scenes that are not. I know that that
is true in the cemeteries that we manage. We are trying to do
our very best for the veterans and for their burial places.
Mr. Buyer. All right. Well, your standard at very best does
not meet the standards established by others. So we are going
to take your standard of very best and we are going to raise
it. We are going to raise your very best even higher. Okay?
And I did not go out and selectively choose to find what I
think would be the worst photograph. It is easy to go out there
and take that photo. And I was extremely upset the day that I
saw a veteran being buried in a cemetery like I saw.
It is one thing, you know, we have all been to cemeteries
and we have seen the conditions of some of them, but to think
that this is an active cemetery under the stewardship of the
Federal Government was extremely disheartening.
I am going to pause here, Mr. Chairman. I will give you
back under the time.
I will await your report and I will work with the Chairman
and the Ranking Member and Mr. Miller and Mr. Donnelly, others
of the Subcommittee. In particular, I am going to work with Mr.
Dicks because of the Appropriations Committee. This is not
going to be an issue of money. This is going to be an issue of
desire and to achieve the highest standard possible.
And with that, I will yield back to Mr. Hall.
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Mr. Buyer.
Ms. Stevenson, I thank you for coming and testifying before
us and note for the record that this Committee does not have
jurisdiction over the National Park Service. We appreciate your
coming to testify before us. We all share the same goal, I am
sure, in terms of the standards and quality of the facilities
that you manage for our veterans.
Does the NCA assist with replacing veterans' headstones or
markers at Andersonville or Andrew Johnson Cemeteries when they
break or deteriorate?
Ms. Stevenson. I do not believe they do. We order the
headstones from the same company, but we do all of that work
ourselves.
Mr. Hall. As a participant on the VA Advisory Committee on
Cemeteries and Memorials, do you feel that this is a good
vehicle for addressing the NPS's concerns or does the NPS need
a more developed partnership with VA regarding cemetery issues?
Ms. Stevenson. Actually, fairly recently, I think in 2004,
an Interagency Committee was established, and we looked very
much forward to working with that Interagency Committee, but
the head of the Committee became ill and so the Committee was
dissolved. We would like to see the Committee reconstituted so
that we can discuss some of these concerns.
Mr. Hall. When will the NPS review of its cemeteries be
complete and when would you expect you could share those with
the NCA?
Ms. Stevenson. As I mentioned, we did a review of the four
cemeteries. That report is completed. It just needs to go
through formal review, Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
and the Department.
Mr. Hall. Thank you.
Mr. Metzler, based on serious issues that were raised in
recent news stories regarding grave marking, et cetera, what
has been done to reassure families of those buried at Arlington
that their loved ones have been properly interred and that
their graves are properly marked? Have you coordinated efforts
in this regard with the VA's Office of Survivors Assistance?
Are any of your grief counseling or outreach efforts
coordinated with the Vet Center counselors who are authorized
to see families when there has been an active-duty death?
Mr. Metzler. Sir, we are not coordinating with Veterans
Affairs. The Department of the Army does have counselors that
the families are using, but we are not, to my knowledge, we are
not in sync at Arlington Cemetery with Veterans Affairs for
that.
Mr. Hall. When problems arise with the VA providing
headstones or markers such as with inscription errors, what is
your recourse and how are those situations handled?
Mr. Metzler. We go to Veterans Affairs for all our
government headstones. When we have made an initial mistake,
then we ask for an expedited replacement headstone. Veterans
Affairs is very timely and replaces that stone within a month,
if not sooner.
Mr. Hall. Mr. Metzler, if there are errors in an
inscription, can you make the request for repairs or does the
family have to be informed and make those requests?
Mr. Metzler. No. If we are informed about the mistake, we
will make an immediate correction on the headstone to the
family's satisfaction.
Mr. Hall. Are there instances at Arlington in which a
veteran without other eligible dependents has requested that
his or her burial benefits be passed to a parent?
Mr. Metzler. We have had those requests over the years, but
that is not within our guidance of our regulations. The burial
benefit is to the veteran member himself and they cannot pass
it on to other family members.
Mr. Hall. Starting with you, Mr. Metzler, if there is
something that you would recommend that this Subcommittee or
the full Committee do to help you to do your job better and
help to memorialize our veterans better and preserve their
memory, what would that recommendation be?
Mr. Metzler. It would be the continuation of the National
Shrine commitment, sir. That has been a great shot in the arm
for us. It has been able to help us get a lot of maintenance
done at the cemetery that we have not been able to do in the
past. And I would just ask for your continued support in that
program.
Mr. Hall. Okay. Just a sentence if you could, Mr.
Secretary, same question.
Secretary Cleland. We are proud of the American Battle
Monuments Commission cemeteries. The scope of America's
involvement around the world, particularly in the 20th Century,
is staggering. When you go to Normandy or any of our cemeteries
around the world, you realize just how much America has paid
for its service and sacrifice around the world.
We thank the House and the Senate for all the help they
have given in the past. And so we are just honored to serve,
Mr. Chairman.
I will say that our motto is what General Pershing said at
the creation of the American Battle Monuments Commission in
1923, in speaking about the veterans of World War I, that
``Time shall not dim the glory of your deeds.'' And so that is
the standard that we try to adhere to.
Mr. Hall. Thank you, sir.
We have a vote that has been called, so I want to quickly
ask the same question of Ms. Stevenson and then ask Mr. Miller
to ask his questions.
Ms. Stevenson, is there something this Subcommittee, the
full Committee, or the VA can do to help you do your job
better?
Ms. Stevenson. We would like to see the interagency working
group reestablished.
Mr. Hall. Okay. We will try to make that happen.
Mr. Miller.
Mr. Miller. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Two quick questions both to Mr. Metzler, and thanks for
your hospitality also. Any time a member of this body has an
opportunity to go out there to Arlington, we appreciate what
you do. I have two questions.
One deals with the waiver policy. I understand it took
almost 10 years to come up with the policy. And could you now
unfortunately quickly describe, if you can, why it took so long
and what the policy is, how you go through that process?
Mr. Metzler. Well, the waiver policy in the past was an
informal process, so it has now been formalized through the
Secretary of the Army. There is a group of senior officials
within the Army that would receive the request for an exception
of policy. After it has come to my office with the
recommendation, I will forward it on to the Assistant Secretary
of the Army for Manpower and Reserve Affairs.
In turn, they will take that recommendation request from
the family and send it out to the senior panel. They will make
their recommendations back to the Assistant Secretary of the
Army for Manpower and Reserve Affairs. All work independently.
And then in turn, he will bring it to the Secretary of the Army
for a final decision.
That process should take somewhere in the neighborhood of 4
to 5 working days after being reviewed by General Counsel.
Mr. Miller. Could you elaborate a little bit on the length
of time it took to establish the policy?
Mr. Metzler. It did take several years. It was done in
conjunction with a rewrite of the Federal Code of Regulations
which has currently been completed and is under review right
now by the Department of Defense.
Mr. Miller. Okay. Thank you.
And the other question, and I think all of us are concerned
about the lack of land availability around Arlington, are there
any other parcels that have been identified that could be
available for acquisition?
Mr. Metzler. The two that we currently have that are
working is the Millennium site which is a piece of property
that we already have under our jurisdiction from Fort Myer and
then two come on line is the Naval Annex referred to as Federal
Building Number 2. That is scheduled to come on line in the
year 2012.
Now, at the same time, Secretary Geren, the outgoing
Secretary of the Army, has ordered a new Master Plan to look at
these issues and that will start next year in 2010.
Mr. Miller. If any of us need to help with the new
Secretary of the Army, we would be happy to visit with him as
well.
Mr. Metzler. Thank you, sir.
Mr. Miller. Thank you, Mr. Metzler.
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Mr. Miller.
We have two votes and about 6 minutes remaining. So we will
ask our second and third panelists please to be patient. It
should be about 20 minutes.
Thank you so much, all of our first panelists, for your
work and your service to our veterans and to their memory and
to their families.
This hearing will now be in recess until we come back from
votes.
[Recess.]
Mr. Hall. That is the first time I have ever hit the gavel
three times and boy did it feel good. The Subcommittee on
Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs will come to order
again. Thank you for your patience. Joining us on our second
panel today are Mr. John Wilson, Assistant National Legislative
Director for the Disabled American Veterans (DAV); Mr. Raymond
C. Kelley, National Legislative Director for AMVETS; Ms.
Vivianne Cisneros Wersel, Chair of the Government Relations
Committee for Gold Star Wives of America (GSW); Ms. Lesley
Witter, Director of Political Affairs for the National Funeral
Directors Association (NFDA); and Mr. John Nicolai, Shop
Steward, Local 2241, on behalf of the American Federation of
Government Employees (AFGE). Welcome to you all.
As I said before to our first panel, your statements are
already entered into the official record. Feel free please to
edit them or change them, or whatever you wish. We will try to
keep it to 5 minutes so we will have time for questions. We
have votes coming up in about an hour and I would hope to get
through both our second and third panels before then, so you do
not have to wait again. Mr. Wilson, you are now recognized for
5 minutes.
STATEMENTS OF JOHN L. WILSON, ASSISTANT NATIONAL LEGISLATIVE
DIRECTOR, DISABLED AMERICAN VETERANS; RAYMOND C. KELLEY,
NATIONAL LEGISLATIVE DIRECTOR, AMERICAN VETERANS (AMVETS);
VIVIANNE CISNEROS WERSEL, AU.D., CHAIR, GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
COMMITTEE, GOLD STAR WIVES OF AMERICA, INC.; LESLEY WITTER,
DIRECTOR OF POLITICAL AFFAIRS, NATIONAL FUNERAL DIRECTORS
ASSOCIATION; AND JOHN NICOLAI, CEMETERY REPRESENTATIVE, FT.
LOGAN NATIONAL CEMETERY, DENVER, CO, AND SHOP STEWARD, AFGE
LOCAL 2241, ON BEHALF OF AMERICAN FEDERATION OF GOVERNMENT
EMPLOYEES, AFL-CIO
STATEMENT OF JOHN L. WILSON
Mr. Wilson. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman and
Members of the Subcommittee, I am glad to be here this morning
on behalf of the DAV to present our views on the current
Department of Veterans Affairs Burial Benefits Program, its
national cemetery policy, and the way the VA and the American
Battle Monuments Commission can better serve veterans and their
survivors.
As you know, the VA National Cemetery Administration
maintains more than 2.9 million gravesites at 130 national
cemeteries and 33 additional installations in 39 States and
Puerto Rico. Currently, there are more than 7,000 acres within
the established NCA installations. Just more than half of this
land is undeveloped. Including available gravesites and the
undeveloped land there is potential to provide more than 4
million resting places.
In addition to the maintenance of these facilities, the NCA
administers four programs. The State Cemetery Grants Program,
the Headstone or Marker Program, the Presidential Memorial
Marker Program, and the Outer Burial Receptacle Reimbursements.
NCA must be allocated the resources it needs to meet the
increasing demands of interments, graveside maintenance, and
related essential elements of cemetery operations.
Some cemeteries, such as the one in Puerto Rico, face the
need for immediate expansion through additional land
acquisition. We understand that the Puerto Rico National
Cemetery, or PRNC, has a project for 2010, which should add
burial space through 2017 for first interments. PRNC will
remain open, of course, for second interments of spouses and
veterans. After completion of the project, PRNC will remain
open to first and second cremations until 2030. While
cremations are an option for some, veterans and their survivors
may hold certain religious beliefs that do not make this a
viable alternative. The NCA is actively seeking land of 100
acres or more within a 25-mile radius of Route 22 and Route 1
in Puerto Rico. The rapid acquisition of this land is essential
to this veteran population.
Although the 5-year, $250 million National Shrine
Initiative was not adopted, the NCA spent $150 million toward
that original list of 928 projects, as well as other emerging
priorities over the past year. Their ability to do so was in
large part due to Congressional action to reverse years of
neglect. The Administration requested $181 million for fiscal
year 2009. Congress, understanding the sacrifices of the few
for the freedom of the many, honored our fallen by granting NCA
$280 million. Two-hundred thirty million dollars in original
appropriations and an additional $50 million in stimulus funds.
The Administration's request for fiscal year 2010 NCA funding
is $242 million. Granting that request will sustain the
important progress NCA has made and we urge Congress to do so.
The next area to address is burial benefits. The burial
benefit in 2008 was only 6 percent of what was provided when
the NCA started paying this benefit in 1973. While it was never
the intent of Congress to cover the full cost of burial, the
benefits now pay only a fraction of what was covered 35 years
ago. In 2001, the plot allowance was increased for the first
time in more than 28 years to $300 from the original amount of
$150. This figure covered approximately 6 percent of funeral
costs. The 108th Congress increased that allowance from $500 to
$2000 for service-connected deaths. Prior to this adjustment,
the allowance had been untouched since 1988.
Clearly, it is time this allowance was raised to make a
more meaningful contribution to the cost of burial for our
veterans. In accordance with the DAV's Resolution 212, we note
that the VA provides a burial allowance for service-connected
disabled veterans of $2000, as previously noted. But that has
been seriously eroded by inflation because it has not been
regularly adjusted for increases in the cost of living.
Therefore, the DAV supports legislation to increase the burial
allowance payable in the case of death due to service-connected
disabilities, and to provide for automatic annual adjustments
indexed to the cost of living.
The concludes my statement, Mr. Chairman. It has been a
pleasure to appear before this honorable Committee today.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Wilson appears on p. 47.]
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Mr. Wilson. Mr. Kelley, you are now
recognized for 5 minutes.
STATEMENT OF RAYMOND C. KELLEY
Mr. Kelley. Chairman Hall, thank you for inviting AMVETS,
and the opportunity to present our views on the Department of
Veterans Affairs national cemetery policies. I am going to
commit my time to two major points: the veterans population
mile radius threshold model, and the burial benefits.
First, NCA is currently providing burial benefit options
for 88 percent of all veterans who fall within the 170,000
within the 75-mile radius threshold model. However, under this
new model, no new geographical area will become eligible for a
national cemetery until 2015. St. Louis will at that time meet
the threshold due to the closing of the Jefferson Barracks
National Cemetery in 2017. Analysis shows that the five areas
with the largest veteran population will not become eligible
for a national cemetery because they will not reach that
170,000 population threshold.
NCA has spent years developing and maintaining a cemetery
system based on a growing veteran population. In 2010, our
veteran population will begin to decline. Because of this
downward trend a new threshold model must be developed to
ensure more of our veterans will have reasonable access to
their burial benefits. There are two options to modify this
threshold. Reduce the diameter of the radius, or reduce the
population threshold. AMVETS supports reducing the population
threshold.
Lowering the population threshold to 100,000 veterans would
immediately make several areas eligible for a national
cemetery, regardless of any changes to the mile radius
threshold. A new threshold model must be implemented so more of
our veterans will have access to this earned benefit.
In 1973, NCA established a burial allowance that provided
partial reimbursements for eligible funerals and burial costs.
The current payment is $2,000 for burial expense for service-
connected deaths, $300 for non-service-connected deaths, and
$300 for plot allowance. At the inception the payout covered 72
percent of the funeral costs for a service-connected death, 22
percent for a non-service-connected death, and 54 percent for a
burial plot cost. In 2007, these benefits eroded to 23 percent,
4 percent, and 14 percent respectively. It is time to bring
these benefits back to their original value.
The national average cost for a funeral and burial in a
private cemetery has reached over $8,500, and the cost for a
burial plot is $2,100. At the inception of the benefit the
average cost was $1,100 and $280, respectively. While the cost
of the funeral has increased nearly seven times, the burial
benefit has only increased two and a half times. To bring both
burial allowance and the plot allowance back to the 1973 value,
the service-connected burial benefit payment will be $6,160,
the non-service-connected benefit payment will be $1,918, and
the plot allowance will be increased to $1,150.
Based on accessibility and the need to provide quality
burial benefits, AMVETS recommends that VA separate burial
benefits into two categories: veterans who live inside the VA
accessibility threshold model, and those who live outside the
threshold. For those veterans who live outside the threshold
the service-connected burial benefit should be increased to the
$6,160. Non-service-connected veterans' burial benefits should
be increased to $1,918. And the plot allowance should increase
to $1,150 to match the original value of the benefit.
For veterans who live within reasonable accessibility to a
State or national cemetery that is able to accommodate burial
needs, but the veteran would rather be buried in a private
cemetery, the burial benefit should be adjusted. These
veterans' burial benefits should be increased to the average
cost for VA to conduct a funeral. The benefit for service-
connected burials will be $2,793. The amount provided for a
non-service-connected burial will be $854. And the plot
allowance will be $1,150. This will provide burial benefits at
equal percentages, but based on the average cost for a VA
funeral and not a private funeral cost that will be provided
for those veterans who do not have access to a State or
national cemetery.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my testimony. Again, thank you
for the privilege to present AMVETS' views and I will be
willing to answer any questions you have at this time.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Kelley appears on p. 49.]
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Mr. Kelley. Dr. Wersel, you are now
recognized.
STATEMENT OF VIVIANNE CISNEROS WERSEL, AU.D.
Dr. Wersel. Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee,
good morning. I am Vivianne Cisneros Wersel, Chairman of the
Government Relations Committee for Gold Star Wives. Thank you
for the opportunity to present this statement. We are here to
provide input on what could be done better to help families of
the fallen. Our answer is simply this: help families navigate
the benefits process; increase benefits for burial and other
associated costs; eliminate the Dependency and Indemnity
Compensation (DIC) and military Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP)
offset; include the word ''survivors'' in VA publications,
documentation, speeches, and testimony by VA personnel.
I am the surviving spouse of Lieutenant Colonel Rich
Wersel, United States Marine Corps, who died suddenly, February
4, 2005, 1 week after he returned from his second tour of duty
of Iraq. That day was just like any other day for me. However,
it was a day to determine the here, today, tomorrow, the
before, the after. All my hopes and dreams had to change and
were readjusted. My new life, my old life, and now my new life
as a Gold Star Wife.
Gold Star Wives is an all volunteer organization that
provides service, support, and friendship. Surviving spouses
look to us as their link to benefit information and their voice
in Congress. We are the vanguards of survivor benefits,
educating the public as well as our elected officials, on
issues relating to military survivors. These efforts, however,
cannot be accomplished without you and your support.
Improvements have been made in our benefits process.
However, the importance of staying vigilant is vital so no
grieving military spouse falls through the cracks. Important
decisions are made by each grieving spouse immediately after
casualty notification. Many of these decisions are permanent
and impact their future as well as their children. These
families need accurate information, proper documentation, and
expedited benefits. This information should be provided in more
than one format and on more than one occasion for full
comprehension by the surviving spouse.
Gold Star Wives seeks accurate information, protocol
assistance, and increases in allowable costs associated with
military funerals and burials. We understand that the VA is in
the process of developing a much needed brochure providing more
information, explaining the issue of committal shelters.
Another issue being addressed by the VA is the possibility of
creating new VA cemeteries in areas that normally would not
qualify.
Gold Star Wives seeks increases in the VA burial allowance.
The number one concern of our families is financial stability.
The removal of the Dependent Indemnity Compensation dollar for
dollar offset of the Survivor Benefit plan, SBP/DIC offset,
would have the greatest and most relevant impact. Additionally,
H.R. 2243, the ``Surviving Spouses Benefit Improvement Act of
2009,'' introduced by Representatives Buyer and Walz, would
increase the DIC to provide payment at 55 percent of the 100
percent disability compensation, bringing the DIC in line with
other Federal survivor programs. DIC has not been increased
since the flat rate DIC was established in 1993. This bill will
also remove the DIC offset of the Survivor Benefit Plan.
Recently the U.S. Court of Federal Claims' decision with
regards to Sharp v. United States ordered the Department of
Defense to refund SBP annuities withheld from three widowed
military spouses who were also receiving DIC. The Court found
that these remarried widows were entitled to SBP benefits
without the dollar per dollar reduction by the DIC. We
recognize that jurisdiction resides elsewhere on the SBP/DIC
offset. But Gold Star Wives would like each Member of this
Subcommittee to be aware of the important decision in this case
and work diligently to end the inequity for this small group of
military survivors.
Lastly, survivors are not synonymous as dependents, or
family members, in many governmental publications, documents,
or even speeches. This group is not new and must be recognized,
not forgotten. We commend the VA that the new 2009 edition of
the Federal Benefits for Veterans, Dependents and Survivors,
which I brought here. It now states, ``Federal Benefits for
Veterans, Dependents, and Survivors,'' on the front cover of
the handbook. This is a, for us, a moral victory. Last year is,
if you can look at the difference, it just says, ``Federal
Benefits for Veterans and Dependents.'' So we have come a long
way and we thank you for this.
Thank you for this opportunity to testify for Gold Star
Wives. And I am appreciative of the compassionate work that the
Members and the staff of this Subcommittee accomplish on our
behalf. We hope that you look to us as the voice of military
survivors.
I have 16 seconds. I will say something really quick. Last
time I testified I was an audiologist with a masters degree. I
am still an audiologist, but now I have my doctorate, I am a
doctor of audiology. And I did it through the VA using my
Chapter 35 benefits. And I thank you.
[The prepared statement of Dr. Wersel appears on p. 52.]
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Dr. Wersel. Thank you for you and your
organization's work to keep the fabric of the support systems
strong for all of our military families. I was at dinner last
night with a number of veterans and Gold Star Wives, Gold Star
Mothers, and one Gold Star Daughter. I am very grateful for the
sacrifices that you and your loved ones have given for our
country. Ms. Witter, you are now recognized.
STATEMENT OF LESLEY WITTER
Ms. Witter. Chairman Hall, Ranking Member Lamborn, Members
of the Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to testify
before you this morning about how we can better serve America's
veterans and their families. I am Lesley Witter, Director of
Political Affairs for the National Funeral Directors
Association. I am testifying today on behalf of over 19,000
funeral directors and funeral service personnel who are members
of NFDA.
Funeral directors help ensure that every deceased veteran
receives the care, honor, and dignity they have earned because
of their sacrifice in the defense of the freedoms we enjoy
today. While the responsibility of providing appropriate
funeral and burial benefits and proper military honors falls on
the VA and DoD, it is funeral directors who help the family
organize a personalized funeral and burial that both celebrates
the life of their loved one and honors their service to our
country. Funeral directors contact the VA to schedule funeral
and burial times, help families file benefit claims, ensure
that each veteran receives the appropriate grave markers, and
works with the DoD and veterans service organizations to
provide appropriate military honors.
In preparation for my testimony today, NFDA completed a
non-scientific survey of our membership regarding their
opinions on how we can better serve our veterans and their
families. I am happy to report that NFDA members provided
thoughtful and detailed responses on this important issue. I
will now highlight some of the key findings of our survey. I
have supplied detailed findings in my written testimony.
Approximately half of the NFDA members surveyed said that
they had assisted in planning 21 or more veteran funerals in
2008. Most funeral directors surveyed felt that the DoD and VA
were very responsive to funeral directors. Additionally, almost
74 percent felt that the VA and DoD were either very or
extremely responsive to veteran families. However, Monica
Torres, an NFDA member, a mortuary science student at Mesa
Community College, and a military spouse commented that,
``gathering information not only from funeral directors but
also the veteran's family may be an avenue of interest.'' If
there is no process to collect this important information, NFDA
will be happy to assist in developing a questionnaire that
funeral directors can give to the families after the funeral
and burial are completed.
Regarding funeral and burial benefits, less than one-third
of funeral directors responded that they had experienced
problems obtaining veteran burial benefits. However, over 66
percent of respondents felt that the current veteran and burial
benefits are insufficient. Several NFDA members commented that
the funeral benefit has not changed with inflation and that it
does not cover the ever increasing cost of a funeral. As a
result, almost two-thirds of funeral directors stated that they
have absorbed extra costs associated with veteran funerals. The
average dollar amount absorbed by funeral directors per veteran
funeral was $652.
In addition, NFDA member Mark Jelacic, of Jelacic Funeral
Home in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, commented that he believes the
``VA is disregarding those veterans and their families who have
chosen cremation as their final form of disposition by not
offering the burial benefit to these veterans.'' Mr. Jelacic
indicated that veteran families do not understand why if they
bury their loved one they would get a benefit, but if they
choose cremation they may not receive their burial allowance
unless the cremated remains are buried.
Mr. Chairman, I would like to take this opportunity to
express NFDA's strong support for H.R. 2642, a bill introduced
by Mr. Tiberi of Ohio, that directs the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs to assist in the identification of unclaimed and
abandoned human remains to determine if any of these remains
are eligible for burial in a national cemetery. NFDA members
are acutely aware of the sad story of unclaimed remains, many
of whom are veterans, throughout this Nation. NFDA members will
be happy to work with the VA to identify veterans' remains that
have gone unclaimed, and ensure that these heroes receive the
funeral and burial honors they deserve.
Mr. Chairman, distinguished Members of the Committee, on
behalf of the members of the National Funeral Directors
Association, I want to assure you that funeral directors
throughout the country remain dedicated to doing their part to
honor our Nation's veterans and their families. I want to
conclude my testimony today by thanking you for the opportunity
to testify on behalf of NFDA. I hope my testimony has been
helpful and I am ready to answer any questions you may have.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Witter appears on p. 53.]
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Ms. Witter. Mr. Nicolai, you are now
recognized for 5 minutes.
STATEMENT OF JOHN NICOLAI
Mr. Nicolai. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Members of the
Subcommittee. Thank you for letting me testify today about the
harmful practice of outsourcing cemetery caretaker jobs at the
national cemeteries. I am proud to be a Vietnam veteran and
served our country in the United States Air Force. Six years
ago, after many years in the corporate world, I was hired at
Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver, Colorado. It is a great
honor to work at Fort Logan. It is one of the best kept
cemeteries in the national cemetery network in my opinion. That
is, at least until recently when some of the caretaker work was
contracted out.
I started at Fort Logan as a cemetery caretaker maintaining
the cemetery grounds through mowing and trimming, headstone
setting, and assisting the interment crew. I currently work as
a cemetery representative. The last honor we bestow on our
veterans and their families is to give them a decent farewell,
which continues with perpetual care of their resting place, an
honor that could not be filled with as much dignity and
dedication without the cemetery caretakers, almost all of whom
are veterans themselves.
Caretakers take a great pride in their job, keeping the
cemetery up to National Shrine status. But their jobs are not
just about meticulously maintaining the grounds. Oftentimes the
cemetery caretaker is the first person the family talks to when
they are looking for a loved one's gravesite, or have other
questions about the national cemetery. There are family members
who visit their loved one's grave almost every day. They are
grieving. The caretakers get to know some of them by name and
are a source of comfort.
At Fort Logan, almost all the caretakers have been veterans
and those who are not veterans are mentored by their veteran
coworkers to fulfill their unique roles at national cemeteries.
Sadly, NCA contracted out all the caretaker and mowing and
trimming work at Fort Logan 2 years ago. That resulted in the
loss of three full-time caretaker positions for the next wave
of veterans coming home from combat in need of a job. The
remaining caretakers often have to redo the contractors' work
to make it look good for Memorial Day or for visits by senior
management from MISN or Washington.
Next month, another contract will begin at Fort Logan, this
time for headstone setting, and our caretakers currently
perform that job. That is two more caretaker jobs lost for
future veterans. Our caretakers take great pride in their
ability to set headstones and they do a magnificent job. It is
very personal to them. Most of the time a caretaker setting
headstones in a new burial section would be assigned that
section until it is completely filled. They consider it a
privilege to complete this honorable task. But now this job
will be turned over to a subcontractor. It will no longer be
caretaking, it will be just a contract laborer with no
connection to veterans or their families doing the mowing or
headstone setting.
These recent contracts do not seem legal. We never saw a
formal solicitation. We never saw any evidence of cost savings.
Management never gave us a chance to compete for that work,
either in order for us to show that we could it better and
cheaper, even though the law gives us that right. NCA has
argued that the cemetery caretaker positions are too hard to
fill. That in my mind is disingenuous. There is no evidence of
that. NCA has not gone out of its way to recruit veterans who
are looking for work. There are so many veterans who could fill
these positions with honor and dignity that befits them.
Two years ago NCA sent me to West Palm Beach to help open a
new national cemetery. The NCA hired a director, office staff,
and cemetery representatives, but no caretakers or interment
crews. Instead, they gave all this work to contractors. That is
a lot of lost job opportunities for today's unemployed
veterans.
So I am asking you first to please stop NCA from taking
more caretaker jobs away from veterans. And please require NCA
to work with VA's own job training programs and veterans groups
to find unemployed veterans to do this honorable work. And
finally, NCA should start complying with the OMB guidance that
directs agencies to start bringing contractor work back inside
the Government. It is the law, it is the fair thing to do for
our jobless veterans, and it is the honorable thing for all
fallen veterans and their families. Thank you very much.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Nicolai appears on p. 56.]
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Mr. Nicolai. I will, with the consent
of Mrs. Halvorson and Mr. Lamborn, thank you for your testimony
and tell you that we are going to submit questions. We do have
questions for you. But if we ask them now, and then you give us
the answers, and you multiply it by five, we will not get to
our next panel before the next stack of votes is called, and
then we are not sure how long that will be. So I hope you do
not take it as a sign of our underestimating your importance
and the importance of your testimony. But, we will send you
questions in writing. Also, some of the questions, frankly,
that you have raised, and that we have for you, are questions
that we want to ask of the next panel. So, thank you very much
for your patience, and thank you for your testimony, your
service to our veterans, and to our country. And Mr. Lamborn,
would you like to comment?
Mr. Lamborn. I agree with that, Mr. Chairman. I would like
to say to the gentleman from Fort Logan, I have been there. It
is just north of the part of Colorado I represent. And it is
beautifully kept, and I appreciate your work.
Mr. Hall. Thank you all for your service to our country and
to our veterans. We will be writing you, the staff will send
you our assorted, assembled questions. In the interest of
getting through the agenda before the next votes are called and
we disappear for who knows how long, we will thank you and
excuse you and wish you a good day. And ask our third panel to
join us, consisting of Mr. Steve L. Muro, Acting Under
Secretary for Memorial Affairs of the National Cemetery
Administration of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs;
accompanied by Ron Walters, Director of Budget and Planning
Services at the National Cemetery Administration for the U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs.
As always, your full written statement has been entered
into the record. So feel free to expand, or shorten, or edit,
or improvise as you see fit. Mr. Muro, you are now recognized
for 5 minutes.
STATEMENT OF STEVE L. MURO, ACTING UNDER SECRETARY FOR MEMORIAL
AFFAIRS, NATIONAL CEMETERY ADMINISTRATION, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF
VETERANS AFFAIRS; ACCOMPANIED BY RONALD WALTERS, DIRECTOR,
BUDGET AND PLANNING SERVICES, NATIONAL CEMETERY ADMINISTRATION,
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS
Mr. Muro. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, Mr.
Ranking Member, and Members of the Committee, thank you for the
opportunity to testify about the initiatives of the National
Cemetery Administration to better serve America's veterans and
their families. Thank you for accepting my written testimony
for the record.
One critical measure of service is VA's ability to provide
veterans reasonable access to a burial option. Currently, 87
percent of all veterans in the Nation reside within a 75-mile
radius of a national or State veterans cemetery. Five new
national cemeteries opened in 2009, serving the areas of
Columbia, South Carolina; Sarasota and Jacksonville, Florida;
Birmingham, Alabama; and Bakersfield, California. Washington
Crossing National Cemetery, serving the veterans of
Philadelphia and Southeastern Pennsylvania, is projected to
open in early next year. Seven new State veterans cemeteries
established through the State Cemetery Grants Program are also
under construction. With the opening of these new cemeteries,
NCA projects that 90 percent of veterans will have reasonable
access to burial space in a national or State veterans cemetery
by fiscal year 2011.
We are responding to the changes in burial preferences of
veterans and their families by constructing a great number of
columbaria for inurnment of cremated remains. We are also
developing a new memorial wall in our cemeteries to honor those
veterans whose remains are not available for burial. VA is
expanding the Headstone and Marker Program to include a new
medallion, an option that will acknowledge the service of
veterans buried in private cemeteries around the world.
Veterans and their families will be able to choose either the
new medallion or the traditional headstone or marker for
veterans who died on or after November 1, 1990, and are
interred in a privately marked grave in private cemeteries. We
anticipate the medallion will be available for veterans and
their families early next year.
We are also streamlining the process of burial eligibility
determination and interment scheduling to better serve the
needs of veterans, their families, and the funeral directors.
The centralized national cemetery national scheduling office
opened in St. Louis in January of 2007 to handle interment
requests for all national cemeteries, except those located in
Puerto Rico and Hawaii. As a one-stop scheduling center, it
ensures timely, consistent eligibility determinations and is
available for families and funeral homes for scheduling of
burials 7 days a week. Previously, when these functions were
performed by employees at each national cemetery, scheduling
was available 5 days a week.
The National Cemetery Administration holds the distinction
of earning the highest score ever achieved in the American
Customer Service Index Survey for Federal agencies or private
corporations. NCA achieved a customer satisfaction rating of 95
out of a possible 100 in 2004 and again in 2007. These results
are testament to the dedication and hard work of the national
cemetery employees as they serve veterans and their family
members during a difficult and emotional time.
Our programs for employee development, which are centered
at our National training center in St. Louis, are crucial to
maintaining VA as National Shrines and to providing care and
compassionate service to veterans and families in their time of
need.
We continually assess our burial and memorial programs with
the goal to serve veterans even better in the future. We look
forward to working with the Members of this Subcommittee as we
jointly respond to the changing needs of those who have served.
Thank you again for this opportunity and I would be pleased to
answer any questions that you may have.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Muro appears on p. 58.]
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Secretary Muro. Thank you for your
testimony and for your work. Congratulations on the high rating
you just told us about. That is very impressive. First of all I
would like to ask, in your testimony you commented on the four
strategic goals outlined by the Advisory Committee in its 2008
report. Along with those goals the Advisory Committee made 16
recommendations, to which the VA responded. Several of these
items required additional follow-up. Can you provide us a
summary of the follow-up actions VA has taken in response to
the recommendations?
Mr. Muro. We do not have a copy of the 16 recommendations
those goals here. If you provide me those, I can answer your
questions?
Mr. Hall. Sure. We will do that. We will send you the
recommendations and then you can provide us with----
Mr. Muro. Thank you.
Mr. Hall [continuing]. Your responses. It has been almost a
year since Congress was informed of the activities of the
Advisory Committee on Cemeteries and Memorials. Has that
Committee conducted any additional meetings? What other
activities or observations have they provided? Is the authority
outlined in title 38, section 2401, regarding the Advisory
Committee on Cemeteries and Memorials sufficient to advise the
Secretary on such matters or is more authority needed to meet
the NCA's strategic goals and mission?
[The VA provided the goals and recommendations in the
response to Question 1 of the Post-Hearing Questions and
Responses for the Record, which will appear in the Appendix.]
Mr. Muro. Yes, they meet twice a year. They will be meeting
again this November. We can provide you notes and
recommendations from the last meeting that they held.
[The VA provided the Minutes from the November 2009 meeting
of the Advisory Committee on Cemeteries and Memorials, which
will be retained in the Committee files.]
Mr. Hall. That would be greatly appreciated, sir. I
understand that for safety reasons mourners are not allowed at
graveside for funerals. However, this policy contradicts
certain religious observances, such as Native American burial
rituals, or Jewish gravesite practices. What is VA's policy for
graveside burials? The policy for VA-funded State veterans
cemeteries, to make accommodations for graveside services in
respect to these practices? This is sort of a multipart
question. Do State cemeteries have the discretion to restrict
or deny graveside requests for safety reasons? If so, would it
be possible for VA to offer a more concrete policy to its State
veterans cemeteries to accommodate graveside services or
religious beliefs?
Mr. Muro. First of all, our policy is to conduct services
at committal shelters. On occasion, we do go to the gravesite.
Any time the family requests viewing of the lowering after the
committal service, we will take them to the site. At some of
our national cemeteries, there are viewing areas. At others,
depending on the volume, they may go to within 20 feet of the
gravesite. They take only the immediate next of kin. We
encourage the State cemeteries to follow that policy as well.
Mr. Hall. Thank you. Has the NCA adjusted its planning
model to take into account project population growth,
variances, and shifts? Specifically what resources and other
measures would it entail to reduce the 75-mile radius, or lower
the 170,000 threshold as suggested by the Independent Budget
and various veterans groups?
Mr. Muro. The study was conducted using the records that we
maintain on the 75-mile radius. We are reviewing the population
threshold at this time.
Mr. Hall. When do you expect that review to be completed?
Mr. Muro. It will be entered in our budget as we submit our
budget through OMB.
Mr. Hall. Thank you. In your testimony you accounted for
2,899 OIF/OEF burials----
Mr. Muro. Correct.
Mr. Hall [continuing]. In which VA provided either burial,
or headstones, or markers. Given that the total number of those
who have died in these operations is almost double that number,
what has happened to the remaining fallen servicemembers? Do
you know where they are buried? Where their final resting place
is? What contact and interaction did VA have with those
veterans' survivors?
Mr. Muro. Between Arlington, State cemeteries, national
cemeteries, and the private cemeteries, many of them have
chosen private cemeteries near their homes and we have provided
headstones and markers for those when requested.
Mr. Hall. I have a few more questions, but I am at this
point going to recognize Ranking Member Lamborn for his
questions. Mr. Lamborn.
Mr. Lamborn. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Muro, and you may
know this because Representative Salazar and I have met with
you on this issue. There is a long history of a need for a
cemetery in Southern Colorado. And this is compounded by the
fact that Fort Logan, we heard from someone from there earlier,
is scheduled to be at capacity in as little as 10 years. And it
can take up to 5 years to build and establish and prepare for a
new cemetery. Colorado veterans have been organized for years
to bring a national veterans cemetery to this region. And since
I entered office 3 years ago, I have twice introduced a bill
with Mr. Salazar, which would direct the Secretary of the VA to
establish a national cemetery in El Paso County for veterans of
the Southern Colorado region. And this bill passed the House in
the last Congress and we are optimistic about it passing the
House this Congress.
Also, last year Chairman Hall and I had a field hearing in
Colorado Springs to discuss cemetery issues, including the
potential inappropriateness 75-mile rule in a mountain State
like Colorado. And Mr. Tuerk, your predecessor, almost could
not get there from Denver, from the airport where he flew in,
because there was bad weather and the Palmer Divide is 7,000
feet. He almost could not get to the hearing. And that is what
separates Colorado Springs from Denver.
Also, he did promise, and this did take place, that someone
from the VA would come and inspect sites in El Paso County for
a potential national cemetery. That site visit did take place
on November 10th, so I am wanting to ask you what the outcome
of that visit was? Was there a report done? And what
information did you learn from that site visit?
Mr. Muro. First of all, we learned that we need to go out
and look at other sites. We are in the process of putting a
team together that does site visits. We will actually be
putting a notice in the newspaper in that area for any sites
that are 300 acres or larger, for either purchase or donation.
We will be sending the team out to conduct visits. We are
looking at how and where we going to replace Fort Logan before
it closes. It is optimal for us to open the replacement
cemetery for Fort Logan. In advance of closure of Fort Logan,
because it will help it last a little longer. So we plan to do
that, in the next few months and we will be going out there and
looking in the area.
Mr. Lamborn. Well, that is real exciting. Would you be able
to, if there is any way our office can help you in that visit
we would be very happy to do so.
Mr. Muro. Yes, we will contact you when we get the team
ready to go and we will work with you.
Mr. Lamborn. Okay, well I appreciate that very much. And as
a follow-up question, I know that in the last fiscal year for
the first time a line item was created and $5 million was given
to the VA to buy land in advance of closures. And I know that
there are two to four different sites where that is being
anticipated, including Fort Logan. Where does that stand in
terms of sites you are looking at for that particular line
item? And will you be spending the money that you get, I do not
think you have spent the $5 million, but you may get up to, if
Congress agrees with your request, up to another $25 million on
top of that for this upcoming fiscal year. So if you could
enlighten me as to where that stands?
Mr. Muro. In reference to the funds, we did get $5 million
in 2009 and we are requesting another $25 million to give us a
total of $30.5 million. We are currently looking for land. We
already sent a team out to Puerto Rico. They looked at about 18
sites. We narrowed it down to possibly three sites. Once we do
that, we will go to the Secretary and recommend those three
sites and then we will do a study on them. We will make an
offer on the one site that the Secretary approves. We will be
doing the same thing in Colorado, and for Willamette national
cemetery in Portland, Oregon. Willamette national cemetery is
anticipated to close in 2019, so we want to purchase
replacement land. The nice thing about Willamette national
cemetery is that there is some property adjacent to the
cemetery that we are currently in the process of negotiating
with the owners for at this time. So we may be able to purchase
that property. So that is where we will be using those funds in
the near future to purchase property.
Mr. Lamborn. Okay, well thank you for your efforts. And any
way that my office can assist you we would love to do so. Thank
you.
Mr. Muro. Thank you.
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Mr. Lamborn. Mrs. Halvorson.
Mrs. Halvorson. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Mr.
Muro, for being here, and all the other panelists before you.
Thank you for doing such a good job with regards to a situation
that came up in my district. I am sure you are familiar with
the private cemetery Burr Oak in Illinois.
Mr. Muro. Yes, ma'am.
Mrs. Halvorson. Where several of the veterans, especially
their headstones and their entire burial, was desecrated. And
Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, which is in my district, we
worked it out where we could offer them free reburial. So that
was something that was very, very wonderful that we were able
to do for the veterans. We were able to say rest in peace truly
means rest in peace.
However, I am really concerned about something that just
came up with the fact of this outsourcing of jobs. Can you
explain to me what is happening with outsourcing of our jobs?
Are they truly being taken away from veterans and going to
other companies, and not our veterans?
Mr. Muro. Well, let me explain what we have done. As we
open new national cemeteries, we keep certain jobs in-house. We
do interments, the cemetery representative work, and we do the
setting of headstones; we contract out the mowing. We have
increased the full-time equivalent (FTE) in our system. We are
up to 1,600. So we are doing some work in-house and work
through some contracting. The same goes for our closed
cemeteries, where it is more difficult to get staff. The
gentleman spoke about south Florida national cemetery. It
actually took us 2 years to fully staff that cemetery with
veterans from those that were willing to apply. We have had
high turnover there because of the cost of living. In many
areas, the cost of living has forced us to look at other ways
to get the work done. But each year we have increased our FTE.
All of our new cemeteries open with approximately 15 FTE to
manage and operate the cemetery. We are keeping the interment
work in-house. We are keeping the cemetery representative work,
and all of the public affairs-type work in-house. The mowing,
the trimming, and the setting of headstones and markers we do
contract out.
Mrs. Halvorson. Well, because, we are doing everything in
our power to create opportunities for veterans. I do not want
to be embarrassed when I hear that veterans cemeteries and
groups like yourselves are going outside of our veterans
groups. And so----
Mr. Muro. And those that we are contracting with are
service-connected disabled veteran-owned businesses.
Mrs. Halvorson [continuing]. Because----
Mr. Muro. We are giving the work to veterans. We work with
the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) to hire OIF/OEF
veterans that are going through different training programs.
Mrs. Halvorson. Okay.
Mr. Muro. Each network of the five networks throughout the
national cemetery system, were required last year and again
this year to hire five OIF/OEFs.
Mrs. Halvorson. Okay.
Mr. Muro. So we are hiring veterans. In fact, 70 percent of
our field employees are veterans.
Mrs. Halvorson. Okay. I just want to make sure that is
happening. I mean, we are doing everything----
Mr. Muro. Of course.
Mrs. Halvorson [continuing]. To make sure of that. Because
we are having more and more veterans come back.
Mr. Muro. Yes, certainly.
Mrs. Halvorson. And that I just want assurances that we are
doing everything we can to make sure that we are hiring
veterans, we are giving incentives to hiring veterans. I do not
want to be talking about that our Veterans Affairs, of all
people, are not doing what we talk about all the time, but
until we practice what we preach, that is not doing us any
good.
Mr. Muro. I understand. And we are.
Mrs. Halvorson. Okay.
Mr. Muro. We are making every effort to hire veterans.
Mrs. Halvorson. Great. One last question is, one thing that
I know that we are interested in exploring, and something that
the Secretary is very interested in is homelessness amongst our
veterans. Where you are concerned, can you take us through some
of the situations? What happens with burial issues with regards
to those who are homeless veterans? And what happens when a
veteran does not have any family members? How do you deal with
that situation?
Mr. Muro. Our cemetery directors work closely with the
different coroners' offices to determine eligibility. We work
with VA regional offices to determine eligibility. So that if
we do find that they are veterans, those individuals that have
been found on the street, who are homeless, we can ensure that
they can be buried in a national cemetery.
Mrs. Halvorson. How do you know if they are a veteran if
they do not have, if their----
Mr. Muro. We will use fingerprints to obtain identification
so long as they have not been cremated, and there are
fingerprints we can work with the FBI with fingerprints to find
veteran files. And we have been really successful throughout
the country doing that, working with the coroners' offices.
Mrs. Halvorson. Great. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I yield back.
Mr. Hall. Thank you, Mrs. Halvorson. I just wanted to ask
you Secretary Muro, continuing and following up on a comment
that was made by the Ranking Member of the full Committee, Mr.
Buyer, when he was here earlier, talking about artificial or
digital bugle machines. As the token musician on the panel, I
have been a French horn player and a decent, at one time at any
rate, a decent trumpeter and bugler. There are many very
accomplished high school band bugle players or trumpet players
who can play a bugle just as well. Is this in your purview? Is
this something that the NCA in the process of working with the
families handles? I just came from a 9/11 ceremony, as did many
of us, recently, where there were two buglers calling,
answering back and forth to each other, playing real bugles. It
is a very moving moment with the color guard standing at
attention, and the crowd and survivors in one of my 5 counties,
44 families, survivors of 9/11 victims. I can only imagine how
much less moving the moment would have been if somebody had
pushed a button on a tape, or a CD, or had an artificial
reproduction. So, I am just curious, have you contacted, or do
you work with local schools? Or, find people who actually play
the instrument?
Mr. Muro. Yes. There are a couple of things that we are
doing to try to get real buglers at the cemeteries for not only
services, but for ceremonies. We worked closely over the last 3
years with Taps Across American, Bugles Across America, to get
more interest in buglers in order to have them come and
volunteer. We work with the local school districts, the ROTCs
that may have buglers, and we try to get them scheduled for our
services so that we can utilize them in support of families.
The artificial bugle, it is actually a real bugle with an
electronic device in it. Instead of looking like a mute, it
sticks in there and they have a----
Mr. Hall. Right. That is not a real bugle, I am sorry.
Mr. Muro. You are right. But it is better than the boom
box.
Mr. Hall. Well, it looks better.
Mr. Muro. Right.
Mr. Hall. It is a boom box that is shaped like bugle.
Mr. Muro. Exactly. But we are trying to get volunteers.
Mr. Hall. I understand, sir. I----
Mr. Muro. And there are those buglers that charge the
families, unfortunately. You can see this in the paper. People
advertise, ``I can play a bugle for this amount.'' We do not
encourage it. But we cannot stop the families from hiring them.
Mr. Hall. Right.
Mr. Muro. So we try to work with the VSOs and with the
schools----
Mr. Hall. I appreciate that.
Mr. Muro [continuing]. And the organizations.
Mr. Hall. I used to get paid to play organ at Mass----
Mr. Muro. Right.
Mr. Hall [continuing]. When I was a teenager. But it did
not mean that maybe I should not have volunteered. But they
offered and I, I was mowing lawns and doing other things too.
But at any rate, back to normal topics here. Are there
entitlement rules for National Guard or Reservists limiting
their eligibility for NCA burial benefits? Should those rules
be changed to accommodate more Guard and Reservists?
Mr. Muro. As long as they served active duty and they
separated under conditions other than dishonorably and served
for the time they were called up to active duty, then they
actually have the full benefit of burial. If they are called up
for 1 day, they are eligible for burial as long as they served
that 1 day. If they are called up for 1 year and they serve
that year, they are eligible for burial.
Mr. Hall. That is great. If a veteran with no other
dependents is buried in a national cemetery and his or her only
survivor is a parent, should that parent be eligible, or is
that parent eligible, for burial with the veteran?
Mr. Muro. If the parent, either one of the parents, were a
veteran, then they would be eligible and it would just be a
burial arrangement in a national cemetery.
Mr. Hall. Thank you. Also, in your testimony you mentioned
the current budget authority and the stimulus money NCA
received this year, along with 928 identified repair projects.
If in 2008 NCA completed 304 projects and stimulus money will
cover 395, what are the repair plans for the remaining 339
projects? Does the 2010 budget cover those costs sufficiently?
Mr. Muro. Yes, the FY 2010 budget will let us get more
projects completed. We have a goal to try to complete them all
within 5 years. That would include raise and realign projects,
repair of sunken grave projects, road repair projects, some
building repair work, and some of the historic monuments. We
just completed a project here in DC at the Congressional
Cemetery where we partnered with the National Park Service
where we repaired the cenotaphs. Our team has received an award
from the District of Columbia under the Historic Preservation
for Restoration/Rehabilitation category.
Mr. Hall. What challenges, if any, does the NCA experience
when implementing the State Cemetery Grants Program?
Mr. Muro. The challenge is for the States to come up with
the necessary funds and the States having the property to
develop into veterans cemeteries. That has been our biggest
challenge. There are some States, for example, Kentucky, that
have moved ahead, and have developed several State cemeteries.
Some of the States do not want to operate a State veterans
cemetery. For instance New York and Florida have never put in
an application. So really our challenge is getting buy-in from
the States and them having the funds for initial work so that
we can later reimburse them.
Mr. Hall. I would imagine right now with the States in the
difficult fiscal straits they are in that it is more
challenging than before.
Mr. Muro. It is. But we do have some States that are ready
to apply for 2010.
Mr. Hall. Is Colorado one of them?
Mr. Muro. No, Colorado is not one that wants a State
veterans cemetery.
Mr. Hall. Okay. I just also wanted to ask quickly, is the
NCA paperless processing system and its first notice of death
entry into its computer system compatible with the Veterans
Benefits Administration IT systems? How is the communication
with VBA handled, paper or electronic? How efficient is that
process?
Mr. Muro. We took it over in October. Right now we have all
of the burial flag applications, First Notice of Death data
from all the regional offices and the VA insurance center data
sent to us in the NCA First Notice of Death Office in St.
Louis. In the next 4 to 6 months this information will be sent
to Quantico to be scanned into our system, so it will become
completely paperless at that point. We then use the VBA's
system, the Share program, and we use that electronic system to
log in the First Notice of Death for veterans. We also get data
from NCA and from the State veterans cemeteries. When we get
that information, we put in First Notice of Death. We are
working to make that process a totally electronic so once we
order a headstone or marker it will automatically initiate the
First Notice of Death electronically to all of VA.
Mr. Hall. We have a vote in progress. So I just have a
couple more questions for you, sir, and then we will be done.
But I just wanted to first of all ask, given the situation in
Illinois, if families request reburial of a veteran whose
remains were previously interred at the Burr Oak Cemetery, it
is my understanding that prior receipt of VA burial benefits
such as funeral or burial allowances would not affect
eligibility for reinterment at a national cemetery, nor the
issuance of the new headstone or marker. So the family would
not incur any additional costs. Is that correct?
Mr. Muro. That is correct. The only cost----
Mr. Hall. I know it is an unfortunate situation, but is
there a standard NCA policy regarding reburial?
Mr. Muro. Yes. That is the standard. If anyone wants to
take their loved one from a private cemetery to a national
cemetery, the only cost they would incur is the disinterment
from the private cemetery. When they bring them to a national
cemetery there is no cost for the interment in the national
cemetery, for the service, for perpetual care, or for the
headstone or marker.
Mr. Hall. Last, just following up on Mrs. Halvorson's
question regarding outsourcing to private contractors, it
sounded from your response that, I was not sure if you were
saying all or most, or that you were making an effort to hire
contractors who are using veterans to do the work? Do you know
or can you state what----
Mr. Muro. All of our Millennium and maintenance contracts
have gone to service-disabled veterans.
Mr. Hall. Are those service-disabled veterans who owned
businesses?
Mr. Muro. Right, service-connected disabled veteran-owned
businesses, correct.
Mr. Hall. Okay. But are the actual workers doing the work--
--
Mr. Muro. We encourage them to hire veterans and most of
them do. They are after all veteran-owned companies so we
encourage that.
Mr. Hall. Okay. Thank you very much, Secretary Muro. I
remind all Members they have 5 legislative days to revise or
extend their remarks. Thank you, to all of our panelists for
all of our panelists for their patients.
Mr. Muro. Thank you.
Mr. Hall. Thank you for the work you do for our country's
veterans.
Mr. Muro. Thank you, sir.
Mr. Hall. This hearing stands adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 12:23 p.m., the Subcommittee was adjourned.]
A P P E N D I X
----------
Prepared Statement of John J. Hall, Chairman,
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Good Morning Ladies and Gentlemen:
Would you please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance?
From the Revolutionary War to the current conflicts in Iraq and
Afghanistan, American servicemembers have given their lives for this
country.
In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln created a national veterans'
cemetery system and dedicated it, ``. . . for the soldiers who shall
die in the service of the country.'' President Lincoln's sentiments and
our undying gratitude are as palpable today as they were in 1862,
evident in our commitment to provide benefits to ensure that our
veterans are properly memorialized.
Nevertheless, we may be falling short of our intended goals on some
fronts.
Although Congress authorized VA to provide veterans the option to
receive burial and plot allowances and reimbursement of certain burial
expenses, these benefits were created decades ago and have not kept
pace with inflation. The value of the current $300 burial allowance and
$300 plot allowance for qualifying veterans has diminished as funeral
and burial costs have increased at a higher rate than the average
inflation rate.
I am also concerned about VA's current cemetery policies, which
seem to leave large numbers of veterans un-served by a burial option.
Under the current standard, new national cemeteries are established in
areas where the un-served population is at least 170,000 veterans
within a 75-mile radius. This means that several areas with large
numbers of veterans, such as where the population is more than 110,000
will remain un-served by a VA burial option.
Moreover, VA's current strategic goal of reaching 90 percent served
would require an additional 31 cemeteries beyond those already in
operation or planned as of 2001. However, according to a study
conducted by ICF International, there are no locations in the U.S. that
will meet the current criteria for the establishment of a new national
cemetery until 2015. Even at that time, only one community will reach
the population threshold of 170,000 veterans. It is evident that
changes to the current 75-mile service area standard may be in order.
All of these burial benefits concerns negatively impact the survivors
left behind and I want to further examine this critical aspect of the
issues with VA as well.
Additionally, the National Shrine Mandate holds that ``all national
and other veterans' cemeteries under control of the NCA shall be
considered national shrines.'' Several factors will impact NCA's
ability to meet and maintain the National Shrine Mandate, namely: the
growing number of interments, a change in burial preferences,
population migration, and an aging infrastructure. I believe that VA
should conduct a preemptive review of the NCA's obstacles in meeting
the National Shrine Mandate in order to try thwart new issues that may
arise and ensure that existing ones do not grow in complexity.
Last, I look forward to hearing from Secretary Cleland of the
American Battle Monuments Commission, Superintendent Metzler of
Arlington National Cemetery and the rest of our esteemed witnesses. I
believe that we can bring continuous improvements to our system of
memorializing our courageous veterans by ensuring that their burial
benefits and final resting places reflect the debt of their service.
Thank you, I now yield to Ranking Member Lamborn for his opening
statement.
0Prepared Statement of Hon. Doug Lamborn, Ranking Republican
Member, Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Thank you Mr. Chairman for holding this hearing on America's
national cemeteries.
I thank our witnesses in advance for their testimony today and for
their dedication to serving America's veterans and their families.
Properly honoring a deceased veteran is one of our most solemn and
indeed sacred obligations.
These patriots have earned honored repose in a national shrine.
They and their families are due the tribute and thanks of a grateful
Nation.
As members of the Greatest Generation pass from our presence, we
are seeing increased demand on all of our national cemeteries. VA
estimates that interments in as national cemeteries will rise from the
current level of 2.9 million to 3.4 million by 2014.
Mr. Chairman, it is for that reason that I thank you for helping my
efforts to pass H.R. 174 which I introduced with my good friend Mr.
Salazar earlier this year. H.R. 174 would establish a VA national
cemetery in southern Colorado and greatly benefit those veterans and
families in this fast-growing area.
One reason for the continued delay in building this cemetery is
that the Southern Colorado region does not meet VA's subjective
standards for new construction.
I believe that there is a better way to determine need than drawing
circles in a 75 mile radius around a national cemetery to determine
where the most ``underserved'' veterans are.
There are many other factors that need to be taken into account
including travel time to and from national cemeteries, access to public
transportation in the area, and other factors that are more realistic
than a large circle on a map.
However, I know that this problem is not just limited to Southern
Colorado; and that if we polled other Members we would find these
problems and concerns extend to many rural and urban regions like
Nebraska, New York City, Los Angeles, Buffalo, NY, and many other areas
that are adversely affected by VA's somewhat arbitrary rules.
Passing H.R. 174 would be an important first step in addressing
this problem and is identical to H.R. 1660 that passed this Committee
and the whole house last congress. Mr. Chairman, I thank you for your
continued support of this bill and I hope that the Full Committee will
consider this bill soon.
I want to thank everyone once again for being here and I am looking
forward to the testimony.
Thank you Mr. Chairman, I yield back.
Prepared Statement of Hon. Jeff Miller
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I appreciate your holding this hearing today. We can all agree to
the importance of continuing to honor our veterans after they have
passed into the next life. Barrancas National Cemetery, in my district
in Northwest Florida, is the final home to over 36,000 veterans who
fought for this Nation through various conflicts. Every time I step
foot on those grounds, I am reminded of their courage, and seeing the
honors bestowed upon them during a burial service is truly a moving
experience.
The importance of the ceremonies extends to the families of these
brave soldiers as well. During the 109th Congress, as Chairman of this
Subcommittee, I worked with many other Members to ensure that families
of the deceased were given the respect they deserved during burial
ceremonies. It is appalling to me people would disrupt these solemn
moments, and not let families mourn in peace.
Having also seen Normandy American Cemetery, overseen by the
American Battle Monuments Commission, I am further assured that our
soldiers buried abroad are also well looked after. The annual D-Day
ceremony there is a strong reminder of what this Nation has been
through, and I know their sacrifices have made this world a better,
safer, and freer place.
I look forward to today's testimony. Much of what is in place at
national cemeteries and American Battle Monuments is considered very
successful. With your help and input, we can make it even better.
I yield back.
Prepared Statement of Hon. Steve Buyer
Thank you Mr. Chairman and I appreciate your willingness in
allowing me to address the Subcommittee on this important issue.
It has been said throughout history that one way to judge and study
a society is examine the way in which they honor those that have died
in defense of that society.
For the most part, our society continues to honor our Nation's
heroes with the respect and dignity that their sacrifices deserve.
However it is becoming increasing clear that we have four standards
when we talk about the conditions of our Nation's cemeteries. We have
what most would consider the gold standard, which refers to the
overseas cemeteries under the jurisdiction of the American Battle
Monuments Commission, and sets the bar in beauty and attention to
detail.
Not far behind is the standard set by Arlington National Cemetery
which is one of our oldest national cemeteries and is truly a national
treasure. Third is the standard set by the National Cemetery
Administration and its 133 national cemeteries.
To ensure that national cemeteries, under its jurisdiction both new
and old, are maintained as national shrines, VA is at work fulfilling
its important National Shrine Commitment. That effort, however, is
still years from completion.
Disappointing exceptions to these high standards do exist, however.
Several years ago it came to my attention that the condition of the
14 national cemeteries under the jurisdiction of the National Parks
Service are not maintained at the same high level as the national
cemeteries administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Of these
14 park service cemeteries, only two of them, Andersonville in Georgia
and Andrew Johnson in Tennessee, are still open and regularly inter
veterans.
When I visited Andersonville in the spring of 2007, I found the
conditions of the cemetery to be unacceptable and not to the standard
that these heroes have earned.
The grave markers had not been washed in some time and were out of
alignment and the grass and shrubbery was not properly cared for and in
many cases looked like it had not had attention for several months. It
was clear that much improvement was needed to even reach the level of
being minimally acceptable.
While I am told that the conditions at Andersonville have improved,
I continue to be concerned about what conditions NPS considers
acceptable. After a conversation I had with Secretary Salazar earlier
this year he committed to conducting a full review of all of the NPS
cemeteries.
I believe this review should be an important first step in NPS
creating their own national shrine commitment similar to the one in
NCA. I am disappointed that despite strong support from Chairman Dicks
and Ranking Member Simpson of the Appropriations Subcommittee on
Interior and Environment the parks service continues to drag its feet
on this review. I look forward to hearing more about this issue from
our NPS witness today.
The presence of four standards at our national cemeteries is not an
acceptable way to honor our veterans. It should not matter if the grave
is overseas, at Arlington, or from before the civil war; they all
should be maintained to the same high standard that recognized their
sacrifice for our freedom.
Mr. Chairman, if it is within the capacity of Congress to help
ensure that any national cemetery now deficient rises to the highest
standards, we must not delay in that work.
Thank you Mr. Chairman, and I yield back.
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Prepared Statement of Hon. Max Cleland, Secretary,
American Battle Monuments Commission
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee.
Thank you for this opportunity to appear before you to share with
the Subcommittee the manner in which the American Battle Monuments
Commission honors our fallen.
We do not maintain national cemeteries within the United States; we
do not provide veterans' benefits or services; nor are we responsible
for survivor benefits and programs. Those responsibilities rest with
the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense. The
importance of those services has been recognized since the founding of
our Nation. In the words of George Washington, ``A Nation that does not
care for its soldiers will cease to exist as a Nation.''
Honoring our Nation's fallen has been the focus of our Commission
since its creation by Congress in 1923. Our purpose was eloquently
stated in 1934 by the words of our first Chairman, General of the
Armies John J. Pershing, who wrote: ``. . . to relatives of soldier
dead, and to every American citizen, I can give assurance that the U.S.
Government has kept and will continue to maintain its trust in
perpetuating the memory of the bravery and sacrifices of our World War
heroes. Time will not dim the glory of their deeds.''
The mission of the American Battle Monuments Commission--our
purpose--is to honor the fallen by commemorating the service,
achievements and sacrifice of America's armed forces: our war dead,
missing in action, and those that fought at their side.
This mission is as old as antiquity. In his history of the
Peloponnesian War, Thucydides quotes the Funeral Oration delivered by
Pericles after the first battles of the war:
``For heroes have the whole Earth as their tomb; and in lands far
from their own, where the column with its epitaph declares it, there is
enshrined in every breast a record unwritten with no tablet to preserve
it, except that of the heart.''
ABMC is the guardian of 24 permanent military cemeteries and
twenty-five memorials, monuments and markers. Three memorials are
located in the United States; the remaining memorials and all of the
Commission's cemeteries are located in 14 foreign countries, the U.S.
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the British
dependency of Gibraltar. Nearly 125,000 U.S. war dead are interred in
these cemeteries: 31,000 from World War I; 93,000 from World War II;
and 750 from the Mexican War. Nearly 6,200 American veterans and others
are interred in the Mexico City National Cemetery and Corozal American
Cemetery in Panama.
Commemorated individually by name on stone tablets at the World War
I and II cemeteries and three memorials on U.S. soil are more than
94,000 U.S. servicemen and women who are missing in action or were lost
or buried at sea in their general regions during the World Wars and the
Korean and Vietnam Wars.
Our cemeteries are recognized as being among the most beautiful
sites of their nature in the world. But our responsibility goes beyond
simply maintaining beautiful and inspirational commemorative sites. We
have an equally important duty to perpetuate the stories of competence,
courage and sacrifice that those we honor can no longer tell for
themselves.
It is not enough that future generations honor our war dead by
their visits. When the Commission was raising funds to build the World
War II Memorial, Tom Hanks offered his time and talent to serve as the
campaign's national spokesman. One of the public service ads produced
for that campaign depicted a World War II helmet with a bullet hole
through its side. The headline read, ``Dying for freedom isn't the
worst thing that can happen. Being forgotten is.''
Future generations must never forget nor fail to understand the
significance of what our fellow Americans have done for us and for
others around the world. We have a responsibility to tell their stories
at each of our overseas cemeteries, and we have committed ourselves to
doing just that.
As a war correspondent in England, Walter Cronkite met Captain
Donald Stockton, a member of the U.S. Army Air Forces, in February
1943, just after Stockton ``had brought an almost tailless Fort back
from a raid over France.'' ``Don turned out to be,'' Cronkite said,
``the realest man I ever met.''
Three months later, Cronkite returned to Alconbury where Stockton
and his crew of the 303rd Bomb Group were based. In one of his most
famous stories of World War II, ``Nine Crying Boys,'' Cronkite told of
seeing one bomber firing the red distress flares signaling an injured
on board. As the bomber pulled up and came to a stop, Cronkite writes
of counting the number of men coming off the aircraft. There were only
nine out of a crew of 10. ``And as the crew came closer he realized
that every crew member was shaken, tears pouring down their faces, and
that the crew he was watching was that of Don Stockton.''
Don Stockton had flown his last mission, his 24th, one short of a
complete combat tour at which point he could have gone home. On May 14,
1943, a German fighter attacked Stockton's aircraft. Only one bullet
hit the plane. That bullet came through the cockpit window, striking
the pilot Stockton. Cronkite wrote that Stockton was ``one of those
American boy pioneers who in the lean winter days 1942-43 went out
daily over Germany in a handful of Fortresses without fighter escort.
They were the ones who paved the way for the mighty high-altitude
precision attacks of today.'' Stockton was awarded the Distinguished
Flying Cross, Silver Star and Air Medal.
Years later Walter Cronkite came to Cambridge American Cemetery in
England to film a documentary. It was said that the real reason
Cronkite was filming at the cemetery was to visit a specific grave. The
gravesite was that of Captain Donald Stockton.
Buried at Aisne-Marne American Cemetery in France is Weedon
Osborne, the cemetery's one Medal of Honor recipient. Osborne, a Junior
Grade Lieutenant in the Navy's Dental Corps, was assigned duty with the
6th Marine Regiment during World War I. During the battle of Belleau
Wood, Osborne's unit participated in the advance on Boursches in the
Chateau-Thierry region.
Osborne sought to aid the wounded during the battle and was killed
while attempting to carry an injured officer to safety on June 6, 1918.
He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor and the Distinguished
Service Cross for his actions on that day. The destroyer USS Osborne,
which served during the 1920s, was named in his honor. Weedon Osborne
was 25 years old at the time of his death.
Weedon Osborne is but one of thousands of Americans who now rest,
row on row, beneath white Latin crosses and Stars of David in the
hallowed ground of the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery. The unrecovered
and unidentified remains of hundreds more lie in the battle-scarred
forest and wheat fields of Belleau Wood--young, known but to God, and
waiting for us to tell their stories.
Our overseas cemeteries and memorials are tangible representations
of American values--of our Nation's willingness in two world wars to
come to the defense of our own freedoms and the freedoms of others.
These magnificent national treasures instill patriotism, evoke
gratitude and teach important lessons of history to all who visit.
Two years ago we opened a new visitor center at Normandy American
Cemetery. The Commission recognizes that the war dead at Normandy are
not the only American war dead buried overseas who deserve to have
their stories told. Accordingly, we are adapting the interpretive
techniques used so effectively at Normandy to our other visitor
buildings around the world.
Our interpretive plan does not envision building large new
facilities at our twenty-three other cemeteries, as we did at Normandy,
which is our most visited cemetery. Instead, we expect to renovate and
modernize existing visitor buildings to accommodate the types of
exhibits, interactive programs, films and visitor services that have
been so well received at Normandy.
We soon will begin facility and exhibit planning at Cambridge,
where we will tell stories of the Battle of the Atlantic, the Strategic
Air Campaign, and the buildup to D-Day.
We want to complete the renovation there by the spring of 2012--in
time to welcome the thousands of athletes and visitors who will
converge on London for the 2012 Summer Olympics. The World War II
Sicily-Rome American Cemetery in Italy and the World War I Oise-Aisne
American Cemetery in France will follow Cambridge as we move forward on
this initiative.
We also are well into exhibit design at Pointe du Hoc, to complete
the D-Day story begun at Normandy. The emphasis there will be on low-
profile panels placed along a self-guided walking tour of the
battleground, which appears much as it did when the Rangers captured
the Pointe on June 6, 1944.
Concurrently, our project to stabilize the cliffs of Pointe du Hoc
is advancing well. Although visitors are free to walk most of the
grounds, the Ranger Monument and the German observation bunker it sits
on have been off limits for several years because of safety concerns
resulting from significant erosion at the base of the cliffs. The
French have been very supportive of this initiative, and we are working
closely with them in planning the restoration work necessary to
preserve this iconic site. If all goes well, we should have the
restoration and interpretive work completed by the spring of 2011.
Following both world wars we built magnificent cemeteries and
memorials in the lands where our men and women fell--inspirational
symbols of American values and permanent reminders to all the world's
citizens of the unselfish service and sacrifice of our armed forces.
Our cemeteries and memorials are enriched with classical architecture
and magnificent works of art. Among those artworks are battle maps
created by skilled craftsmen to depict the operational campaigns and
troop movements associated with those memorialized at the site.
Beginning with the Korean War it has been U.S. policy to bring our
war dead home, and the U.S. Government is committed to obtaining the
fullest possible accounting for Americans held captive or otherwise
missing from our Nation's ongoing and past conflicts.
We do not envision a change in that philosophy, so building new and
permanent memorial cemeteries overseas is unlikely. Nor can we assume
that it will be possible or advisable to build permanent memorials
commemorating our presence in the lands where we fight today.
Within the U.S., there are processes for establishing national
commemorations. The Commemorative Works Act defines those processes for
the National Capital Area. As a Nation we have commemorated the
eighteenth century founders who led us through the Revolutionary War
and the nineteenth century political and military leaders who preserved
the Union in the Civil War. We have commemorated the twentieth
century's First World War, Second World War, Korean war, and Vietnam
War.
When he dedicated the East Coast Memorial on the tip of Manhattan,
President Kennedy said, ``. . . every generation of Americans must be
expected in their time to do their part to maintain freedom for their
country and freedom for those associated with it. . . there is no final
victory, but rather all Americans must be always prepared to play their
proper part in a difficult and dangerous world.''
We must promise that all our warriors who fall in battle will not
do so in anonymity and that regardless of the outcome their country
will remember and honor their effort.
The poet Archibald MacLeish challenged us to do no less with these
words: ``. . . We leave you our deaths: give them their meaning . . .''
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. This concludes my prepared statement. I
will be pleased to respond to your questions.
Prepared Statement of John C. Metzler, Jr.,
Superintendent, Arlington National Cemetery
Mr. Chairman and Distinguished Members of the Subcommittee:
INTRODUCTION
I appreciate the opportunity to testify before this Subcommittee,
on behalf of the Secretary of the Army, in support of Arlington
National Cemetery. Arlington National Cemetery is the Nation's premier
military cemetery. Well known edifices and historic sites include the
Tomb of the Unknowns, the old and new Memorial Amphitheaters, the
Columbarium, the graves of Presidents Kennedy and Taft, and the
Visitors Center. It is an honor for me to represent the cemetery. With
me today is Ms. Lynn Heirakuji, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the
Army for Personnel Oversight.
CHALLENGES OF MANAGING ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY
Management of Arlington National Cemetery presents challenges
unique among the Nation's national and military cemeteries. Not only is
Arlington National Cemetery a heavily visited shrine honoring the past
service of the men and women of our Armed Forces, it continues to serve
as an active burial place for today's military men and women. Since the
funeral of President John F. Kennedy in 1963, Arlington National
Cemetery has become a major Washington area tourist attraction. During
fiscal year 2008, Arlington National Cemetery accommodated
approximately 4 million visitors, making Arlington National Cemetery
one of the most visited historic sites in the National Capital Region.
In fiscal year 2008, there were 4123 interments and 2781
inurnments. In fiscal year 2009, we estimate there will be 4170
interments and 2800 inurnments, and in fiscal year 2010, we estimate
there will be 4170 interments and 2800 inurnments. Ten formal requests
for exception to the interment policy were received during this current
fiscal year, seven of which were for family members being interred in
an existing gravesite approved by the Superintendent, three other
requests were not approved by the Secretary of the Army which would
have required a new gravesite.
During the same year, about 3,000 ceremonies were conducted at
Arlington National Cemetery. Thousands of visitors, both foreign and
American, visit Arlington National Cemetery to participate in a variety
of events, ranging from a simple wreath laying ceremony to Veterans Day
and Memorial Day ceremonies attended by the President of the United
States.
To sustain our ability to carry out the cemetery's mission into the
future, several broad planning efforts are necessary. This year, it was
determined that the Master Plan for the cemetery needs to be reviewed
and updated, as appropriate. The Master Plan will be the overall guide
as we take steps to address rehabilitation and construction required at
the cemetery and its potential impact on the current burial policy.
VETERAN BURIAL BENEFITS
Similar to the National Cemeteries administered by the Department
of Veterans Affairs, nearly all honorably discharged veterans have the
right to be inurned in Arlington National Cemetery; however, due to the
stricter criteria for ground burial, fewer veterans are eligible for
ground burial. With many veterans and their spouses dying every day
(most from WWII), Arlington National Cemetery conducts an average of 27
funerals daily.
Unless otherwise prohibited and provided that the last period of
active duty of the veteran of the United States Armed Forces ended
honorably, any person who served at least 1 day of active duty for
other than training is eligible for inurnment in the Columbarium. Those
eligible for ground burial include servicemembers who die while serving
on active duty; retired members of the Armed Forces eligible to receive
retired pay who served at least 1 day of active duty for other than
training; any former member of the Armed Forces awarded the Medal of
Honor, Distinguished Service Cross (Air Force Cross or Navy Cross),
Silver Star, Purple Heart, or Prisoner of War Medal; the current and
former President of the United States; any person who served on active
duty for at least 1 day of active duty for other than training and held
an elective office of the U.S. Government (for example, Senator Ted
Kennedy, who served on active duty in the United States Army for 2
years) or served in the Office of the Chief Justice or of an Associate
Justice of the Supreme Court. The spouse, widow, or widower, minor
child, and unmarried adult dependent child of any of the eligible
veterans may also be buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
Burial benefits available at Arlington National Cemetery include a
gravesite, niche, or memorial site; opening and closing of the grave,
perpetual care, a Government headstone or niche marker provided by the
Department of Veterans Affairs, and a burial flag at no cost to the
family. Cremated remains are buried or inurned in the same manner and
with the same honors as casketed remains.
Burial benefits available for spouses and dependents buried in
Arlington National Cemetery include burial with the veteran, perpetual
care, and the spouse's or dependent's name and dates of birth and death
inscribed on the veteran's headstone, at no cost to the family.
Eligible spouses and dependents may be buried, even if they predecease
the veteran.
OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM AND OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM CASUALTIES
Over 127 fallen servicemembers serving in Operation Enduring
Freedom and over 445 fallen servicemembers serving in Operation Iraqi
Freedom are laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery. Most of
today's war casualties are buried in the renowned area called ``Section
60.'' Among those laid to rest in section 60 is Specialist Ross A.
McGinnis, who was awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions in
Iraq. Sergeant First Class Paul R. Smith, another of Army's Medal of
Honor recipients from Operation Iraqi Freedom, is memorialized in
Memorial Section D.
FUNERAL HONORS
Effective January 1, 2009, the Secretary of the Army authorized all
Soldiers who die as the result of wounds received in action and are
being interred, inurned, or memorialized at Arlington National Cemetery
to receive the following additional elements of military funeral
honors: an escort platoon, a colors team, a band, and a caisson
section. Following the Army's decision, all other Services adopted
policies in line with the Army's change. The Army's caisson section is
made available to support additional military funeral honors at ANC for
other Services in support of their policies. Arlington National
Cemetery and the Military District of Washington are committed to
expediting these funerals within 2 weeks of the request and to
providing additional elements of military funeral honors to all
servicemembers who die as a result of wounds received in action.
COMMEMORATIVE BOOKS FOR FAMILIES OF VALOR
Just over 11 percent of America's casualties from today's conflicts
are buried at Arlington National Cemetery. Because so few of these
families live in the Washington area, a special beautiful,
commemorative gift book, titled, ``Where Valor Rests--Arlington
National Cemetery'' was produced by the Arlington National Cemetery
Commemorative Project, Inc., in conjunction with Rich Clarkson and
Associates and the National Geographic Society, is presented to the
family of each newly interred serviceperson who paid the ultimate
sacrifice during our country's current conflicts. The book salutes
those of our armed forces who now rest in Arlington National Cemetery
and shows the solemn beauty of Arlington, becoming a special keepsake.
In addition, each child of a fallen servicemember is presented a book,
titled, ``For Children of Valor--Arlington National Cemetery.'' The
book is a tool given to assist children affected by loss of a close
loved one and helps them to understand and process their grief. The
book is also a good resource guide for parents. Dr. Stephen Cozza,
psychiatrist and expert in child trauma with the Uniformed Service
University of Health Sciences, advised and helped author portions of
the book.
CONCLUSION
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my remarks. I will be pleased to
respond to questions from the Subcommittee.
Prepared Statement of Katherine Stevenson,
Assistant Director, Business Services,
National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior
Mr. Chairman, we appreciate your invitation to appear at this
hearing on honoring fallen veterans to discuss the national cemeteries
that are administered by the National Park Service. We consider it a
great honor to serve our veterans and their families at these national
cemeteries and we are committed to ensuring that our cemeteries are
maintained at a standard worthy of those who fought for our country. We
are particularly pleased to have the opportunity to inform the
Subcommittee about the work we have done to improve the condition of
the cemeteries under our stewardship since we last testified before you
on this subject on May 8, 2007.
Background on National Park Service Cemeteries
The National Park Service (NPS) administers 14 of our Nation's
national cemeteries. With the exception of Andrew Johnson National
Cemetery in Tennessee and Custer National Cemetery at Little Bighorn
Battlefield in Montana, the cemeteries that the NPS manages date to the
Civil War. Most of these cemeteries are located within park units that
tell the story of the Civil War campaign or conflict in which the
interred soldiers served. A list of all NPS national cemeteries and the
sites with which they are associated is included at the end of this
testimony.
Many of the Civil War national cemeteries, established soon after
the war ended, were located at or near the battlefield itself. In the
late 19th and early 20th centuries, Civil War veterans and their
families began to pay tribute to their fallen comrades by erecting
monuments and memorials. Beginning in 1933, jurisdiction over many of
these national battlefields, national historic sites, and national
military parks, including the monuments, memorials and national
cemeteries, was transferred to the NPS. The NPS manages these sites
respectfully, interpreting military campaigns, conflicts, and ordeals
that the soldiers endured. These sites, including the national
cemeteries, are visited by thousands of people each year who learn of
the veterans' sacrifices and want to pay their respects to these
veterans. Visitors are provided interpretive information about the
cemeteries themselves. At Stones River National Cemetery, for example,
there is a display about the local African-American community that was
formed from the laborers who constructed the cemetery.
Two of the national cemeteries administered by the National Park
Service remain open to veterans for burial. They are Andersonville
National Cemetery, located in Southwest Georgia, and Andrew Johnson
National Cemetery, located in East Tennessee. In 2008, 158 veterans and
their dependents were interred at Andersonville and 53 were interred at
Andrew Johnson.
Operation of National Cemeteries
The NPS follows the same rules and regulations for burials at its
national cemeteries that apply to cemeteries administered by the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The NPS also follows the M40
series of manuals written by VA's National Cemetery Administration
(NCA) for operation of national cemeteries. NPS orders headstones from
the same facilities that produce headstones for NCA-managed cemeteries,
adheres to standards for placement and alignment of stones, and
replaces headstones that need second inscriptions for spouses.
Cemetery Care Practices
Recent concerns have been expressed regarding the appearance of the
national cemeteries managed by the NPS. The NPS takes pride in serving
as a guardian of the Nation's historic treasures, including its
national cemeteries. Because these cemeteries are part of the historic
fabric of the park units, certain maintenance practices are different
from those used by the NCA.
For example, the NPS places a high value on maintaining the
historic appearance of the national cemeteries, including retaining as
many original headstones as possible, particularly the more historic
headstones. Consequently, NPS realigns stones less frequently than NCA,
and does it by hand, rather than machine, in order to avoid damaging
the stones. NPS also cleans headstones using a pressure washer, rather
than bleaching chemicals, in order to better preserve the lettering and
the surface of the stone. This may result in headstones that are greyer
than headstones maintained by VA but it also results in the long-term
preservation of the headstones. In addition, NPS normally replaces dead
trees to maintain the historic landscape. Therefore, NPS cemeteries
have more tree cover than other national cemeteries. Shade encourages
microbial growth on headstones and makes it hard for grass to grow.
Tree roots also make it harder to maintain headstone alignment.
Because of our expertise in preservation, others, including federal
agencies such as the NCA, have turned to the NPS's National Center for
Preservation Technology and Training (NCPTT) for guidance on cemetery
care. Presentations given by NCPTT either through in-person workshops
or electronic means on the conservation of cemeteries or materials
directly applicable to cemeteries had 205 participants in 2007, 239 in
2008, and 146 so far in 2009. NCPTT has been consulted for help with
care of monuments at Congressional Cemetery and with the Tomb of the
Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery. NCPTT was also hired by the
NCA to conduct a study on chemical cleaners to find an alternative to
its current products for cleaning headstones. We are pleased to serve
as such a resource.
Investments in Cemetery Care
The NPS continues to invest in our national cemeteries. Since the
NPS testimony 2 years ago, at which time we reported that over $1
million in project funds had been spent in the prior 5 years on
cemetery repair projects, project funds for national cemeteries have
increased dramatically. In FY 2008 and FY 2009, NPS has invested about
$4.5 million in cemetery repair projects in addition to funding for
routine maintenance. This figure includes $1.5 million from the
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. These projects include
replacing and aligning historic headstones, storm cleanup, repairing
and repainting historic walls that surround our cemeteries, removing
hazardous trees, and repairing structures. Another $1.9 million in
supplemental emergency storm and flood relief funding is being spent on
the visitor center that serves Chalmette National Cemetery and
Chalmette Battlefield, in Louisiana, which was destroyed in Hurricane
Katrina.
In addition to these projects, each unit of the National Park
Service with a national cemetery also has maintenance staff who
dedicate at least part of their time to maintaining headstones and
grounds. Operating budgets for every one of these parks have increased
in each of the last two fiscal years.
As discussed above, NPS also invests in cemetery maintenance by
providing training in this area to interested persons and agencies. In
addition, some NPS employees have taken courses at the NCA National
Training Center in St. Louis, which have been very valuable.
Review of National Park Service Cemeteries
The NPS is in the process of completing a review of the care of its
national cemeteries. In July, a team of NPS experts made site visits to
the cemeteries at Andersonville, Andrew Johnson, Stones River, and Fort
Donelson, as well as a NCA cemetery in Nashville for comparison. The
review will provide detail on the differences between the NPS and NCA
practices in cemetery care. It may also contain recommendations to the
NPS Director to address some of the cemetery appearance issues that
Ranking Member Steve Buyer has raised.
The NPS is committed to ensuring that our national cemeteries
appropriately honor those who have fought for our country. We will
continue to work with the VA on these issues.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my remarks. I would be happy to answer
any questions Members of the Committee may have.
National Cemeteries and Associated National Park System Units
Andersonville National Cemetery at Andersonville National Historic
Site, Georgia;
Andrew Johnson National Cemetery at Andrew Johnson National Historic
Site, Tennessee;
Antietam National Cemetery at Antietam National Battlefield,
Maryland;
Battleground National Cemetery at Rock Creek Park, District of
Columbia;
Chalmette National Cemetery at Jean Lafitte National Historical Park
and Preserve, Louisiana;
Custer National Cemetery at Little Bighorn Battlefield National
Monument, Montana;
Fort Donelson National Cemetery at Fort Donelson National
Battlefield, Tennessee;
Fredericksburg National Cemetery at Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania
County Battlefields Memorial National Military Park, Virginia;
Gettysburg National Cemetery at Gettysburg National Military Park,
Pennsylvania;
Poplar Grove National Cemetery at Petersburg National Battlefield,
Virginia;
Shiloh National Cemetery at Shiloh National Military Park,
Tennessee;
Stones River National Cemetery at Stones River National Battlefield,
Tennessee;
Vicksburg National Cemetery at Vicksburg National Military Park,
Mississippi; and
Yorktown National Battlefield at Colonial National Historical Park,
Virginia.
Prepared Statement of John L. Wilson, Assistant National
Legislative Director, Disabled American Veterans
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee:
I am pleased to have this opportunity to appear before you on
behalf of the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) to present our views on
the current Department of Veterans Affairs Burial Benefits Program, its
national cemetery policy, and the way that VA and the American Battle
Monuments Commission (ABMC) can better serve veterans and their
survivors. In accordance with our congressional charter, the DAV's
mission is to advance the interests, and work for the betterment, of
all wounded, injured, and disabled American veterans.
As you know, the VA National Cemetery Administration (NCA)
maintains more than 2.9 million gravesites at 130 national cemeteries
and 33 additional installations in 39 States and Puerto Rico.
Currently, there are more than 7,000 acres within established NCA
installations. Just more than half of this land is undeveloped.
Including available gravesites and the undeveloped land, there is
the potential to provide more than 4 million resting places. In
addition to the maintenance of these facilities, the NCA administers
four programs: the State Cemetery Grants Program, the Headstone and
Marker Program, the Presidential Memorial Marker Program, and Outer
Burial Receptacle reimbursements.
VA estimated in 2008 that approximately 24 million veterans were
alive. These veterans served in wars and conflicts ranging from World
War I to the global war on terrorism, as well as service in peacetime.
The age of our veteran population has peaked and is starting to
decline, and as a correlation to this peak, the annual number of
veteran deaths is beginning to decline. In 2008, nearly 683,000
veterans were expected to die; this number is expected to slowly
decrease over the years. However, with the anticipated opening of new
national cemeteries and an increase to the State Cemetery Grants
Program, annual interments are projected to increase to more than
105,000 in 2008 with an estimated peak of 115,000 in fiscal year 2009.
The most important obligation of the NCA is to honor the memory of
America's brave men and women who served in the armed forces.
Therefore, the purpose of these cemeteries as national shrines is one
of the NCA's top priorities. Many of the individual cemeteries within
the system are steeped in history, and the monuments, markers, grounds,
and related memorial tributes represent the very foundation of the
United States. With this understanding, the grounds, including
monuments and individual sites of interment, represent a national
treasure that deserves to be protected and cherished.
DAV thanks the NCA staff for their continued dedication and
commitment in providing the highest quality of service to veterans and
their families despite funding shortfalls, aging equipment, and the
increasing workload of new cemetery activations. We again call on the
administration and Congress to provide the resources needed to meet the
critical nature of NCA's mission and fulfill the Nation's commitment to
all veterans who have served their country honorably and faithfully.
NCA must be allocated the resources it needs to meet the increasing
demands of interments, gravesite maintenance, and related essential
elements of cemetery operations. The NCA is responsible for five
primary missions:
1. To inter, upon request, the remains of eligible veterans and
family members and to permanently maintain gravesites;
2. To mark graves of eligible persons in national, State, or
private cemeteries upon appropriate application;
3. To administer the State grants program in the establishment,
expansion, or improvement of State veterans' cemeteries;
4. To award a presidential certificate and furnish a United States
flag to deceased veterans; and
5. To maintain national cemeteries as national shrines sacred to
the honor and memory of those interred or memorialized.
Some cemeteries face the need for immediate expansion through the
acquisition of additional land. Puerto Rico has such a situation. We
understand that the Puerto Rico National Cemetery (PRNC) has a project
intended to start in 2010 that gives them burial space until 2017 for
first interments. PRNC will remain open, of course, for second
interments of spouses and veterans. After completion of the project,
PRNC will remain open to first and second cremations until 2030. While
cremations are an option for some, veterans and their survivors may
hold certain religious beliefs that do not make this a viable
alternative. The NCA is actively seeking land of 100 acres or more
within a 25-mile radius of Route 22/Route 1. The rapid acquisition of
this land is essential to Puerto Rico's veteran population.
The national cemetery system continues to be seriously challenged,
though there has been progress made over the years. The NCA is working
tirelessly to remove decades of blemishes and scars from military
burial grounds across the country. Visitors to many national cemeteries
are likely to encounter sunken graves, misaligned and dirty grave
markers, deteriorating roads, spotty turf, and other patches of decay
that have been accumulating for decades.
If the NCA is to continue its commitment to ensure national
cemeteries remain dignified and respectful settings that honor deceased
veterans and give evidence of the Nation's gratitude for their military
service, there must be a comprehensive effort to greatly improve the
condition, functions, and appearance of the national cemeteries.
To address these concerns, the NCA has aggressively moved forward
repairing the priorities that were detailed in ``An Independent Study
on Improvements to Veterans Cemeteries,'' which was submitted to
Congress in 2002. Although the 5-year, $250 million ``National Shrine
Initiative'' was not adopted as we recommended, the NCA has spent $150
million toward that original list of 928 projects as well as other
emerging priorities over this past year. These projects include
gravesite renovation, repair, upgrades, and maintenance. Headstones and
markers must be cleaned, realigned, and set. Stone surfaces of
columbaria require cleaning, caulking, and grouting, and the
surrounding walkways must be maintained. Grass, shrubbery, and trees in
burial areas and other land must receive regular care.
Additionally, cemetery infrastructure, i.e., buildings, grounds,
walks, and drives must be repaired as needed. According to the study,
these project recommendations were made on the basis of the existing
condition of each cemetery after taking into account the cemetery's
age, its burial activity, burial options and maintenance programs.
The NCA has done an outstanding job thus far in improving the
appearance of our national cemeteries, but there is a long way to go to
get our national cemeteries to where they need to be. By enacting a 5-
year program with dedicated funds and an ambitious schedule, the
national cemetery system can fully serve all veterans and their
families with the utmost dignity, respect, and compassion.
In addition to the management of the national cemeteries, the NCA
has responsibility for the Memorial Program Service. The Memorial
Program Service provides lasting memorials for the graves of eligible
veterans and honors their service through Presidential Memorial
Certificates. Public Laws 107-103 and 107-330 allow for a headstone or
marker for the graves of veterans buried in private cemeteries who died
on or after September 11, 2001. Prior to this change, the NCA could
provide this service only to those buried in national or state
cemeteries or to unmarked graves in private cemeteries.
The Administration requested $181 million for FY 2009. Congress,
understanding the sacrifices of the few for the freedom of the many,
honored the fallen by granting NCA $230 million and an additional $50
million in stimulus funds. The NCA is requesting $242 million for FY
2010. Granting that funding request will sustain the important progress
NCA has made. We urge Congress to grant the NCA's request.
The next area to address is veterans' burial benefits. The burial
benefit in 2008 was only 6 percent of what was provided when the NCA
started paying this benefit. This must be increased to a level
proportionate to the original benefit.
In 1973, the Federal Government started paying burial benefits to
assist in the funeral cost for our veterans. Over the years, the value
of these benefits has been greatly reduced due to inflation. It was
never the intent of Congress to cover the full cost of burial; however,
the benefits now pay only a small fraction of what was covered 35 years
ago.
In 2001, the plot allowance was increased for the first time in
more than 28 years, to $300 from the original amount of $150. This
higher figure covers approximately 6 percent of funeral costs. The
108th Congress increased the allowance for service-connected deaths
from $500 to $2,000. Prior to this adjustment, the allowance had been
untouched since 1988. Clearly, it is time this allowance is raised to
make a more meaningful contribution to the costs of burial for our
veterans.
In accordance with DAV Resolution No. 212, we note that the VA
provides a burial allowance for service-connected veterans of $2,000.
However, the amount of this burial allowance has been seriously eroded
by inflation because it has not been regularly adjusted for increases
in the cost of living and is not automatically adjusted for inflation.
Therefore, the DAV supports legislation to increase the burial
allowance payable in the case of death due to service-connected
disability and to provide for automatic annual adjustments indexed to
the rise in the cost of living.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my testimony. I will answer any
questions you or the Subcommittee may have.
Prepared Statement of Raymond C. Kelley, National Legislative
Director, American Veterans (AMVETS)
Chairman Hall, Ranking Member Lamborn, and Members of the
Subcommittee:
Thank you for providing AMVETS the opportunity to present our views
on the Veterans Affairs National Cemetery policies.
The National Cemetery Administration
The Department of Veterans Affairs National Cemetery Administration
(NCA) currently maintains more than 2.9 million gravesites at 125
national cemeteries in 39 states and Puerto Rico. Of these cemeteries,
65 will be open to all interments; 20 will accept only cremated remains
and family members of those already interred; and 40 will only perform
interments of family members in the same gravesite as a previously
deceased family member. NCA also maintains 33 soldiers' lots and
monument sites. All told, NCA manages 17,000 acres, half of which are
developed.
VA estimates that about 27 million veterans are alive today. They
include veterans from World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the
Vietnam War, the Gulf War, the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq, and
the Global War on Terrorism, as well as peacetime veterans. With the
anticipated opening of the new national cemeteries, annual interments
are projected to increase from approximately 100,000 in 2007 to 111,000
in 2009. Historically, 12 percent of veterans opt for burial in a state
or national cemetery.
The most important obligation of the NCA is to honor the memory of
America's brave men and women who served in the armed forces.
Therefore, the purpose of these cemeteries as national shrines is one
of the NCA's top priorities. Many of the individual cemeteries within
the system are steeped in history, and the monuments, markers, grounds,
and related memorial tributes represent the very foundation of the
United States. With this understanding, the grounds, including
monuments and individual sites of interment, represent a national
treasure that deserves to be protected and cherished.
AMVETS would like to acknowledge the dedication and commitment of
the NCA staff who continue to provide the highest quality of service to
veterans and their families. We call on the administration and Congress
to provide the resources needed to meet the changing and critical
nature of NCA's mission and fulfill the Nation's commitment to all
veterans who have served their country honorably and faithfully.
In FY 2008, $195 million was appropriated for the operations and
maintenance of NCA, $28.2 million over the administration's request,
with only $220,000 in carryover. NCA awarded 39 of the 42 minor
construction projects that were in the operating plan. The State
Cemetery Grants Service awarded $37.3 million of the $39.5 million that
was appropriated. This carryover was caused by the cancellation of a
contract that NCA had estimated to be $2 million but the contractor's
estimation was considerably higher. Additionally, $25 million was
invested in the National Shrine Commitment.
NCA has done an exceptional job of providing burial options for 88
percent of all veterans who fall within the 170,000 veterans within a
75 mile radius threshold model. However, under this model, no new
geographical area will become eligible for a national cemetery until
2015. St. Louis, Mo. will, at that time, meet the threshold due to the
closing of Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in 2017. Analysis shows
that the five areas with the highest veteran population will not become
eligible for a national cemetery because they will not reach the
170,000 threshold.
NCA has spent years developing and maintaining a cemetery system
based on a growing veteran population. In 2010 our veteran population
will begin to decline. Because of this downward trend, a new threshold
model must be developed to ensure more of our veterans will have
reasonable access to their burial benefits. Reducing the mile radius to
65 miles would reduce the veteran population that is served from 90
percent to 82.4 percent, and reducing the radius to 55 miles would
reduce the served population to 74.1 percent. Reducing the radius alone
to 55 miles would only bring two geographical areas in to 170,000
population threshold in 2010, and only a few areas into this revised
model by 2030.
Several geographical areas will remain unserved if the population
threshold is not reduced. Lowering the population threshold to 100,000
veterans would immediately make several areas eligible for a national
cemetery regardless of any change to the mile radius threshold. A new
threshold model must be implemented so more of our veterans will have
access to this earned benefit.
National Shrine Initiative
The national cemetery system continues to be seriously challenged.
Though there has been progress made over the years, the NCA is still
struggling to remove decades of blemishes and scars from military
burial grounds across the country. Visitors to many national cemeteries
are likely to encounter sunken graves, misaligned and dirty grave
markers, deteriorating roads, spotty turf and other patches of decay
that have been accumulating for decades. If the NCA is to continue its
commitment to ensure national cemeteries remain dignified and
respectful settings that honor deceased veterans and give evidence of
the Nation's gratitude for their military service, there must be a
comprehensive effort to greatly improve the condition, function, and
appearance of all our national cemeteries.
Therefore, in accordance with ``An Independent Study on
Improvements to Veterans Cemeteries,'' which was submitted to Congress
in 2002, AMVETS recommends Congress establish a 5-year, $250 million
``National Shrine Initiative'' to restore and improve the condition and
character of NCA cemeteries. Volume 2 of the Independent Study provides
a systemwide, comprehensive review of the conditions at 119 national
cemeteries. It identifies 928 projects across the country for gravesite
renovation, repair, upgrade, and maintenance. These projects include
cleaning, realigning, and setting headstones and markers; cleaning,
caulking, and grouting the stone surfaces of columbaria; and
maintaining the surrounding walkways. Grass, shrubbery, and trees in
burial areas and other land must receive regular care as well.
Additionally, cemetery infrastructure, i.e. buildings, grounds, walks,
and drives must be repaired as needed. According to the Study, these
project recommendations were made on the basis of the existing
condition of each cemetery after taking into account the cemetery's
age, its burial activity, burial options and maintenance programs.
The Memorial Program Service
In addition to the management of national cemeteries, the NCA is
responsible for the Memorial Program Service. The Memorial Program
Service provides lasting memorials for the graves of eligible veterans
and honors their service through Presidential Memorial Certificates.
Public Laws 107-103 and 107-330 allow for a headstone or marker for the
graves of veterans buried in private cemeteries who died on or after
September 11, 2001. Prior to this change, the NCA could provide this
service only to those buried in national or State cemeteries or to
unmarked graves in private cemeteries. Public Law 110-157 gives VA
authority to provide a medallion to be attached to the headstone or
marker of veterans who are buried in a private cemetery. This benefit
is available to veterans in lieu of a Government furnished headstone or
marker.
The State Cemetery Grants Program
The State Cemeteries Grant Program faces the challenge of meeting a
growing interest from States to provide burial services in areas that
are not currently served. The intent of the SCGP is to develop a true
complement to, not a replacement for, our Federal system of national
cemeteries. With the enactment of the Veterans Benefits Improvements
Act 1998, the NCA has been able to strengthen its partnership with
States and increase burial service to veterans, especially those living
in less densely populated areas not currently served by a national
cemetery. Currently there are 55 State and tribal Government cemetery
construction grant pre-applications, 34 of which have the required
State matching funds necessary totaling $120.7 million. Funding has
been provided that will allow SCGP to establish six new State
cemeteries, which will provide burial options for 179,000 veterans who
live in a region that currently has no reasonably accessible State or
national cemetery.
Burial Benefits
In 1973 NCA established a burial allowance that provided partial
reimbursements for eligible funeral and burial costs. The current
payment is $2,000 for burial expenses for service-connected (SC) death,
$300 for non-service-connected (NSC) deaths, and $300 for plot
allowance. At its inception, the payout covered 72 percent of the
funeral cost for a service-connected death, 22 percent for a non-
service-connected death, and 54 percent of the burial plot cost. In
2007 these benefits eroded to 23 percent, 4 percent, and 14 percent
respectively. It is time to bring these benefits back to their original
value.
Burial allowance was first introduced in 1917 to prevent veterans
from being buried in potters' fields. In 1923 the allowance was
modified. The benefit was determined by a means test, and then in 1936
the allowance was changed again, removing the means test. In its early
history, the burial allowance was paid to all veterans, regardless of
the service-connectivity of their death. In 1973 the allowance was
modified to reflect the relationship of their death as service
connected or not.
The plot allowance was introduced in 1973 as an attempt to provide
a plot benefit for veterans who did not have reasonable access to a
national cemetery. Although neither the plot allowance nor the burial
allowances were intended to cover the full cost of a civilian burial in
a private cemetery, the increase in the benefit's value indicates the
intent to provide a meaningful benefit by adjusting for inflation.
The national average cost for a funeral and burial in a private
cemetery has reached $8,555, and the cost for a burial plot is $2,133.
At the inception of the benefit the average costs were $1,116 and $278
respectively. While the cost of a funeral has increased by nearly seven
times the burial benefit has only increased by 2.5 times. To bring both
burial allowances and the plot allowance back to its 1973 value, the SC
benefit payment will be $6,160, the NSC benefit value payment will be
$1,918, and the plot allowance will increase to $1,150. Readjusting the
value of these benefits, under the current system, will increase the
obligations from $70.1 million to $335.1 million per year.
Based on accessibility and the need to provide quality burial
benefits, AMVETS recommends that VA separate burial benefits into two
categories: veterans who live inside the VA accessibility threshold
model and those who live outside the threshold. For those veterans who
live outside the threshold, the SC burial benefit should be increased
to $6,160, NSC veteran's burial benefit should be increased to $1,918,
and plot allowance should increase to $1,150 to match the original
value of the benefit. For veterans who live within reasonable
accessibility to a State or national cemetery that is able to
accommodate burial needs, but the veteran would rather be buried in a
private cemetery the burial benefit should be adjusted. These veterans'
burial benefits will be based on the average cost for VA to conduct a
funeral. The benefit for a SC burial will be $2,793, the amount
provided for a NSC burial will be $854, and the plot allowance will be
$1,150. This will provide a burial benefit at equal percentages, but
based on the average cost for a VA funeral and not on the private
funeral cost that will be provided for those veterans who do not have
access to a State or national cemetery.
The recommendations of past legislation provided an increased
benefit for all eligible veterans but it currently fails to reach the
intent of the original benefit. The new model will provide a meaningful
benefit to those veterans whose access to a State or national cemetery
is restricted as well as provides an improved benefit for eligible
veterans who opt for private burial. Congress should increase the plot
allowance from $300 to $1,150 for all eligible veterans and expand the
eligibility for the plot allowance for all veterans who would be
eligible for burial in a national cemetery, not just those who served
during wartime. Congress should divide the burial benefits into two
categories: veterans within the accessibility model and veterans
outside the accessibility model. Congress should increase the service-
connected burial benefit from $2,000 to $6,160 for veterans outside the
radius threshold and $2,793 for veterans inside the radius threshold.
Congress should increase the non-service-connected burial benefit from
$300 to $1,918 for veterans outside the radius threshold and $854 for
veterans inside the radius threshold. Congress should enact legislation
to adjust these burial benefits for inflation annually.
The NCA honors veterans with a final resting place that
commemorates their service to this Nation. More than 2.8 million
servicemembers who died in every war and conflict are honored by burial
in a VA national cemetery. Each Memorial Day and Veterans Day we honor
the last full measure of devotion they gave for this country. Our
national cemeteries are more than the final resting place of honor for
our veterans; they are hallowed ground to those who died in our
defense, and a memorial to those who survived.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my testimony. I thank you again for
the privilege to present AMVETS views, and I would be pleased to answer
any questions you might have.
Prepared Statement of Vivianne Cisneros Wersel, Au.D., Chair,
Government Relations Committee, Gold Star Wives of America, Inc.
``With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in
the right, as God gives us to see right, let us strive to finish the
work we are in; to bind up the Nation's wounds, to care for him who has
borne the battle, his widow and his orphan.''
. . . President Abraham Lincoln, Second Inaugural Address, March
4, 1865
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee on Disability
Assistance and Memorial Affairs of the House Committee on Veterans
Affairs, Good Morning. I am Vivianne Wersel, the Chair of the Gold Star
Wives' Government Relations Committee. Thank you for the opportunity to
present this statement on behalf of Gold Star Wives of America. I am
the surviving spouse of Lieutenant Colonel Rich Wersel, Jr. USMC who
died suddenly on February 4, 2005, 1 week after he returned from his
second tour of duty in Iraq. A regular day that began seemingly as
routine as any other was a day past which all of my life's goals and
dreams had to be adjusted. It's a time reference for me now from which
everything now is either before or after, the old life and the new
life.
Gold Star Wives of America, Incorporated was founded in 1945 and is
a congressionally chartered organization of spouses of servicemembers
who died while on active duty or who died as the result of a service
connected disability. It is an all volunteer organization. We could
begin with no better advocate than Eleanor Roosevelt, newly widowed,
who helped make Gold Star Wives a truly national organization. Mrs.
Roosevelt was an original signer of our Certificate of Incorporation as
a member of the Board of Directors.
The Gold Star Wives is an organization of those who are left
behind, families left behind when our Nation's heroes, bearing the
burden of freedom for us all, have fallen. We are that family minus
one--we're wives and children, all having suffered the unbearable loss.
We are those whom Abraham Lincoln referred to when he made his
Government's commitment ``to care for him who shall have borne the
battle, and for his widow, and his orphan.''
We begin by thanking this Committee and our Government for
providing essential services necessary to help us through our loss,
many services being done well, in a caring and helpful way. But I also
want to stress the importance of staying vigilant so that no one who is
grieving the loss of a loved one will have to endure indignities or
lack of benefits because of the lack of knowledge.
Therefore, we need consistent and relevant assistance at the time
of the casualty and for some period of time thereafter. We immediately
need help dealing with the funeral, the burial, and with our grief. We
need to understand the precise nature of the burial benefit as it
befits either active duty or retiree status. Then we need a clear
understanding, when we can assimilate it, of our benefits as they exist
at the time--financial, medical, education, travel, housing allowance,
and even such things as how to deal with ID cards, how to file income
taxes, etc. And the information may need to come in more than one
format and on more than one occasion. In dealing with a loss as great
as the death of a loved one, it should not be assumed that we all have
the same ability that we do under normal circumstances to hear, learn,
understand and act responsibly on multiple decisions in those early
days of grief. While there have been huge strides made over the last
several years in alleviating problems with benefit and eligibility
misinformation coming to those who are grieving, confusion, in the
throes of grief, about the complete benefits available will be a normal
beginning with the best of information provided. We owe it to these
families to help secure their futures with the most accurate
information possible at an appropriate time--when it is ready to be
received--because the confusing array of decisions that must be made
have consequences for the rest of that family's lives.
While there can be incidental occurrences of difficulties with the
burial benefit or the national cemetery policy, I am happy to report
that we can discern no negative experience trends in these areas from
within our organization. We very much appreciate the help we get in
those tumultuous early days. We would ask that you be attentive over
time, however, to assure that the amount provided for the burial
continues to stay abreast of the cost of those services and takes into
account varying geographies.
What I can report to you today is that financial stability is the
overriding concern of these families. We, in the Gold Star Wives
believe the benefit change that will provide the most significant long-
term advantage to the family's financial security would be to end the
Dependency Indemnity Compensation dollar for dollar offset to the
Survivor Benefit Plan. This is not a subject new for us to testify
about before Congress. And over the summer, the decision in Sharp, et
al v. United States, handed down by the U.S. Court of Federal Claims
ordered the Department of Defense to refund the SBP annuities that were
withheld from three widowed spouses who also received DIC from the
Department of Veterans Affairs. The court found that the DoD's dollar-
for-dollar deduction of DIC payments from SBP benefits was based on a
faulty interpretation of Federal law. We recognize that jurisdiction
resides elsewhere, but we know each Member of this Committee can and
should be concerned within the context of your own jurisdiction that
this inequity should be fixed, and fixed immediately.
Thank you for this opportunity to testify. We appreciate all the
compassionate work which Members of this Committee and the staff do on
our behalf. We always stand ready to help provide you will all
information needed.
Prepared Statement of Lesley Witter, Director of Political
Affairs, National Funeral Directors Association
Chairman Hall; Ranking Member Lamborn; Members of the Subcommittee,
thank you for the opportunity to testify before you this morning about
``How We Can Better Serve America's Veterans and their Families.'' I am
Lesley Witter, Director of Political Affairs for the National Funeral
Directors Association (NFDA).
I am testifying today on behalf of over 19,000 funeral directors
and funeral service personnel who are members of the NFDA. Funeral
directors help ensure that every deceased veteran receives the care,
honor and dignity they've earned because of their sacrifice in defense
of the freedoms we enjoy today.
While the responsibility of providing appropriate funeral and
burial benefits and proper military honors falls on the VA and DoD, it
is funeral directors who help the family organize a personalized
funeral and burial that both celebrates the life of their loved one and
honors their service to our country. Funeral directors contact the VA
to schedule funeral and burial times, help families file benefit
claims, ensure that each veteran receives the appropriate grave
markers, and works with the DoD and veteran service organizations to
provide appropriate military honors.
In preparation for my testimony today, NFDA completed a non-
scientific survey of our membership regarding their opinions on how we
can better sever our veterans and their Families. I am happy to report
that NFDA members provided thoughtful and detailed responses on this
important issue.
I will now highlight some of the key findings in our member survey.
Approximately half of the NFDA members surveyed stated they assisted in
planning twenty-one (21) or more Veteran funerals in 2008. Less than 3
percent of respondents stated that they had not helped plan any veteran
funerals last year.
Overall, funeral directors seem to be happy with the responsiveness
of both the VA and the DoD. 57.6 percent of funeral directors surveyed
felt the VA and DoD were very responsive to funeral directors. 22
percent funeral directors who responded to the survey felt that the VA
and DoD were ``extremely responsive'' to funeral directors. Only 3.4
percent of respondents answered that the DoD and VA were ``not very
responsive'' to funeral directors.
Additionally, almost 52 percent of respondents felt the VA and DoD
were very responsive to veteran families.
However, Monica H. Torres, an NFDA member, a mortuary science
student at Mesa Community College and a military spouse, commented that
``gathering information not only from funeral directors but also the
veterans families may be an avenue of interest.'' If there is no
process to collect this important information, the NFDA will be happy
to assist in developing a questionnaire that funeral directors can give
to the families after the funeral and burial are completed.
Regarding funeral and burial costs less than one-third (23.3
percent) of funeral directors responded that they had experienced
problems obtaining veteran burial benefits. However, some of the
negative comments include: ``Claims for monetary burial benefits are
taking over 7 months to process,'' ``Delay in the processing of
paperwork for monuments and benefits,'' ``Lack of communications
between various VA offices--memorial marker/insurance/financial
benefits.''
However, over 66 percent of respondents felt that the current
veteran funeral and burial benefits were insufficient. The main reasons
cited were that the funeral and burial benefit has not changed with
inflation, and that it does not cover the ever increasing cost of a
funeral. As a result, almost two-thirds (62.9 percent) of funeral
directors stated that they have absorbed extra costs associated with
veteran funerals. The average dollar amount absorbed by funeral
directors per veteran funeral was $652. However, the range of costs
absorbed was between $25 and $3000.
In addition, NFDA member Mark Jelacic, of Jelacic Funeral Home in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, commented that he believes the ``VA is
disregarding those veterans and their families who have chosen
cremation as their form of final disposition by not offering their
``Burial Benefit'' to these veterans or their families.'' Mr. Jelacic
indicated that the cremation rate for veterans in his funeral home has
reached 40 percent and that the veteran families do not understand why
if they buried their loved one they would get a benefit, but if they
chose cremation, they may not receive the burial allowance, unless
cremated remains are buried.
I would like to point out that many funeral directors willingly
donate their time and services as a way to honor veterans. For example,
one NFDA member stated that ``Our time is basically donated, we work
with the VA hospice for veterans without families or people to care for
them, and their social worker is their next of kin.'' Another NFDA
member stated ``I support the veteran's burial detail in our community
by giving them an honorarium, a meal and special recognition. I also
provide a matted and framed Presidential citation to each family that
we serve at a public ceremony two times a year.'' Another funeral
director honors our deceased veterans by donating ``funeral coach,
family transportation, and clergy transportation as well as the cost of
a graveside service.''
Mr. Chairman, I would like to express NFDA's strong support for
H.R. 2642, a bill introduced by Mr. Tiberi of Ohio that directs ``the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs to assist in the identification of
unclaimed and abandoned human remains to determine if any such remains
are eligible for burial in a national cemetery.'' NFDA members are
acutely aware of the sad story of unclaimed remains throughout this
Nation, many of whom are veterans. NFDA members will be happy to work
with the VA to identify veterans' remains that have gone unclaimed, and
ensure that these Veterans receive the funeral and burial honors they
deserve.
Mr. Chairman and distinguished Members of the Committee, on behalf
of the members of the National Funeral Directors Association, I want to
ensure you that funeral directors throughout this country remain
dedicated to doing our part in honoring our Nation's veterans and their
families. I want to conclude my testimony today by thanking you for the
opportunity to testify on behalf of the NFDA. I hope my testimony has
been helpful and I will be happy to answer any question you may have.
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Prepared Statement of John Nicolai, Cemetery Representative,
Ft. Logan National Cemetery, Denver, CO, and Shop Steward, AFGE
Local 2241, on behalf of American Federation of Government Employees,
AFL-CIO
Dear Chairman Hall, Ranking Member Lamborn and Members of the
Subcommittee:
Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today to share
my deep concern that the National Cemetery Administration (NCA) is
eliminating one of the most honored and valuable entry level employment
opportunities for veterans through contracting out: the cemetery
caretaker function.
My name is John Nicolai. I am a Vietnam veteran and am very proud
to have served my country attached to the 6990th USAF Security
Squadron. I have worked at Ft Logan National Cemetery in Denver,
Colorado, for the past 6 years. I am currently employed as a Cemetery
Representative. I started out as a Cemetery Caretaker.
I am also a Shop Steward for Local 2241 of the American Federation
of Government Employees (AFGE), which represents nearly 180,000
employees in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and is the
exclusive representative of employees of the National Cemetery
Administration (NCA).
Historically, NCA Cemetery Caretakers have been responsible for all
tasks required to maintain our national cemeteries and bring them up to
National Shrine Status. National Shrine Status is a set of standards
set by the National Cemetery Administration that maintains these
hallowed grounds as a proper final resting place for our national
heroes, our veterans.
VA Cemetery Caretakers perform numerous tasks including mowing and
trimming, raising sunken graves, setting headstones, raising and
realigning headstones, and assisting maintenance workers, gardeners,
and interment crews.
The NCA caretaker position has long been a source of valuable and
honorable employment for returning servicemembers, including veterans
with disabilities in Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Compensated
Work Therapy programs (CWT).
The Caretaker position has also been a valuable stepping stone to
almost all other jobs in the Cemetery Network. At Ft. Logan National
Cemetery, two of the three GS-6 Cemetery Representatives, the entire
interment crew started and the WG-7 Maintenance worker also started out
as Caretakers. Even some Cemetery Directors started out as VA Cemetery
Caretakers. There is no better starting job within the NCA that can
give you an overall knowledge of the workings of the cemetery.
In recent years, NCA local directors have replaced more and more
veterans in caretaker jobs with outside contractors. As a result, the
current generation of veterans, and future generations of veterans,
have far fewer job opportunities in NCA.
Outsourcing NCA caretaker work is bad policy and bad for veterans
for many reasons. First, in most cases, this outsourcing is carried out
illegally because it constitutes a ``direct conversion'', that is,
Federal work is converted to contractor work without conducting the
privatization studies required under Federal law and the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) A-76 Circular. VA's use of direct
conversions has been so egregious that in 2007 Congress passed a law
aimed specifically at VA to prohibit this practice. As Senator Brown
(D-OH) stated upon introduction of this amendment to the FY 2008 VA
appropriations bill:
``The VA is firing many of its blue collar workers, and
replacing them with private contractors without going through the
competition process that Congress has called for again and again. It's
bad enough that the VA is moving forward without actually figuring out
what is in the best interest of the taxpayers. But making matters even
worse is that four-fifths of the blue collar jobs targeted for
outsourcing to private contractors are held by veterans. These are more
than a paycheck. They're a path to independence. . . The obstacles to
employment are steep enough for veterans without throwing unjustifiable
outsourcing into the mix.''
Second, using contractors instead of veterans is unfair to veterans
and their families who were assured by the VA that the workforce that
maintains the cemeteries as National Shrines is comprised largely of
veterans who bring unique experience and commitment to their jobs. In
VA's video, ``Day in the Life: Cemetery Caretaker'', NCA Caretaker John
Wells states:
``We owe a debt of gratitude for those people that went
overseas. People that have given everything, and never came back home.
That's what we feel like our dedication is . . . to provide a service.
Not just a service to do the funeral and the headstone, and mowing the
grass. But you feel it inside, and you know where they come from. And
it's . . . an ongoing feeling. . . . And those people that come here,
the family members to . . . see their loved one off, is a bond that
sticks with you the rest of your life. Because, you've been in their
shoes. You've been with the comrade that they are saying goodbye to. .
. . It means to me that you can still . . . do something for the family
of those that have lost someone here. . . . There's nothing here that I
can see that's left undone. If we're mowing or weed eating or anything
like that, and we see a stone that's sunk or out of alignment or needs
to be tweaked a little bit, we go ahead and take time to do that. . .
Coming to work for the VA means everything to those who work here.
Because we like what we do. We don't show up just to do some work and
go home. There's a certain amount of camaraderie that we have in
common. It's a nice place to work. This is a good place to start a good
career. . . . We don't take shortcuts. We take pride in what we do.''
``Day in the Life: Cemetery Caretaker'' (http://www.va.gov/JOBS/
career_types/wells-video.asp
In addition, cemetery caretaker work is inappropriate for
contracting out. The responsibility to maintain these National Shrines
is too important to be turned over to fly by night contractors. These
contractors typically use poorly paid contingent workers and they
maximize their profits by minimizing the amount of effort they put into
each of the many contracts they juggle. Most of the employees at Ft.
Logan National Cemetery are in agreement with me that the
subcontractors are not performing the jobs as well as NCA employees
did. In fact, many times our personnel are directed to redo the work
not done to standard or left undone by the subcontractors.
NCA outsourcing also undermines the Department's own mission to
increase veteran hiring, a mission that is especially important during
this period of soaring unemployment among OIF/OEF veterans. The Labor
Department recently reported that the number of unemployed Iraq and
Afghanistan veterans is nearly as high as the number of OIF/OEF
servicemembers currently deployed!
Unfortunately, the problem of illegal caretaker outsourcing is
getting worse over time. When I first started working at Ft. Logan 6
years ago, there were ten Full Time Employee (FTE) VA Cemetery
Caretakers, nine of whom were also veterans. In 2007, the mowing and
trimming work was outsourced, leaving only three full time VA Cemetery
Caretakers, two of whom are veterans.
At the time the work was outsourced, the employees were told not to
worry about their jobs, that no one was going to be laid off or fired,
that these positions would only be reduced by attrition. But
outsourcing by attrition still means fewer job opportunities for the
next wave of veterans trying to return to civilian life.
Management tried to argue that outsourcing the mowing and trimming
would free up caretakers to perform grave and headstone and marker
maintenance to meet NCA Operational Standards and achieve National
Shrine status. In spite of this statement, management outsourced the
headstone setting in 2009; this will be implemented next month and will
result the loss of two more NCA positions.
Every year, in addition to the VA Cemetery Caretakers maintaining
the cemetery grounds, seasonal personnel are hired to assist with the
various jobs. In the past, as full time VA Cemetery Caretaker positions
became available, the seasonal work pool was used to fill some of these
positions. In addition, participants in the VHA Compensated Work
Therapy Program working at the cemeteries were moved into permanent
positions when they became vacant. However, since outsourcing has
started, far fewer CWT graduates and seasonal employees with valuable
experience are used to fill vacant caretaker positions.
Nearly two dozen AFGE locals in other parts of the country have
similar reports: the contracting out of caretaker jobs held largely by
veterans and the prolonged use of temporary employees and CWT
participants without transition to permanent employment.
AFGE member reports indicate that most, if not all, new national
cemeteries have also contracted out caretaker work among other
functions. Contract labor is also used in most existing cemeteries that
undergo expansion. Congressman Salazar (D-CO) has introduced
legislation to add another national cemetery in Colorado (H.R. 174). If
it passes, I fear that NCA will continue the trend of hiring only the
Director and Cemetery Representatives for new cemeteries, and contract
out the Cemetery Caretakers, Interment Crews and other support
personnel.
Although Federal outsourcing law may not apply to caretaker work at
new and expanded cemeteries, NCA's failure to hire veterans at these
sites represents an enormous loss of employment opportunities. Also, as
noted below, OMB is now encouraging Federal agencies to give new work
to Federal employees, rather than contractors.
Many cemetery directors make the argument that they cannot find
suitable applicants to hire to fill caretaker vacancies, but they never
seem to look for suitable applicants in VHA or VBA employment programs,
or in the local veterans' community. But why is a for profit contractor
who is outside the VA better able to find veterans for this honorable
work than the VA itself? Cemetery directors also argue that they need
the flexibility of contractor labor because the work is seasonal; they
have the option to hire caretakers as seasonal employees, a common
practice throughout the Federal Government.
In 2007, AFGE met with NCA officials and requested that NCA
intervene to stop illegal outsourcing at the local level. At that time,
NCA expressed interest in AFGE's offer to link NCA with veterans'
groups to identify suitable applicants for caretaker openings in
existing and new cemeteries. Shortly thereafter, NCA reported to this
Subcommittee that it would provide a report about its review of the
competitive sourcing issue. To AFGE's knowledge, this report was never
completed.
Therefore, AFGE urges this Subcommittee to take action on both
fronts: stop illegal outsourcing of caretaker work at existing
cemeteries and link unemployed veterans with new caretaker job
opportunities. More specifically, the first step is to impose a
statutory moratorium on the outsourcing of the NCA caretaker function
and require NCA to conduct an inventory of the current caretaker
workforce and caretaker contracts. Congress has already taken similar
action on a Government wide basis. The 2009 Consolidated Appropriations
Act placed a permanent prohibition on ``direct conversions'' that
applies to the VA and other Federal agencies (except DoD which is
covered by a different bill) and imposed a moratorium on new
privatization studies during FY 2009. Pending legislation would extend
that moratorium and require agencies to establish inventories of
contracted services that should be ``insourced'', i.e. brought back
into the Government.
Inventories and insourcing are also key components of OMB's new
guidance. All agencies, including the VA, are supposed to develop a
workforce inventory with the goal of bringing inherently governmental
work back into the Government, and increasing the use of Federal
employees for new, expanded and outsourced work.
We encourage this Subcommittee to play a leading role in the
development of a permanent program linking NCA job opportunities with
potential applicants identified by VA's job training programs and
veterans' organizations. This program would further the admirable goals
of the VA's Veterans Employment Coordination Service ``to advance
efforts to attract, recruit and hire veterans into the VA, particularly
severely injured veterans returning from Operation Enduring Freedom and
Operation Iraqi Freedom.'' (VA Web site: VECS Homepage). Bringing
cemetery caretaker work back into the VA honors this commitment while
honoring veterans and their families.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify today.
Prepared Statement of Steve L. Muro, Acting Under Secretary
for Memorial Affairs, National Cemetery Administration,
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
Mr. Chairman, Mr. Ranking Member, and Members of the Subcommittee,
thank you for the opportunity to testify today on how the National
Cemetery Administration (NCA) honors Veterans through lasting tributes
to their service and sacrifice.
NCA is one of three Administrations within the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA). NCA and the Veterans Benefits Administration
(VBA), which is responsible for burial flags and monetary burial
benefits, jointly administer VA's burial and funeral benefits for
Veterans, family members and survivors. We in NCA have four statutory
missions:
To provide burial for Veterans, their eligible family
members and survivors, and to maintain those places of burial as
national shrines;
To provide Government-furnished headstones and markers
for the graves of eligible Veterans worldwide;
To administer the State Cemetery Grants Program (SCGP),
under which NCA provides grants up to 100 percent of the development
cost for establishing, expanding and improving Veterans cemeteries
owned and operated by the States and Tribal governments; and
To administer the Presidential Memorial Certificate (PMC)
program, under which NCA provides to the families and loved ones of
honorably discharged, deceased Veterans, certificates bearing the
signature of the President to commemorate the Veteran's service.
This is a very important period in NCA history as Secretary
Shinseki leads the Department in fundamental and comprehensive change
emphasizing innovation and performance. These initiatives are
consistent with the theme of today's hearing on how we can better serve
America's Veterans and their families. I thank you for providing me an
opportunity to share with the Committee, the Veterans at this hearing,
and all those we serve, the tangible benefits the employees of NCA
provide through their daily commitment and dedication to our Fallen
Heroes.
NCA maintains more than 2.9 million gravesites at 130 national
cemeteries in 39 States and Puerto Rico, as well as 33 soldiers' lots
and monument sites. Since 1973 when Congress created a National
Cemetery System under the jurisdiction of VA, annual interments in VA
national cemeteries have almost tripled, from 36,400, to more than
103,000 in fiscal year (FY) 2008. We expect to perform over 107,000
interments in 2009, a 3.8-percent increase over the number performed in
2008. Of the 130 national cemeteries operated by NCA, 70 cemeteries
have gravesites available for the first interment or inurnment of
casketed and cremated remains; 20 cemeteries can only accommodate the
first inurnment of cremated remains (along with the cremated and
casketed remains of subsequent family members); and the remaining 40
cemeteries can only accommodate an interment if there is room in the
grave of a previously interred family member. Seventy-four State
Veterans cemeteries funded under the State Cemetery Grant Program are
operated in 36 States, Guam and Saipan.
In FY 2008, NCA processed more than 360,000 applications for
Government-furnished headstones and markers for the graves of Veterans
and their eligible family members, and issued over 500,000 Presidential
Memorial Certificates to the families of eligible Veterans.
We are working diligently to fulfill the commitment our Nation has
made to Veterans who served during previous periods of conflict, and we
make special arrangements to accommodate the needs of family members
who have lost a loved one serving overseas in Operation Enduring
Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF). As of September 9, 2009,
1,063 OEF/OIF service men and women who died as a result of combat-
related injuries have been interred in either a VA or a State Veterans
cemetery. In addition, NCA has provided another 1,836 headstones or
markers for fallen OEF/OIF servicemembers who are buried in private
cemeteries. To honor these brave men and women, we do everything
possible to expedite the placement of headstones or markers at the
gravesite on the day of interment. We also try to accommodate burial
requests in closed national cemeteries near a Veteran's family if a
gravesite can be made available due to the reclamation of a previously
obstructed or reserved gravesite.
Our ability to provide reasonable access to a burial option is a
critical measure of the effectiveness of our service delivery to
Veterans and their families and survivors. Currently, over 87 percent
of all Veterans in the Nation reside within a 75-mile radius of a
national or State Veterans cemetery. VA established the 75-mile service
area standard because NCA data showed that more than 80 percent of
persons interred in national cemeteries reside within 75 miles of the
cemetery at the time of death. NCA plans to increase the percentage of
Veterans served to 90 percent by FY 2011. Strategic initiatives are in
place to meet this goal. They are:
Establish additional national cemeteries in un-served
areas;
Expand existing national cemeteries to provide continued
service; and
Establish or expand State and Tribal Government Veterans
cemeteries through the SCGP.
The Future Burial Needs report, required by Public Law (PL) 106-
117, assisted NCA in developing its long-range plans. The report,
completed in 2002, assessed the number of additional cemeteries needed
to ensure that 90 percent of Veterans live within 75 miles of a
national or State Veterans cemetery, and identified 31 locations with
the greatest concentration of unmet need for burial access. Revised
population estimates that VA provided to Congress in June 2003 assisted
in the identification of 12 locations with the greatest number of
Veterans who were unserved by burial access to a national or State
Veterans cemetery; all 12 locations met VA's Veteran population
threshold of 170,000 for planning new national cemeteries. This policy
has enabled VA to focus resources on serving areas where high
concentrations of Veterans do not have access to a burial option. PL
106-117 directed the Secretary to build six new national cemeteries;
six additional locations were identified in PL 108-109, the National
Cemetery Expansion Act of 2003. Together, these statutes laid the
foundation for VA initiatives to provide Veterans improved access to
burial options.
Establishing New National Cemeteries
VA has established 11 of these 12 new national cemeteries. New
national cemeteries mandated by PL 106-117 and located in the six
geographic areas of identified need in Atlanta, Georgia; Detroit,
Michigan; Ft. Sill, Oklahoma; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Sacramento,
California; and South Florida now provide service to two million
Veterans who had resided in areas not previously served by a national
or State Veterans cemetery.
PL 108-109 directed VA to establish six additional national
cemeteries near Bakersfield, California; Birmingham, Alabama; Columbia/
Greenville, South Carolina; Jacksonville, Florida; Southeastern
Pennsylvania; and Sarasota County, Florida. Five of these six new
national cemeteries are now operational. With the future opening of
Washington Crossing National Cemetery near Philadelphia, this phase of
national cemetery expansion will be complete. Funding of $41 million
was appropriated in FY 2006 for land acquisition costs, $12 million was
appropriated in FY 2007 for preliminary design work, and $137 million
was appropriated in NCA's FY 2008 major construction account for these
six new cemeteries. We are proud of VA's progress in accomplishing this
significant expansion of national cemeteries.
Annual Veteran deaths reached a peak at 665,000 in FY 2006 and have
begun a gradual decline. However, with the opening of these new
national cemeteries, annual NCA interments are projected to increase
from over 100,000 in FY 2008 to nearly 114,000 in FY 2011, an increase
of 10.6 percent due entirely to increased access.
Providing Grants for State and Tribal Government Veterans Cemeteries
The SCGP is vital to achieving NCA's performance goal for burial
access, and in permitting NCA to meet the needs of Veterans, family
members, and survivors residing in less populated areas that do not
meet VA's criteria for the establishment of a national cemetery. Since
2001, 29 new State Veterans cemeteries have opened in 17 States and
Saipan. With the opening of the Idaho Veterans Cemetery in 2004, there
is now a national or State Veterans cemetery in every State in the
Union. To date, VA has funded 275 grants, totaling more than $389
million to establish, expand or improve 74 Veterans cemeteries in 36
States, Guam and Saipan.
Cemeteries established under the grant program must conform to VA-
prescribed standards and guidelines for site selection, planning,
construction, appearance and operations. State cemeteries must be
operated solely for the interment of Veterans, their spouses, surviving
spouses, and eligible children. Seven new State cemeteries are now
under construction in Springvale, Maine; Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri;
Alliance, Nebraska; Dublin, Virginia; Newton, Mississippi; Greenup,
Kentucky; and Spokane, Washington. Sixteen States have multiple State
Veterans cemeteries and some States, such as Missouri, North Carolina,
Tennessee, and Wisconsin, have been pro-active and planned new State
cemeteries to coincide with the anticipated closure of nearby VA
national cemeteries. In FY 2008, State Veterans cemeteries provided for
24,826 burials, and in FY 2009 burials are projected to increase to
over 27,000. This increase has been possible because of expanded access
offered by five State cemeteries opened in 2008 and 2009 in Adel, Iowa;
Williamstown, Kentucky; Missoula, Montana; Fort Riley, Kansas; and
Abilene, Texas. State cemeteries provide 20 percent of non-private
burials for Veterans and their families.
Expanding and Improving Current National Cemeteries
The next planning challenge for NCA will be to continue expansions
and improvements to existing national cemeteries by acquiring land
where necessary and completing development projects for additional
gravesites or columbaria. We currently have major and minor
construction projects underway to expand the life of several national
cemeteries so that they can continue to meet the burial needs of
Veterans, their family members and survivors in their geographic
regions. Included in the President's FY 2010 budget request are major
expansion projects at Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Illinois for
$38.3 million, and Houston National Cemetery in Texas for $35 million.
Also included is $50.7 million for the minor construction program,
which will focus primarily on smaller gravesite expansion projects.
In the area of facilities, we have begun several initiatives at our
cemeteries in order to serve Veterans more efficiently. We have begun
using graveliners that are pre-placed in the ground prior to the time
of need. Pre-placed graveliners allow for a greater number of
gravesites in a section because their installation precludes the need
for buffer space between individual burial sites, which in turn reduces
turf and irrigation needs. An acre with traditional gravesites will
accommodate 871 burials; an acre with pre-placed graveliners can
accommodate 1,815 burials or double the number of traditional
gravesites.
We are also responding to changes in burial preferences by Veterans
and their families by constructing a greater number of columbaria for
the inurnment of cremated remains. As the choice of cremation over
full-casket burial continues to increase, columbaria allow us to
accommodate more burials at a given site, while being responsive to
Veterans' preferences. We are also developing new memorial walls in our
cemeteries to honor those whose remains are not available for burial.
These memorial walls require less space than the traditional placement
of memorial markers on land which is now available to be used for
interments. This is one more strategy we employ to ensure national
cemeteries can provide burial options well into the future.
Strategic Goals
As we approach meeting our performance goal of providing burial
access for 90 percent of Veterans, we are also thinking strategically
about how we will meet the needs of Veterans in the future. As a first
step, VA commissioned an independent burial program evaluation that
addressed multiple issues, including:
Assessment of VA's current 75-mile service area standard;
Adequacy of the 170,000 Veteran population threshold for
planning new national cemeteries;
Role of State cemetery grants in meeting Veterans' burial
needs; and
Potential use of cremation-only burial sites or
mausoleums in meeting Veterans' burial needs and preferences.
We provided this report to Congress on November 5, 2008. Any
changes to current policy will be considered during formulation of
future budget requests.
Performance Standards
NCA continues to make the most effective use of available resources
to ensure that national cemeteries are maintained and operated in a
manner befitting their status as national shrines. In recognition of
our stewardship and dedicated service to Veterans, NCA's national
cemeteries achieved a customer satisfaction rating of 95 out of a
possible 100 points by the 2007 American Customer Satisfaction Index
(ACSI) survey undertaken by the University of Michigan. This is the
second time that NCA received the highest score by a Federal agency or
private organization participating in the ACSI. The ACSI study polled
next-of-kin or individuals who had arranged for the interment of a
loved one in a VA national cemetery within 12 months of the survey. The
outstanding results achieved by NCA are a testament to the dedication
and hard work of NCA's employees as they serve Veterans and their
families during difficult and emotional times.
National cemeteries carry expectations of appearance that set them
apart from their civilian counterparts. To meet these standards, the
2002 National Shrine Commitment report provided the first independent,
comprehensive assessment of VA assets at 119 national cemeteries; 928
projects were identified to repair, alter or improve existing cemetery
elements at a then-estimated cost of $280 million. (Through 2008, NCA
had completed work on 304 of the identified projects with an estimated
cost of $99.5 million.) In 2003, we established operational standards
to provide guidance and quantifiable goals for maintaining national
cemeteries as national shrines at both open and closed national
cemeteries. These standards are reviewed and updated continuously based
on input from NCA cemetery staff, 70 percent of whom are Veterans
themselves.
To complement the operational standards we also established a
comprehensive program by which the performance of national cemeteries
is assessed, monitored and reported to the Under Secretary. The
Organizational Assessment and Improvement (OAI) Program combines the
traditional elements of an inspection program with the proven concepts
of organizational excellence. This internal audit-based program is a
combination of regular self-assessment, and periodic site visits by
teams of NCA employees, to validate business and service delivery
results and to measure the progress of the national cemetery in meeting
national shrine standards of appearance. OAI allows us to objectively
identify projects and allocate valuable resources. The program is in
its fifth year and has become a valuable tool in assessing performance
measures at all VA national cemeteries.
NCA received $50 million in stimulus funds from the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to assist in fulfillment of our
commitment to the national shrine standards. These funds are being used
for 395 cemetery projects in 39 States and Puerto Rico. Projects
include raising, realigning and cleaning headstones and markers, and
repairing sunken graves. We are also funding projects that conserve
energy and water through the use of wind turbines, solar power and
other measures. We are repairing historic monuments and memorials at
national shrines; repairing roads, buildings, and other cemetery
infrastructure; and purchasing new equipment for cemetery operations.
These stimulus funds will be obligated by September 2010, and we have
established procedures to ensure rigorous oversight of and
accountability for the use of these funds.
In addition to being good stewards of our national cemeteries, we
listen to our Veterans and their families regarding benefit inequities
and work with Congress and this Committee in particular to expand
benefits to respond to the needs and changing expectations of those we
serve and to properly honor our servicemen and women. The headstone and
marker program is an area where this partnership has been especially
fruitful. Initially the Government furnished a headstone for a
servicemember who died on the battlefield to ensure the remains were
marked. Then the purpose of this provision evolved to ensure that the
remains of a Veteran in a national, post or private cemetery would not
lie in an unmarked grave. With the passage of PL 107-103, The Veterans
Education and Benefits Expansion Act of 2001, the benefit of a
Government-furnished headstone expanded to honor all Veterans who died
after the date of passage, regardless of whether the grave was
previously marked with a private headstone. The Government-furnished
headstone or marker then became a symbol of a Veteran's service to the
Nation and recognition of its gratitude. At the conclusion of this 5-
year pilot study, VA submitted a report on the positive reception of
the Veteran community to this expanded burial benefit. We were pleased
to see it become permanent and apply to those Veterans who died since
November 1, 1990. (Prior to that date, a monetary allowance had been
available when survivors purchased private headstones and markers.)
In response to concerns voiced by Veterans and their family
members, we worked with Congress and, again, with this Committee, to
expand the memorial marker benefit to include all individuals eligible
for burial in a national cemetery but whose remains are unavailable.
Another area where we are meeting the changing needs of Veterans is
by expanding the headstone and marker program to include a new
medallion option that will acknowledge service to the Nation for
Veterans buried in private cemeteries around the world. I am pleased to
report on our progress in making this new benefit available in the near
future.
With the passage of PL 110-157 in December 2007, the Secretary now
has the authority to furnish a medallion or other device that can be
affixed to a privately-purchased headstone, marker or niche cover to
signify the grave as that of a Veteran. Veterans and their family
members will be able to choose either this new medallion, or the
traditional Government headstone or marker, for Veterans who died on or
after November 1, 1990, and are interred in privately-marked graves in
private cemeteries. We believe that many Veterans and their families
will request this medallion for placement at those private cemeteries
where a traditional Government-furnished headstone or marker is not
permitted, or where families preferred to privately mark a grave but
still seek recognition of a Veteran's service to the Nation.
VA has worked with the Department of the Army's Institute of
Heraldry in developing designs for the new medallion. Designs and
prototypes have been presented to the Commission of Fine Arts, the VA
Advisory Committee on Cemeteries and Memorials, and multiple Veterans'
focus groups. Based on input from these varied groups, the Institute
has refined the design, and prototypes for a medallion are being
fabricated for final approval by the VA Secretary. We anticipate that
we will enter into manufacturing contracts at the end of this calendar
year and the medallion will be available to Veterans and their families
in early 2010. This will expand further the recognition we provide
Veterans for their service to our Nation.
Additional NCA Achievements and Initiatives
As challenged by the Secretary, we are looking at our internal
processes to ensure that we are maximizing resources and continually
serving Veterans with ever-improving services. I would like to share
some of these innovations with you.
NCA National Scheduling Office. We are restructuring and
streamlining the processing of burial eligibility determinations and
interment scheduling to better serve the needs of Veterans, their
families and funeral directors. Located in St. Louis, Missouri, the
centralized NCA National Scheduling Office opened in January 2007 to
handle interment requests for all national cemeteries except those
located in Puerto Rico and Hawaii. As a one-stop call center, it
ensures fast and consistent eligibility determinations, and is
available to families and funeral homes for scheduling of burials 7
days a week. Previously, scheduling occurred Monday through Friday
during national cemetery office hours.
NCA has also initiated a paperless document processing system.
Veteran, spouse and dependent information may be submitted by fax and
all documents received are automatically entered into an electronic
database. When documentation is unavailable, scheduling office staff
attempt to obtain necessary information from various available sources.
From receipt of supporting documentation to final determination and
scheduling, the processing is now paperless.
In FY 2008, the first full year of operation, the Scheduling Office
handled 72,249 calls, averaging less than 10 minutes from start to
finish. More than half of the calls resulted in the scheduling of a
burial while the caller was on the phone.
Timeliness of Marking Graves in National Cemeteries. We are proud
that innovations by our dedicated workforce have dramatically reduced
the amount of time it takes to mark the grave with a Government-
furnished headstone or marker after a burial is complete. This is
important to Veterans and their family members and survivors and
therefore, it is important to us. The headstone or marker is a lasting
memorial that serves as a focal point not only for present-day
survivors but also for future generations. Our staff knows that
following the death of a loved one, seeing the tangible grave marker
often brings a sense of closure to the family. We make every effort to
have the grave marked on the day of the interment for OEF/OIF
servicemembers who die from combat-related injuries.
Of the 113,000 headstones or markers ordered for VA national
cemeteries, 95 percent were placed within 60 days of interment, a
significant improvement over the performance level of 49 percent in
2002. NCA is now focused on reducing the time required to mark the
graves of Veterans interred in private cemeteries. In FY 2008, 215,000
headstones and markers were ordered for private cemeteries. Of these,
95 percent were ordered within 20 days from receipt of the application.
This is a dramatic improvement over the FY 2007 performance of 38
percent, and also exceeds our strategic target of 90 percent.
NCA National Training Center. In order to ensure a high-performing,
well-trained workforce and to meet succession planning goals, the NCA
National Training Center in St. Louis was established in 2004. The
Training Center emphasizes technical, supervisory and leadership
training so that high quality service is provided to our Veterans and
their families. The Training Center has continued to expand to train
supervisors, equipment operators, grounds keepers, cemetery
representatives, and other NCA staff. Additionally, we offer training
to State Veteran cemetery employees to assist them to meet national
shrine standards. As new national cemeteries become operational, the
Training Center offers consistency in operations throughout the
national cemetery system, and ensures that a high-performing workforce
and a well-trained staff is prepared to fill key positions.
We are especially proud of the establishment of the Cemetery
Director Intern Program, an intensive year-long program designed to
develop key technical, administrative, leadership and supervisory
skills and competencies. In addition to classroom training, intern
candidates rotate through a series of hands-on assignments that expose
them to all NCA business and operational processes. After successful
completion of their internship, these individuals are prepared to
assume the role of Director or Assistant Director at one of our
national cemeteries. The fifth class of cemetery director intern
candidates will graduate in April 2010.
Reproduction of Gettysburg Address Tablets. To commemorate the
bicentennial of President Abraham Lincoln's birth, NCA has reproduced
62 historic cast-iron plaques containing the Gettysburg Address. The
original Gettysburg Address tablets in national cemeteries were erected
around 1909, and a second set of tablets was erected in the 1930s in
national cemeteries developed between the two World Wars. These tablets
will now be located at all national cemeteries to honor President
Lincoln, who established the first 14 national cemeteries in 1862. Like
the originals, these tablets were manufactured at Rock Island Arsenal,
Illinois.
Memorial Programs Service Initiatives. Another area where NCA staff
seeks to respond to those we serve is the Applicant Assistance Call
Center located in Washington, D.C. The Call Center responds to
approximately 1,500 calls weekly, and provides information on headstone
and marker delivery status, as well as general information about
Memorial Programs Service benefits. In 2002, to improve customer
service and the efficiency of our headstone and marker program for
Veterans buried in private cemeteries, NCA customized a paperless
processing system using a toll-free fax line that allows us to receive
applications electronically into our automated application processing
system. In FY 2008, we received 45 percent of our applications--about
95,000 per year--in this manner, and anticipate the rate to increase.
For those requesting a headstone or marker, we recently initiated a
postcard notification to provide confirmation of receipt of the
application and status regarding delivery date. We are also initiating
a customer satisfaction survey to determine how well we are meeting our
clients' needs.
First Notice of Death (FNOD). NCA has assumed responsibility from
the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) for entering approximately
1,800 First Notices of Death each day into VA information systems,
which in turn update VA electronic files to terminate compensation
benefits to deceased Veterans. The transfer of this Department function
assists VA clients by freeing up VBA resources to focus on adjudicating
and paying Veterans claims and better aligns business processes with
core administration missions. An important additional benefit is a
reduction in overpayments and the timely notification to next-of-kin of
potential survivor benefits.
Nationwide Gravesite Locator. In 2004, NCA launched a Web-based
Nationwide Gravesite Locator (NGL) system to search for the gravesite
locations of deceased family members and friends, and to conduct
genealogical research.
The NGL is accessed approximately 1.5 million times annually and
currently contains more than 6.7 million records and is growing. It
provides information on Veterans and family members buried in VA's 130
national cemeteries since the Civil War, with more recent records (1999
to the present) for burials in State Veterans cemeteries and Arlington
national cemetery. To further assist Veterans and their families, we
recently added information on Government-furnished headstones and
markers placed in private cemeteries. Additionally, to reach more
users, VA has optimized the NGL for viewing and browsing on ``smart''
handheld devices in response to changing needs.
Outreach Activities. Public outreach activities continue to
increase with NCA participation in over 30 national conferences last
year, including the National Funeral Directors Association Conference
and the National Congress of American Indians 66th Annual Convention.
In addition to our national outreach efforts, we participate in
thousands of local events, including Town Hall meetings, community
fairs, celebrations, and other civic events. We are targeting specific
organizations that have day-to-day contact with homeless, indigent and
women Veterans. I was pleased to represent VA at the Cremation
Association of North America conference last month in Denver.
Additionally, my senior staff and I conduct bi-annual meetings with
Veterans Service Organization representatives to exchange information
and to ensure they are informed of current NCA program initiatives.
Innovation. Consistent with our commitment to exchange ideas and
best practices with State and other Federal cemeteries, we partnered
with the National Park Service to test biological cleaning products on
marble headstones to find products that effectively clean headstones,
are user-friendly, environmentally safe, and cost-effective. Through
innovations by our cemetery staff, we have received a patent on a
pivotal casket carrier, developed at Rock Island National Cemetery,
that allows cemetery staff to maneuver caskets easily between
headstones. We are also working with the U.S. Patent and Trademark
Office to obtain a patent on a Mower/Trimmer device that was developed
at Calverton National Cemetery. We are partnering with the private
sector to identify possible commercial applications for these
innovations.
Closing
Thank you again for the opportunity to come before you today. I
hope my testimony answers the important question you have posed--
``Honoring the Fallen: How Can We Better Serve America's Veterans and
Their Families?'' It is a question foremost in the minds of our
dedicated workforce who on a daily basis are honored to provide
memorial benefits to Veterans, their family members and survivors. I
look forward to working with the Members of this Subcommittee as we
jointly respond to the changing needs of those we are honored to serve.
MATERIAL SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD
Committee on Veterans' Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Washington, DC.
October 14, 2009
John C. Metzler
Superintendent
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington, VA 22211
Dear Mr. Metzler:
Thank you for testifying at the House Committee on Veterans Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs oversight
hearing on Honoring The Fallen: How Can We Better Serve Americas
Veterans and Their Families?, held on September 24, 2009. I would
greatly appreciate if you would provide answers to the enclosed
followup hearing questions by Monday, November 15, 2009.
In an effort to reduce printing costs, the Committee on Veterans
Affairs, in cooperation with the Joint Committee on Printing, is
implementing some formatting changes for material for all Full
Committee and Subcommittee hearings. Therefore, it would be appreciated
if you could provide your answers consecutively on letter size paper,
single-spaced. In addition, please restate the question in its entirety
before the answer.
Due to the delay in receiving mail, please provide your responses
to Ms. Megan Williams by fax at (202) 225-2034. If you have any
questions, please call (202) 225-3608.
Sincerely,
John J. Hall
Chairman
__________
Questions from the House Committee on Veteran's Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Oversight Hearing Honoring the Fallen: How Can We Better
Serve Americas Veterans and Their Families?
September 24, 2009
Question: How has Arlington National Cemetery handled instances in
which a veteran's survivor(s) have requested that the burial benefit
include a parent who is not otherwise eligible to be buried in ANC or a
national cemetery?
a. Can such requests by the veteran be considered prior to the
death of the veteran?
b. Since 2001, how often are these requests made annually?
c. In 2008 and 2009, how many have been honored? How many have
been denied?
Answer: When Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) receives a request
for the burial of a family member of a servicemember in the same
gravesite who is already interred in ANC and the requestor does not
meet current eligibility standards, we will consider an exception to
the interment policy provided the family member does not occupy space
set aside for the spouse, minor or unmarried adult dependent child of
the servicemember, and there is space in the gravesite for the
additional burial. Further the requestor is not married nor has any
dependents; these types of requests have been approved.
a. Arlington National Cemetery only considers these special
exceptions to the interment policy at the time of need.
b. Since 2001, the following requests were received and approved:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
11.............................................................. 9 13 11 11 4 6 6 4
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2001--7 daughters and 4 sons
2002--2 mothers, 5 daughters and 2 sons
2003--1 mother, 10 daughters and 2 sons
2004--6 daughters and 5 sons
2005--7 daughters, 3 sons and 1 brother
2006--4 daughters
2007--3 daughters and 3 sons
2008--1 mother, 4 daughters and 1 son
2009--2 daughters and 2 sons
c. 10 requests were honored in 2008/2009: 6 in 2008 and 4 in 2009,
no requests have been disapproved.
Committee on Veterans' Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Washington, DC.
October 14, 2009
Katherine Stevenson
Assistant Director, Business Services
National Park Service
U.S. Department of the Interior
1849 C Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20240
Dear Ms. Stevenson:
Thank you for testifying at the House Committee on Veterans Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs oversight
hearing on Honoring The Fallen: How Can We Better Serve Americas
Veterans and Their Families?, held on September 24, 2009. I would
greatly appreciate if you would provide answers to the enclosed
followup hearing questions by Monday, November 15, 2009.
In an effort to reduce printing costs, the Committee on Veterans
Affairs, in cooperation with the Joint Committee on Printing, is
implementing some formatting changes for material for all Full
Committee and Subcommittee hearings. Therefore, it would be appreciated
if you could provide your answers consecutively on letter size paper,
single-spaced. In addition, please restate the question in its entirety
before the answer.
Due to the delay in receiving mail, please provide your responses
to Ms. Megan Williams by fax at (202) 225-2034. If you have any
questions, please call (202) 225-3608.
Sincerely,
John J. Hall
Chairman
__________
U.S. Department of the Interior
Office of the Secretary
Washington, DC.
November 13, 2009
Hon. John J. Hall
Chairman
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Committee on Veterans' Affairs
United States House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Mr. Chairman:
Enclosed is the response to a followup question for the record from
the oversight hearing of the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and
Memorial Affairs held on September 24, 2009.
This response has been prepared by the National Park Service. Thank
you for giving us the opportunity to respond to you on these matters.
Sincerely,
Christopher P. Salotti
Legislative Counsel
Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs
Enclosure
cc: Hon. Doug Lamborn, Ranking Minority Member
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
__________
Questions from the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Oversight Hearing Honoring the Fallen: How Can We Better
Serve Americas Veterans and their Families?
September 24, 2009
Question 1: At the hearing, the NCA reported that the VA Advisory
Committee on Cemeteries and Memorials is scheduled to meet for its
biannual session in November. Has the NPS been invited to participate
in this meeting?
Response: Yes, the National Park Service has been invited to attend
the VA Advisory Committee on Cemeteries and Memorials meeting in
Washington, DC on November 17-18, 2009. Brad Bennett, Superintendent of
Andersonville National Historic Site, will attend. Mr. Bennett has been
selected to replace Fred Boyles, the previous Andersonville
superintendent, on the VA Advisory Committee on Cemeteries and
Memorials.
Committee on Veterans' Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Washington, DC.
October 14, 2009
John Wilson
Assistant National Legislative Director
Disabled American Veterans
807 Maine Ave., S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20024
Dear Mr. Wilson:
Thank you for testifying at the House Committee on Veterans Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs oversight
hearing on Honoring The Fallen: How Can We Better Serve Americas
Veterans and Their Families?, held on September 24, 2009. I would
greatly appreciate if you would provide answers to the enclosed
followup hearing questions by Monday, November 15, 2009.
In an effort to reduce printing costs, the Committee on Veterans
Affairs, in cooperation with the Joint Committee on Printing, is
implementing some formatting changes for material for all Full
Committee and Subcommittee hearings. Therefore, it would be appreciated
if you could provide your answers consecutively on letter size paper,
single-spaced. In addition, please restate the question in its entirety
before the answer.
Due to the delay in receiving mail, please provide your responses
to Ms. Megan Williams by fax at (202) 225-2034. If you have any
questions, please call (202) 225-3608.
Sincerely,
John J. Hall
Chairman
__________
POST-HEARING QUESTIONS FOR
JOHN L. WILSON, ASSISTANT NATIONAL LEGISLATIVE DIRECTOR OF
THE DISABLED AMERICAN VETERANS FROM THE
COMMITTEE ON VETERANS AFFAIRS
SUBCOMMITTEE ON DISABILITY ASSISTANCE AND MEMORIAL
AFFAIRS, UNITED STATES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
SEPTEMBER 24, 2009
Oversight Hearing Honoring the Fallen: How Can We
Better Serve America's Veterans and Their Families
Question 1: The Independent Budget makes clear recommendations for
the NCA to include the State Grant Program funding allocation. In the
IB Report for 2010, it outlined two new threshold model scenarios--one
for a 65 mile radius and another for a 55 mile radius. How would
reducing this standard affect the NCA budget, and has the IB forecasted
the funding requirements for those options?
Response: The NCA has done an exceptional job of providing burial
options for 88 percent of the 170,000 veterans who fall within a 75-
mile radius-threshold model. However, under this model, no new
geographical area will become eligible for a national cemetery until
2015. St. Louis, Missouri, will, at that time, meet the threshold due
to the closing of Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in 2017.
Analysis shows that the five areas with the highest veteran population
will not become eligible for a national cemetery because they will not
reach the 170,000 threshold.
The NCA has spent years developing and maintaining a cemetery
system based on a growing veteran population. In 2010 our veteran
population will begin to decline. Because of this downward trend, a new
threshold model must be developed to ensure more of our veterans will
have reasonable access to their burial benefits. Reducing the mile
radius to 65 miles would reduce the veteran population that is served
from 90 percent to 82.4 percent, and reducing the radius to 55 miles
would reduce the served population to 74.1 percent. Reducing the radius
alone to 55 miles would bring only two geographical areas into the
170,000 population threshold in 2010, and only a few areas into this
revised model by 2030.
Several geographical areas will remain unserved if the population
threshold is not reduced. Lowering the population threshold to 100,000
veterans would immediately make several areas eligible for a national
cemetery regardless of any change to the mile radius threshold. A new
threshold model must be implemented so more of our veterans will have
access to this earned benefit.
Question 2: In 2002, VA reported to Congress on the independent
study on Improvements to veterans cemeteries. At the time, DAV made a
recommendation to fund the National Shrine Initiative. Since then, the
NCA has made several repairs and undergone renovations and expansions.
What has the DAV observed regarding these efforts, and what additional
activities do you still see needed for 2010? 2015?
Response: The fact that $25 million was set aside for the National
Shrine Commitment for fiscal year (FY) 2007 and FY 2008 is encouraging.
The NCA has done an outstanding job thus far in improving the
appearance of our national cemeteries, but we have a long way to go to
get where we need to be. By enacting a 5-year program with dedicated
funds and an ambitious schedule, the national cemetery system can fully
serve all veterans and their families with the utmost dignity, respect,
and compassion.
The DAV calls on the administration and Congress to provide the
resources required to meet the critical nature of the NCA mission and
fulfill the Nation's commitment to all veterans who have served their
country so honorably and faithfully. We believe Congress should provide
NCA with $241.5 million for FY 2010 to offset the costs related to
increased workload, additional staff needs, general inflation, and wage
increases; and include as part of the NCA appropriation $50 million for
the first stage of a $250 million 5-year program to restore and improve
the condition and character of existing NCA cemeteries.
Question 3: Does the DAV provide transportation to national
cemeteries for veterans survivors in the same way that they transport
patients to VA Medical Centers?
Response: The DAV does not provide transportation to national
cemeteries in the same manner as is done for Department of Veterans
Affairs (VA) Medical Centers. The program referred to is the
Transportation Network Program. Because so many sick and disabled
veterans lack transportation to and from VA health care facilities for
needed treatment, DAV operates a nationwide Transportation Network.
This program continues to show tremendous growth as an indispensable
resource for veterans. Across the Nation, DAV Hospital Service
Coordinators operate 190 active programs. They've recruited 8,532
volunteer drivers, who logged 28,136,963 miles last year, providing
809,656 rides for veterans to and from VA health care facilities. Many
of these veterans rode in vans DAV purchased and donated to VA health
care facilities for use in the Transportation Network. DAV Departments
and Chapters, together with the National Organization, have now donated
2,260 vans to VA health care centers nationwide at a cost of
$46,610,654.
Committee on Veterans' Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Washington, DC.
October 14, 2009
Raymond Kelley
National Legislative Director
AMVETS
4647 Forbes Boulevard
Lanham, MD 20706
Dear Mr. Kelley:
Thank you for testifying at the House Committee on Veterans Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs oversight
hearing on Honoring The Fallen: How Can We Better Serve Americas
Veterans and Their Families?, held on September 24, 2009. I would
greatly appreciate if you would provide answers to the enclosed
followup hearing questions by Monday, November 15, 2009.
In an effort to reduce printing costs, the Committee on Veterans
Affairs, in cooperation with the Joint Committee on Printing, is
implementing some formatting changes for material for all Full
Committee and Subcommittee hearings. Therefore, it would be appreciated
if you could provide your answers consecutively on letter size paper,
single-spaced. In addition, please restate the question in its entirety
before the answer.
Due to the delay in receiving mail, please provide your responses
to Ms. Megan Williams by fax at (202) 225-2034. If you have any
questions, please call (202) 225-3608.
Sincerely,
John J. Hall
Chairman
__________
Questions from the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Oversight Hearing Honoring the Fallen: How Can We Better
Serve Americas Veterans and their Families?
September 24, 2009
Question 1: The IB recommended that the NCA create two
accessibility threshold models for the burial benefits: one for
veterans who reside inside the threshold and another for those who live
beyond it. Does the model take into account very rural and remote areas
and conversely does it consider the traffic challenges in more urban
congested areas?
Response: The two-model system proposal is based on the VA
threshold policy of veteran population within a certain mile radius.
AMVETS believes there should be a policy provision regarding the
threshold model that will allow for national cemeteries to be built in
areas that do not fall within the threshold model, if a natural or man-
made obstacle denies veterans reasonable access to a national cemetery.
For example, urban areas that may have a national cemetery within 75
miles, but the length of time that it takes to get to the cemetery from
the decedents home is greater than 2 hours, or two populated areas that
are within a 75 mile radius and meet the population threshold, but are
separated by a land feature that causes the actual drive time to be
more than 2 hours for a portion of that threshold population.
Conversely, this provision should be afforded to veterans who do not
have reasonable access, to include rural and remote, to a State or
national cemetery regardless of any threshold models.
Question 2: Given the success of the State Cemetery Grants Program,
would it be better to expand that program rather than reduce the
service area standard to less than a 75 mile radius or reduce the
population threshold to a point below 170,000 veterans? Or both?
Response: The mission of NCA is to provide a final resting place
for our veterans. Without reducing the threshold radius model
regulation, NCA will no longer be developing new cemeteries. The 2010
Priority List of Pending State and Tribal Government Cemeteries has 60
construction grant pre-applications, 36 of which already have State
matching funds. VA currently has enough personnel resources to
establish just a few of these State or tribal cemeteries per year. In
2009 six cemeteries were developed and in 2010 there are 13 planned. A
large majority of these cemeteries will accommodate less than 25,000
veterans and many will serve just a few thousand per cemetery. Also,
States like California will not provide State matching funds so relying
heavily on the States Grants Program would cause certain areas to be
under served. AMVETS believes it would be counter productive to rely on
just one of these burial options in the future, and we would suggest
that the State Grants Program be funded at the level requested by the
Independent Budget and that VA reduce the population threshold to
100,000 to accommodate more densely populated areas.
Question 3: In your testimony you claimed that visitors to national
cemeteries are likely to see sunken graves, deteriorating markers, and
poor roads and turf that have decayed over the years. Conversely, VA
reports that on the Customer Satisfaction Index, it scores amongst the
highest even among private industry entities. How do you reconcile your
information from that reported by VA? How often does AMVETS conduct
site visits to national cemeteries?
Response: AMVETS has made countless visits to national and State
cemeteries providing funeral honors; however, our testimony is not
based on our evaluation of cemeteries it is based on NCAs own
evaluation. In their most recent evaluation, NCA found that the
percentage of properly aligned headstones and markers had fallen to 65
percent in 2008, down from 69 percent just 1 year earlier. NCA also
identified 153 monuments and memorials that need repair or restoration;
they currently have the financial means to correct 49 of these
monuments and memorials.
To sustain the high Customer Satisfaction Index, VA must be
provided the resources to continue to have our cemeteries held in the
highest regard.
Question 4: If a deceased veteran has no other eligible
beneficiaries at the time of his/her death, should a parent be remitted
to be buried with the veteran without the need of a waiver?
Response: Historically, veterans benefits are provided to veterans
and their dependents, allowing benefits to move to descendants.
Allowing parents to receive veteran earned benefits would change the
logical direction of transferability to ancestry. Setting a precedent
of this type would open the door of ancestry transfer of benefits.
AMVETS believes this would be a bad precedent to set and there are
burial options that will provide military honor and accommodate the
surviving parents wishes as well.
Committee on Veterans' Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Washington, DC.
October 14, 2009
Vivanne Cisneros Wersel
Chair, Government Relations Committee
Gold Star Wives of America, Inc.
200 N. Glebe Road, Room 425
Arlington, VA 22203
Dear Ms. Wersel:
Thank you for testifying at the House Committee on Veterans Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs oversight
hearing on Honoring The Fallen: How Can We Better Serve Americas
Veterans and Their Families?, held on September 24, 2009. I would
greatly appreciate if you would provide answers to the enclosed
followup hearing questions by Monday, November 15, 2009.
In an effort to reduce printing costs, the Committee on Veterans
Affairs, in cooperation with the Joint Committee on Printing, is
implementing some formatting changes for material for all Full
Committee and Subcommittee hearings. Therefore, it would be appreciated
if you could provide your answers consecutively on letter size paper,
single-spaced. In addition, please restate the question in its entirety
before the answer.
Due to the delay in receiving mail, please provide your responses
to Ms. Megan Williams by fax at (202) 225-2034. If you have any
questions, please call (202) 225-3608.
Sincerely,
John J. Hall
Chairman
__________
Follow-up Questions to the September 24 hearing,
Honoring the Fallen: How Can We Better Serve Americas Veterans and
their Families?
Question 1: What are the most prevalent issues survivors have when
they are first planning a funeral and how does VA meet those needs?
Response: Almost invariably there are questions/misunderstandings
involving costs and the staging of the ceremony. It would be well for
the briefers to understand this is not a time that lends itself to a
great ability to focus for the widows/widowers. GSW recommends that
there should be a determined extra effort to assure that the recipient
understands the information received and will be able to retain it. We
understand the Department of Veterans Affairs is in the process of
putting together a brochure that will present this vital information,
and we applaud that effort. It is important that both the costs and the
ceremony protocol be written down, clearly, concisely and in print
easily readable.
There are also great variances on understanding what can be put on
the headstone. The one concern we heard continually was that simply
listing the military facts of the life of the lost loved one on the
headstone was usually not adequate emotionally for the family. The
ability to put something more personal on the headstone while
maintaining the look and integrity of the cemetery is important to the
family, whether spouse or children or parents. Also, many widows seem
to have the question of headstone markings asked right at the funeral
and with the request to sign off on it at that time. This is simply not
acceptable nor an appropriate time for the widow to understand the
choices she may have in the decision she is making. We strongly
encourage for this process to be reviewed and adjusted.
Question 2: In your testimony you noted there are geographic
variances in the cost of covering a funeral. Does GSW have another
proposed alternative method for providing these benefits? Please
elaborate.
Response: GSW would recommend a local adjustment to the flat rate
for the cost of funerals in various parts of the country. Clearly a
funeral in rural mid-America is different from one in an urban setting,
and one in a VA cemetery different from a privately run resting place.
We are also encouraged that the VA is studying the possibility of
creating new VA cemeteries in areas that do not currently qualify under
the criteria established for approval of new sites, either because none
exists in the geographic are or because the current cemetery is full.
This is important in assisting survivors with a burial location
convenient to home.
Question 3: When survivors visit national cemeteries, are you aware
of any situation where they encounter any problems with the condition
of the facilities or the helpfulness of the staff?
Response: Our membership does not identify any issues of this
nature.
Committee on Veterans' Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Washington, DC.
October 14, 2009
Lesley Witter
Director of Political Affairs
National Funeral Directors Association
400 C Street, N.E.
Washington, D.C. 20002
Dear Ms. Witter:
Thank you for testifying at the House Committee on Veterans Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs oversight
hearing on Honoring The Fallen: How Can We Better Serve Americas
Veterans and Their Families?, held on September 24, 2009. I would
greatly appreciate if you would provide answers to the enclosed
followup hearing questions by Monday, November 15, 2009.
In an effort to reduce printing costs, the Committee on Veterans
Affairs, in cooperation with the Joint Committee on Printing, is
implementing some formatting changes for material for all Full
Committee and Subcommittee hearings. Therefore, it would be appreciated
if you could provide your answers consecutively on letter size paper,
single-spaced. In addition, please restate the question in its entirety
before the answer.
Due to the delay in receiving mail, please provide your responses
to Ms. Megan Williams by fax at (202) 225-2034. If you have any
questions, please call (202) 225-3608.
Sincerely,
John J. Hall
Chairman
__________
National Funeral Directors Association
Washington, DC.
November 13, 2009
Representative John Hall
Chairman, Subcommittee on Disability and Memorial Affairs
U.S. House of Representatives
Committee on Veterans' Affairs
335 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Chairman Hall
Thank you for the opportunity to testify before the House Committee
on Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial
Affairs on September 24, 2009. Below you will find answers to your
questions about NFDAs testimony at the oversight hearing on Honoring
the Fallen: How Can We Better Serve Americas Veterans and Their
Families?
1. I understand that a 2008 study found that there is a lack of
knowledge about the VA burial benefits. How do you think that VA could
better provide outreach targeted to funeral home directors and to
families?
While it is possible that there is a general lack of knowledge
about veterans benefits, NFDA is confident that funeral directors are
very knowledgeable about veterans funeral and burial benefits. NFDA
works diligently to keep our members informed and educated about issues
relating to veterans funeral and burial benefits, and they in turn
serve as a conduit of benefit information for Veterans families. Some
possible avenues of targeted outreach for the VA may be with groups
that provide services and educational programs to veterans and their
families prior to their death.
2. In the study the NFDA conducted in preparation for this
hearing, did you survey all 19,000 of your members? How many responded?
What is the total number of funeral home directors in America?
Our research indicates that there are approximately 105,668 people
working in the funeral service industry. 70,669 are non-licensed
funeral service personnel and 35,000 are licensed personnel, such as
funeral directors and embalmers.
NFDA completed a non-scientific survey of our membership regarding
their personal experiences and opinions on how we can better serve our
veterans and their families. The purpose of our study was to survey our
members regarding their viewpoint on funeral benefits offered to
Veteran families, and to get personal anecdotes and experiences about
working with the Veteran Affairs and the Department of Defense. This
was done via a Web-based study which was sent to approximately 7,700
NFDA members. A survey invitation containing a link to the online
survey was posted in NFDAs electronic newsletter, The Bulletin. A
reminder was also posted in The Bulletin 1 week after the initial
invitation was sent.
This effort yielded a total of 60 completed interviews with a
margin of error of 12.6 percent. NFDA believes that despite
the low response rate, the responses provided are similar to the
experiences of our membership as a whole and is therefore a
representative sample. Given this margin of error, the results provided
by our survey were provided in testimony for directional purposes only
and are only an indication of respondents opinions.
a. According to your informal survey, VA overall was responsive to
funeral home directors. How did you define responsive? Has there been a
difference regarding VAs communication with funeral home directors
since the institution of its electronic records system and new call
center?
As you know, our survey indicated that the majority of funeral
directors are satisfied with the responsiveness of the VA. Most funeral
directors felt the VA and DoD were either extremely responsive (22.0
percent) or very responsive (57.6 percent) to funeral directors. As
this was not a scientific survey, we did not define satisfied. Instead,
respondents were asked to rate how responsive the VA and DoD were to
funeral directors by using response categories of extremely responsive,
very responsive, somewhat responsive, not very responsive, and not at
all responsive.
3. About one-third of your members were experiencing difficulties
with VA burial benefits and 66 percent said that benefit was
insufficient. How would you recommend that VA improve its current
burial benefit?
The majority of funeral directors surveyed indicated that the
current funeral and burial benefit is insufficient because of how it
impacts the families of veterans. In an effort to relieve the financial
strain on veteran families, NFDA respectfully suggests that Congress
enact legislation to adjust these burial benefits for inflation
annually.
At its inception, the funeral and burial benefits covered
approximately 72 percent of the funeral costs for a service-connected
death and 22 percent for a non-service-connected death. However, NFDA
estimates that the current national average cost for a funeral and
burial in a private cemetery has reached $7,323, and the cost for a
burial plot is $2,133. The current VA payment is either $2,000 for
service-connected deaths on or after September 11, 2001, or $1,500 for
burial expenses for service-connected deaths prior to September 10,
2001. For nonservice-connected deaths the VA will pay up to $300 toward
burial and funeral expenses and a $300 plot-interment allowance for
deaths on or after December 1, 2001. The plot-interment allowance is
$150 for deaths prior to December 1, 2001.
As you can see from these figures, the current VA benefits do not
come close to covering the current cost of a funeral or burial. This
means that veteran families are forced to make up the difference, or
funeral directors must donate their time and services to a veteran
family who cannot afford the difference between actual cost and VA
benefit amount.
In addition to concerns about how the amount of the current
funeral/burial benefit affect veteran families, several NFDA members
expressed concern about the complexity of benefits offered. As one NFDA
member put it there are too many variables, such as plot allowance,
transportation, stone engraving, etc. If a veteran dies, there should
simply be a lump sum payment made to the family to reimburse a portion
of their funeral expenses without categorizing it. And simplifying the
application would help as well. Additionally, other survey respondents
indicated that the 48 hour time requirement for family members to
locate discharge papers and the long delays in processing paperwork can
be problematic for both funeral directors and families.
a. At the hearing, Gold Star Wives alluded to the geographic
variances in funeral and burial expenses. Do you think VA should
provide a locality adjustment based on the rural or urban nature of the
community or whether the veteran had resided outside of the NCA service
area standard? If so, how should that adjustment be determined?
Like any other good or service, funeral and burial costs are
affected by the standard of living in a particular area. There is no
doubt the funeral and burial costs in certain metropolitan areas are
significantly higher than those same services in more rural areas.
There are a variety of reasons for the discrepancy in costs, but in
order to ensure equity among veterans, NFDA supports the notion that
the VA should provide a locality adjustment based on the rural or urban
nature of the community or whether the veteran had resided outside of
the NCA service area standard.
b. Do funeral homes not accept VAs allowance when it is
insufficient for covering the cost of the veteran's funeral? What do
veteran's families do when they cannot afford a funeral service or
burial?
Families have the option of burying their loved one in a veterans
cemetery for no cost; however, families often chose to bury their loved
one in a private cemetery because of logistical issues like traveling
to visit the gravesite. If a family chooses a funeral and burial in a
private cemetery, the cost is obviously higher. In this case the family
can elect a funeral package that costs the exact amount of the VA
benefit. Alternatively, the family can elect to pay any charges over
the amount of the VA benefit, or chose a cheaper funeral and burial
plan. In many instances, the funeral director will offer additional
goods and services to the family at no cost as a way to honor the
veteran's service. The average dollar amount absorbed by funeral
directors per veteran funeral was $652. However, the range of costs
absorbed was between $25 and $3,000. Some of the costs absorbed by
funeral directors include service fees, casket and vault costs,
transfer costs of remains to funeral home, embalming and other
preparation of the body, fees for the use of the hearse, and charges
associated with buglers and flag cases etc.
4. In your support of H.R. 2642, you noted that funeral home
directors are aware of circumstances in which a veteran's remains would
be unclaimed or abandoned. Is there a process for referring these
situations to VA and are there situations in which VA has not responded
to such a request?
The average number of unclaimed cremated remains at respondents'
funeral homes was 6.21. These remains are often those of someone who
dies without assets and without family or friends to pay for their
funeral. There is a risk that veterans whose remains are unclaimed, may
be buried in indigent graves instead of receiving the funeral they
earned because of their service to our country.
Unfortunately, there is not a standard process for referring these
situations to the VA, so it is up to funeral directors or some other
entity to contact the VA to see if the unclaimed remains are those of
veterans. When a VA representative is contacted and is not able to
verify veteran status from computer records, a process is activated to
investigate further, which includes gaining assistance from the VA
Records Management Center or the National Personnel Records Center
where veterans' military records are stored. Generally, the VA will pay
an allowance to the person or entity who paid for the veteran's funeral
or benefit, if he or she has not been reimbursed by another Government
agency, or some other source, such as the veteran's employer. There is
no time limit for claiming reimbursement for a service connected death,
but non-service connected reimbursement claims must be filed within 2
years of the veteran's burial.
NFDA supports Mr. Tiberi's bill, H.R. 2642, because it directs the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs to work with veterans service groups and
other organizations to provide assistance in determining if
unidentified or abandoned remains are those of a veteran eligible for
burial at a national cemetery. In addition, the bill requires the
Secretary to establish a searchable public database of the veterans
identified in this project. If remains are found to be those of an
eligible veteran, the VA will provide the burial.
Sincerely,
Lesley Witter
Director of Political Affairs
Committee on Veterans' Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Washington, DC.
October 14, 2009
Marilyn Park
Legislative Representative
American Federation of Government Employees
80 F Street, NW
Washington, D.C. 20001
Dear Ms. Park:
Thank you for testifying at the House Committee on Veterans'
Affairs Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
oversight hearing on Honoring The Fallen: How Can We Better Serve
America's Veterans and Their Families?, held on September 24, 2009. I
would greatly appreciate if you would provide answers to the enclosed
followup hearing questions by Monday, November 15, 2009.
In an effort to reduce printing costs, the Committee on Veterans'
Affairs, in cooperation with the Joint Committee on Printing, is
implementing some formatting changes for material for all Full
Committee and Subcommittee hearings. Therefore, it would be appreciated
if you could provide your answers consecutively on letter-size paper,
single-spaced. In addition, please restate the question in its entirety
before the answer.
Due to the delay in receiving mail, please provide your responses
to Ms. Megan Williams by fax at (202) 225-2034. If you have any
questions, please call (202) 225-3608.
Sincerely,
John J. Hall
Chairman
__________
Responses by John Nicolai
Ft. Logan National Cemetery on Behalf of AFGE
To Questions from the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Oversight Hearing Honoring the Fallen: How Can We Better
Serve America's Veterans and Their Families?
September 24, 2009
Question 1: The jobs performed at the NCA are varied, but all
contribute to the cemeteries' abilities to meet the National Shrine
Mandate and produce high satisfaction scores. What has the NCA done to
train staff and improve performance?
Response: I am not aware of any formal training exists for
interment drivers and caretakers-two positions regularly lost to
contracting out. Most of the training done at Fort Logan National
Cemetery has been on the job training as far as I know. There is a
cursory record kept of experiential training done for the grounds
crews. I do not know how often it is updated or whose responsibility it
is, the workers or Management, to keep track of the time spent in OJT.
In contrast, the Interment Operators are usually sent to a training
facility in Illinois. Of the four Cemetery Representatives, two have
been sent to the training facility in St. Louis.
Question 2: Are there different performance standards for NCA
employees as opposed to services performed by contractors?
Response: To the best of my knowledge, yes, NCA employees are held
to different, and higher performance standards than contractors. As an
observer it is quite clear that the contractors are only there to do a
job and do not share the behavioral concerns of the permanent
employees. Examples follow:
Because there is no permanent structure for the employees of the
subcontractors, the cemetery grounds is the only place to take a break
or eat their lunch. They gather around the shade of a tree and take
their breaks. Because they have no vehicles to go elsewhere there is no
choice offered to them to do anything different. But it is certainly
unsightly and a concern when a committal service procession drives by
on their way to a committal service for our fallen veterans to see
contract workers having lunch on the cemetery grounds, especially when
there a rule against picnicking for our visitors. I believe this only
happens because contract workers do not have the same connection to and
sense of honor about the cemetery grounds as NCA employees, most of
whom are veterans.
The subcontractor employees usually come to work on foot or bike.
When they need to use a restroom they either walk or ride their bikes
to and from the location they are working. At times they do not observe
that there is a procession coming up behind them and we have to stop
the procession in order to avoid running into them.
There have been issues with inappropriate dress. A subcontract
worker was working without a shirt. Another was seen wearing a t-shirt
with that said Get Naked, clearly a phrase that was not appropriate for
work attire in this environment.
The mowing and trimming done on the cemetery by the subcontractors
is substandard. Having been responsible for doing these tasks, as a
cemetery caretaker, it is clear the subcontractors are not held to the
same standards. Quite often there are windrows of cut grass in the
cemetery burial sections and the headstones, even though they were
trimmed, are not well trimmed.
Many times the contract administrator has had to be called and
asked to have the mowers move to another section or turn their machines
off during committal services because of the noise. The FTE employees
were always keenly aware of the need for peace and quiet when in the
proximity of a committal service.
Often times, when mowing is done in the vicinity of the committal
shelters the cut grass is left on the sidewalks and not cleaned up. We
then have to have our own employees clean the sidewalks.
The headstone setting contract has just been implemented. There is
not enough data to discuss what might possibly be considered a
different standard. It appears the deadline for a few headstones to be
set has already been missed.
Question 3: How has the use of contractors changed? Has this
negatively impacted the NCA services? Please elaborate.
Response: Contracting previously was used for specific specialty
situations which could not be adequately done by the Full Time (FTE) VA
employees. Within the last few years this has changed to contracting to
do the work previously done by FTE. Mowing and Trimming, Sod Laying,
and Headstone setting are all being subcontracted out a Ft. Logan
National Cemetery. Using contractors instead of veterans working for
NCA and other dedicated NCA employees on a regular basis for daily
tasks has seriously weakened morale, and is altering and diluting the
sacred atmosphere of Ft. Logan in ways already discussed, for example,
mowing too close to a service or taking their lunch break on the
cemetery grounds.
These subcontracts were let to supposedly allow the Full Time
Cemetery Caretakers to concentrate on other things to help bring the
Cemeteries up to National Shrine Status, but I am not aware of any
study or analysis to justify this alleged reallocation of work. In
reality, the subcontracting made it unnecessary for the VA to backfill
positions that were vacated due to retirement, promotion or simply an
employee quitting or having been relieved of duty. In other words
subcontracting out work previously done by FTE Cemetery Caretakers has
been done through attrition.
Question 4: Is feedback and suggestions for improvements from
employees solicited in a consistent and cohesive manner across all
facilities?
Response: Management does not regularly or consistently solicit
feedback or suggestions from employees. When I made a comment regarding
the recently installed call center and a suggestion, I was told, via
email, that I have no idea how busy they were suggesting I should
probably not say or complain about anything.
Question 5: What business practices do you see at the NCA that
contribute to the overall effectiveness of the program?
Response: This is a perception question. I would assume the
management of NCA would answer: the consolidation of scheduling, having
instituted the St. Louis Call Center. I am sure this has been a benefit
to management in regards to getting a better handle on the numbers game
for strategic planning.
The call center may be an improvement for some of the cemeteries
but the empirical evidence at Ft. Logan has demonstrated a considerable
downside in terms of customer satisfaction. The use of the call center
creates an additional layer that leads to more errors and delays. In
addition, to serve veterans and their families properly, the cemetery
staff should, but is not always treated as a customer of the call
center.
For example, the information that is passed from the call center to
the cemetery representatives is cursory. Because of the nature of a
call center, their apparent goal is to get the info in and info out, as
fast as they can. Because of the volume there is no time for detail.
Prior to the call center being established Ft. Logan did its own
scheduling and detail was considered important for many reasons. Most
important is the veteran and their families we are serving. Providing
the family with correct information at the time of the service is of
utmost importance. We strove for perfection. This moment is one of the
most difficult times in ones life. To provide the family a depiction of
what will be on their loved ones headstone and have it be wrong adds to
their grief.
Since the call center has taken over scheduling and data input
there have been more errors on the paperwork than is acceptable. In the
past the information was faxed to Ft. Logan on a form that was all
inclusive. As soon as the form was faxed to Ft. Logan, a cemetery
representative would call the funeral director, who was nine times out
of ten, sitting with the family awaiting our call. Every body was on
the same page and we could get most all of the questions we had
answered in order to provide a complete package at the time of the
service.
Because the information was in writing we had a document to refer
back to if there was a mistake made. The funeral home and family could
then schedule a church service to accommodate the schedule at Ft.
Logan. It was a cooperative effort including all parties.
The way things are handled now are different. The calls are made to
the call center by the funeral home. I have been told there are many
times the caller is on hold for long periods (keep in mind the grieving
family is also being held up) or the phone is busy. I am not saying
this is always the case but it happens more often than it should.
When the call is made the information is taken verbally and input
into the BOSS system. If there is a mistake, there is nothing to
reference that made the mistake (call center vs. funeral home). Once
the case has been scheduled it is passed on to a quality control person
(another delay) and eventually transferred to the cemetery in charge of
the case as well as emailed to the funeral home representing the
deceased. The information on the deceased that is entered into the BOSS
system by the call center is most often incomplete. Religious emblems,
social security numbers, ranks of veterans, and a host of other
pertinent information needed to provide a correct monument for the
deceased may be missing. The cemetery representative then will call the
funeral home to verify receipt of the scheduled burial.
By the time we have received notification of the scheduled burial
the family has left the funeral home, the funeral director who is
handling the case is not available and all we can do is leave a message
that we need the information. Because we are also in and out of the
office coordinating services at committal shelters, the game of phone
tag proceeds. Sometimes we never get the answer and have to deal with
the family at the time of the service, one of the worst days of some
peoples lives.
Other problems that are associated with the call center include:
Confusion regarding caskets vs. cremains: Several times
we have been informed we have a casket coming to the cemetery and when
the procession arrives it has been a cremation. The reverse is also
true. Our form of the past was specific in its request.
Double booking of services: Two services have been
scheduled for the same time at the same shelter.
Wrong phone numbers: There are times when a family will
pick up their loved ones cremains from the funeral home and make
arrangements themselves in order to save money. If the incorrect phone
number is given or there is a typo there is no way to get in touch with
the next of kin in order to prepare them for arriving at the correct
location or time at the cemetery. When this has occurred in the past I
called the call center and was told there was nothing they could do but
wait for the next of kin to arrive.
Military Honors: At Ft. Logan we usually made sure
military honors had been ordered either by the funeral home or by the
family. It is no longer a sure thing this has taken place because we
have lost control of being able to be the first contact with the
funeral home or the next of kin.
Loss of rapport: Because we had control of the scheduling
the funeral home directors awaited our calls. We usually called them
back within 5 minutes of their faxing the application. Now it is, in
their minds, unnecessary to have any contact with us until the service
of which they may or may not attend. In most cases this is not a
problem because we have had relationships with the funeral directors
for years and there is considerable mutual respect amongst the
employees of Ft. Logan and the directors. It does have an impact with
new directors and is beginning to present problems at the time of a
veterans committal service. Additionally, because of the increase in
cremations Ft. Logan is experiencing more and more services without the
presence of a funeral director. The more information we can get about
the family of the deceased the better to insure their loved ones
service is done as expected. ``As expected'' is whatever the funeral
director tells them. The employees at the call center having to handle
several different cemeteries can hardly understand the nuances of each
cemetery. The cemetery representatives of each National Cemetery have
an intimate understanding of their respective locations.
Subsequent burials: There have been a few times when we
get an application for burial and have completed the task only to find
out the deceased had another family member already buried in our
cemetery. Once again because of lack of experience, therefore not
asking the right questions and having to deal with so many different
cemeteries, a particularly egregious error was made. The only way we
found the error was when a family member called to ask why the two
family members were not buried in the same grave. This resulted in a
disinterment and re-interment in the correct burial plot.
When the call center took over the FTE Cemetery
Representatives responsibilities (a change of work condition which is a
violation of the union contract) of establishing burial eligibility,
establishing cases, and scheduling burials we were given a feedback
form to assist the call center in error abatement. Because the errors
continued and were so consistent we determined it was better for us to
just correct them and stop wasting our time trying to remedy the
situation. The individuals who man the positions in the call center are
interns and are replaced by new interns at certain intervals. The
learning curve starts over, of course, with each new class of interns.
There is a possibility the work being done is redundant
in that it now takes four individuals to do the task formerly done by
two individuals: (1) the representative at the call center, (2) the
quality control senior representative, who checks their work (3) the
cemetery representative at the National Cemetery and (4) the senior
representative, who checks their work. This is done with less accuracy
and takes more time than initially done by the representatives at the
local cemeteries.
Question 6: What additional steps can be taken to improve employee
retention and make the NCA an employer of choice?
Response: The first step, to improve employee retention, is to stop
the threat and practice of outsourcing their jobs. A one time fully
staffed cemetery caretaker crew has been reduced from ten Full Time
Employee positions to three Full Time Employees. The drop in employee
morale, caused by this reduction, is obvious. It is not just affecting
the cemetery caretakers. It is affecting all employees. It is obvious
the intent of the NCA senior management is to replace these blue collar
jobs. The interment crew thinks it is just a matter of time for their
positions to be outsourced in spite of the assurance by management it
won't happen.
Acting Assistant Secretary Muro testified at the hearing that, at
new national cemeteries, all caretaker and interment work is done by
contractors, instead of veterans employed by NCA. These are very
honorable jobs that should be included in every National Cemetery and
offered as a place for a veteran to make a living serving those who
served. I started working at Ft. Logan National Cemetery at the age of
fifty three as a Cemetery Caretaker. I did this after working most of
my life in a white collar job in corporate America. Any new bill passed
to establish a new National Cemetery should include a clause stating
the first choice of jobs to be filled in a new cemetery should be
offered to our veterans. I cannot describe the immense pride I take in
having done that job.
Another step in making NCA an employer of choice is to initiate
management training that includes a motivation class of some sort.
There are times in my past experience working at FLNC I have witnessed
workers treated as if they are some sort of second class citizen. It
appears there needs to be some classes taught to management regarding
mutual respect and how to motivate people.
Finally, for every job opening in an existing cemetery, and every
new position made available through the opening of a new cemetery, NCA
should be required to conduct outreach to veterans through the veterans
community and through VHA and VBA support programs. Advertising these
jobs should go beyond the Government Web site to alert the availability
of work at these hallowed grounds.
Committee on Veterans' Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
Washington, DC.
October 14, 2009
Steve L. Muro
Deputy Under Secretary for Memorial Affairs
National Cemetery Administration
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
810 Vermont Ave., NW
Washington, D.C. 20420
Dear Mr. Muro:
Thank you for testifying at the House Committee on Veterans Affairs
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs oversight
hearing on Honoring The Fallen: How Can We Better Serve Americas
Veterans and Their Families?, held on September 24, 2009. I would
greatly appreciate if you would provide answers to the enclosed
followup hearing questions by Monday, November 15, 2009.
In an effort to reduce printing costs, the Committee on Veterans
Affairs, in cooperation with the Joint Committee on Printing, is
implementing some formatting changes for material for all Full
Committee and Subcommittee hearings. Therefore, it would be appreciated
if you could provide your answers consecutively on letter size paper,
single-spaced. In addition, please restate the question in its entirety
before the answer.
Due to the delay in receiving mail, please provide your responses
to Ms. Megan Williams by fax at (202) 225-2034. If you have any
questions, please call (202) 225-3608.
Sincerely,
John J. Hall
Chairman
__________
Questions for the Record
The Honorable John Hall, Chairman
Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs
House Committee on Veterans' Affairs
Honoring the Fallen: How Can We Better Serve
Americas Veterans and Their Families?
September 24, 2009
Questions 1: At the hearing, there was some discussion on the NCAs
four Strategic Plan Goals that are reported in the VA Performance and
Accountability Report. These were reviewed by the Advisory Committee on
Cemeteries and Memorials in its 2008 report. The Advisory Committee
made 16 recommendations to which VA responded. Several of these items
required additional followup. Can you provide a summary of the followup
actions VA has taken in response to those recommendations?
Response: Please see the attached table of Advisory Committee
recommendations, which were previously submitted to the House Committee
on Veterans Affairs. The table also provides the status of followup
action, where applicable.
Question 2: In the VA Performance and Accountability Report, NCA
did not meet its 80 percent target of funeral home directors confirming
that it scheduled committal services within 2 hours. The NCA response
rate was indicated at 72 percent. What is the plan to improve
performance and what steps are being taken to ensure better
accountability?
Response: NCA measures the efficiency of scheduling committal
services at national cemeteries through its annual Survey of
Satisfaction. Funeral director respondents are asked, How long does it
typically take to confirm the scheduling of an interment at the
national cemetery? NCAs strategic target is to have 93 percent of
funeral directors respond that services are scheduled within 2 hours of
the request. Since 2004, performance on this measure has remained
relatively steady, ranging from 72 percent to 74 percent. In FY 2009,
the average was 77 percent when the Memorial Service Network that has
not fully transitioned to the National Scheduling Office, was taken out
of the calculation. This demonstrates that performance is higher for
those areas of the country currently served by the Scheduling Office.
Once all cemeteries are under the Scheduling Office, and we have moved
beyond the learning curve for funeral directors, we anticipate NCA
performance will steadily improve and that we will ultimately reach our
goal of 93 percent.
NCA is working to improve performance in this area. In January
2007, NCA established a National Scheduling Office in St. Louis,
Missouri. This centralized office provides a one-stop call center and a
streamlined, standardized process of determining burial eligibility and
interment scheduling to better serve the needs of Veterans, their
families and funeral directors. In addition, the National Scheduling
Office has staff available to confirm eligibility and schedule services
7 days a week. In FY 2008, the Scheduling Office handled 72,249
requests for burial. The average time to confirm eligibility and
schedule the service was less than 10 minutes. When burial requests
from Riverside N/C NCAs busiest cemetery-- are processed by the
Scheduling Office, beginning on January 18, 2010, all interment
scheduling for VA national cemeteries in the continental United States
will be completed by the experts at the Scheduling Office in St. Louis,
and NCA anticipates improved performance.
Implementation of centralized scheduling was a significant change
in business practice for NCA. Letters explaining the new process were
sent to all funeral homes who partner with NCA to serve Veterans and
their families, and implementation has proceeded in a phased approach
across the NCA system. NCA anticipates that as the National Scheduling
Office becomes fully operational and other scheduling enhancements,
such as requests for services through the Internet, are developed, more
funeral directors will respond that scheduling meets our 2-hour target.
Question 3: Please explain why the NCA replaces damaged headstones
or markers at Arlington National Cemetery, but not for eligible
veterans' graves at the National Park Service sites.
Response: NCA provides original and replacement headstones and
markers for all Federally-administered cemeteries, which includes all
VA national cemeteries, all Department of Defense national cemeteries
(Arlington and the Soldier and Airmens Home, military post or base
cemeteries of the Armed Forces, and service department academy
cemeteries), and all Department of Interior National Park Service (NPS)
Cemeteries. NCA also provides headstones and markers for State Veterans
cemeteries and for all eligible Veterans buried in private cemeteries.
We will contact management at the NPS to ensure it is aware of the
process through which NCA supports the ordering of new or replacement
headstones or markers for NPS cemeteries.
Question 4: Does the NCA have specific guidance it provides to the
State cemeteries on accommodating particular religious or cultural
burial practices, such as for graveside services? Please explain those
policies and how they are communicated to the States and enforced? Is
there more that needs to be done to make sure that these accommodations
are honored?
Response: NCA encourages the provision of similar levels of service
at national and State Veterans cemeteries by offering the States
training opportunities at the NCA St. Louis Training Center and
invitations to participate at NCA National and Memorial Service Network
(MSN) Conferences. However, under VA regulations, the States may have
differing facilities, such as chapels; may restrict eligibility to
residents of the State; and may undertake differing operating
procedures, such as graveside services, which are rarely performed at
national cemeteries.
Due to concerns for the safety of cemetery workers and the public
in active interment areas, NCA provides covered committal shelters for
conducting final committal services. However, exceptions are made to
accommodate religious practices and ceremonies, and States are
encouraged to accommodate family member requests based on cultural and
religious beliefs whenever possible.
Question 5: If a veteran with no other eligible dependents is
buried in a national cemetery and his/her only survivor is a parent(s),
who is not a veteran or otherwise entitled to burial in a national
cemetery, should that parent be made eligible for burial with the
veteran?
Response: If a parent is not a Veteran, section 2402(6) of title
38, United States Code, permits the Secretary to designate other
persons or classes of persons as eligible for burial. Requests for
burial of a non-Veteran parent are reviewed on a case-by-case basis. In
2007 and 2008, the Secretary approved two separate requests for the
burial of a deceased parent in the same grave as an unmarried,
childless servicemember who died as a result of wounds incurred in
combat. Neither deceased servicemember had a surviving spouse or
dependent children who, if deceased, were eligible for burial in a
national cemetery, or who were already interred in the gravesite.
VA supports expanding eligibility to parents of certain
servicemembers as indicated in VAs Hearing Statement at the October 8,
2009, House Committee on Veterans Affairs, Subcommittee on Disability
Assistance and Memorial Affairs Legislative Hearing. We note that, on
October 21, 2009, the Subcommittee amended the text of H.R. 761 to
reflect VA concerns, and voted to approve the revised legislation,
which has subsequently been incorporated as section 303 of H.R. 3949,
the Veterans' Small Business Assistance and Servicemembers Protection
Act of 2009.
Question 6: How has the NCA handled instances in which a veterans
survivor(s) have requested that the burial benefit include a parent who
is not otherwise eligible to be buried in a national cemetery?
Response: Section 2402(6) of title 38, United States Code, permits
the Secretary to designate other persons or classes of persons as
eligible for burial. For all such requests, VA determines if granting
the request would result in reduced national cemetery burial space for
other eligible Veterans. Such requests have only been approved if the
Veteran did not have a surviving spouse or a dependent child who, if
deceased, would be eligible for burial in a national cemetery, or who
was already interred in the gravesite.
Question 6(a): Can such requests by veterans be considered prior to
the death of the veteran?
Response: NCA policy is to permit the burial of an otherwise
ineligible parent only if the burial would not reduce the number of
national cemetery gravesites available for other eligible Veterans.
This requires that a parent be buried in the same gravesite as the
Veteran. However, a Veterans eligibility for national cemetery burial
cannot be determined until the Veteran has died. Therefore, no request
by a Veteran can be considered before the Veterans death. As VA
testified at the October 8, 2009, legislative hearing before the
Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee of the House
Committee on Veterans Affairs, VA could support the extension of burial
eligibility to the parents of unmarried and childless Veterans who die
due to combat- or training-related injuries. These limitations would
help ensure that the burial of an eligible Veteran's otherwise
ineligible parent does not reduce the number of gravesites available
for other eligible Veterans. However, even in those circumstances, VA
cannot consider a parent's eligibility until VA determines that the
Veteran is eligible, and VA cannot determine the Veterans eligibility
until the Veteran dies.
Question 6(b): Since 2001, how often are these requests made
annually since 2001?
Response: Since 2001, there have been 16 requests for burial of
otherwise ineligible parents in national cemetery gravesites. Many of
these requests were for the burial of dependent parents of Veterans who
died from non-combat-related injuries. In all cases, NCA considered
whether granting the request would reduce the number of national
cemetery burial sites available for other eligible Veterans.
Question 6(c): In 2008 and 2009, how many have been honored? How
many have been denied?
Response: During 2008-2009, NCA approved two requests for the
burial of deceased parent(s) with Veterans who died from combat-related
injuries who had no eligible spouse or dependent children. One combat-
related waiver request was denied because the deceased Veteran had a
living spouse and children eligible for burial. Therefore, granting the
request for parent burial would have diminished burial capacity for
other eligible family members and Veterans.
Question 7: In your testimony you described several impressive
innovations undertaken by NCA employees. Does VA Research and
Development funding assist NCA in these types of projects? And, if so,
how many? If not, why not?
Response: NCA does not receive assistance from VA Research and
Development (R&D) funding. NCA supports innovations through funding
provided by its Operations and Maintenance account.
Question 8: According to the Missing in America Project, there are
potentially thousands of unclaimed veterans cremated remains being
stored in urns at mortuaries, coroners offices, and hospitals across
the country. Besides the VA Web site, what outreach has it conducted to
these entities in order to identify abandoned veterans?
Response: VA has worked with and continues to assist the Missing in
America Project (MIAP), as well as coroners offices, and conducts
outreach to funeral industry professionals on the national and local
level, to ensure VA memorial benefits are provided to unclaimed
Veterans identified through MIAP efforts. Since January 2007 we have
processed over 500 MIAP requests to establish burial eligibility.
Nationally, NCA attended the National Funeral Directors and Morticians
Association conference (Detroit, Michigan), the International Cemetery
Cremation and Funeral Association conference (Las Vegas, Nevada), the
127th Annual Funeral Directors Association of Kentucky State Convention
(Louisville, Kentucky), and the National Funeral Directors Association
convention (Boston, Massachusetts). Nationwide, VA cemetery directors
and Memorial Service Network staff conduct outreach to local funeral
homes and other industry professionals on a daily basis.
Question 8(a): Since these are primarily cremated remains and the
FBI cannot match fingerprints, what does VA do to ensure that the
unclaimed remains of veterans do not remain unclaimed?
Response: NCA requires a minimal amount of information regarding
the identity of the deceased to initiate an eligibility determination.
Where the remains are identified but unclaimed, NCA will work with
coroners offices and will search sources including VAs regional
benefits offices, hospitals, and medical facilities, to locate any
records that could assist with establishing Veteran status. If
unsuccessful, NCA will then contact Federal, State and local Government
agencies to obtain military service information. NCA will always reopen
a case if new evidence supporting Veteran status is uncovered at a
future date because its goal is to ensure that those Veterans who are
entitled to burial in a national cemetery are honored with a final
resting place in a national shrine.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
VA Response Previously
Strategic Goal FY 2007-2008 Advisory Provided to House Veterans' Status of Actionable
Committee Recommendations Affairs Committee Recommendations
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Goal 1: Recommendation 1.1: Non-Actionable: N/A
Ensure that the burial The Committee asks that VA believes that noise
needs of veterans and VA contact the Federal from low flying aircraft
eligible family members are Aviation Administration on near national cemeteries is
met behalf of VA, the National a minor problem associated
Park Service and State with specific aircraft in
veterans cemeteries to isolated events and is not,
develop policies to reduce on the whole, a major
increasing noise levels at inconvenience for visitors
veterans cemeteries due to or staff. In locations
the low flying aircraft. where noise levels are
excessive and persistent,
NCA will work with the
appropriate authorities, to
include the Federal
Aviation Administration, to
reduce noise levels.
----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------
Recommendation 1.2: Actionable: These headstones are
The Committee recommends VA supports this now available through
that NCA determine the initiative and NCAs NCAs Memorial Programs
feasibility to produce 10'' Memorial Programs Service Service. NCA has
x 4'' x 42'' shields and is developing new provided over 500 of
raised letter headstone to specifications to be these headstones to the
replace Civil War era available for FY 2008. National Park Services
headstones. There are two sizes of Andersonville National
marble headstones with Cemetery.
raised lettering in a
recessed shield; 12'' x
42'' x 3'' and 13'' x 42''
x 3''. NCA has begun
introducing a third size
for this type of historical
headstone, which will be
10'' x 42'' x 3''. This new
headstone will be available
for use beginning on
October 1, 2007.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------
Goal 1 cont'd:............... Recommendation 1.3: Actionable: The ``Evaluation of
Ensure that the burial The Committee recommends VA has contracted a the VA Burial Benefits
needs of veterans and that the burial allowance private consulting firm to Program'' was delivered
eligible family members are be increased to further off- undertake a program to VA by the contractor
met set the cost of veteran's evaluation of all memorial in August 2008. VA has
burial in State veteran's benefits, including the reviewed the study's
cemeteries under the burial and plot allowances. recommendations. If any
provisions of the State When available, the study changes to current
Cemetery Grants Program. will be provided to the burial policies are
Advisory Committee. proposed, they would be
included in a future
budget request.
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Recommendation 1.4: Actionable: In FY 2009, NCA's
The Committee recommends VA recognizes the State Cemetery Grants
that the State Cemetery contributions of State Program budget was $42
Grants Program funding be veteran's cemeteries in million. In FY2010, $46
increased from $32 million helping to meet the need million was
to $50 million, beginning for memorial benefits in appropriated for the
in FY 2009. areas not served by an open Grants Program.
VA national cemetery. The
President's FY 2009 budget
will be submitted to
Congress in February 2008.
VA carefully analyzes its
budget request to ensure
its adequacy to meet the
benefits needs for all VA
programs. We believe the
final budget request for
the State Cemetery Grants
Program will be sufficient
to meet future demands.
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Recommendation 1.5: Actionable: NCA's Cemetery
The Advisory Committee NCA recognizes the Development Coordinator
urges NCA to contact the importance of developing a has established
``Trust for Public Lands'' proactive strategy to contacts and a working
to study strategic purchase land for future relationship with the
opportunities to purchase national cemeteries and to Trust for Public Lands
land for future national ensure the continuation of and is actively seeking
cemeteries. national cemeteries its assistance to
currently in service. Any identify possible land
entity that can assist NCA for new national
in purchasing available cemeteries or expansion
property for future of current national
national cemeteries is cemeteries.
welcomed. NCA is developing
a list of site needs to
determine which cemeteries
have immediate, short-term
and long-term acquisition
needs. After NCA has
developed the list, it
would be appropriate to
contact the Trust for
Public Lands for any
assistance that it can
provide and to see if any
public land is available to
meet NCA's goal.
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Goal 2: Recommendation 2.1: Non-Actionable: N/A
Provide veterans and their Acknowledge the The Department
families with symbolic Committee's support of the appreciates the Committee's
expressions of remembrance Department of Veterans support. Endorsement by
Affairs (VA) ``Veterans Committee members and other
Pride Initiative,'' in influential citizens will
which veterans are be needed to help build
encouraged to wear their recognition, support, and
military medals on Veterans participation in this
Day, Memorial Day, and initiative.
other national holidays.
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Recommendation 2.2: Actionable: The Committee's
The Committee suggests The Department of recommendation resulted
that the National Cemetery Veterans Affairs (VA) has in a revision to the
Administration (NCA) advise notified the Senate and proposed legislation.
Congress to review the House Committees on The final legislation,
proposed use of a ``V'' Veterans' Affairs of Public Law 110-157, did
device attached to private concerns related to the not contain the bronze
markers of veterans design of an appropriate ``V'' language but
interred in private device and is prepared to instead gave VA
cemeteries as described in offer technical assistance authority to provide a
H.R. 797 Bronze ``V'' if the Committee requests medallion or other
Marker Option. The it. device to signify the
Committee feels that the deceased's status as a
public will be confused by veteran to be affixed
the ``V'' or not understand to privately purchased
what it represents and headstones and markers
suggests that instead of a in private cemeteries.
``V'' that the word The medallion design is
``Veteran'' be considered. being finalized and
The military uses a similar product availability is
``V''-device with military anticipated in 2010.
medals to denote valor.
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Goal 3: Recommendation 3.1: Actionable: NCA's intent is to
Ensure that national The Committee commends VA recognizes the place into service a
cemeteries are maintained as NCA and the National Park benefits of Global complete GPS system
national shrines, dedicated Service for their joint Positioning System (GPS) that is capable of
to preserving our Nation's Global Positioning System integration within its precisely locating (in
history, nurturing mapping of Alexandria, national cemeteries to help three-dimensional
patriotism, and honoring the Virginia, National Cemetery manage, preserve and space) monuments,
service and sacrifice and recommends that this be document the historic benchmarks, section
veterans have made considered for future use landscapes and buildings markers, individual
by NCA. maintained by NCA, as well grave sites, control
as to locate underground components of
utilities, emergency underground utility
shutoff, and irrigation systems, underground
systems, to name a few, and utility lines,
plans to expand its use. VA roadways, and numerous
believes that combined with other site features.
new-construction
applications, this
technology is an
outstanding tool for
tracking the evolution of
burials, VA capital assets
and historic features. In
order to begin GPS
integration at the
cemeteries, NCA introduced
``GPS Integration'' as a
funding line item for all
new cemetery construction
for fiscal year 2008 Major
category construction
projects and expanded to
all cemeteries with the
fiscal year 2009 Major
construction plan (except
Puerto Rico National
Cemetery, which is
projected to close by
2019). As funding permits,
NCA intends to apply GPS
integration at the initial
cemeteries.
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Recommendation 3.2: Non-Actionable: N/A
That NCA investigate the Although VA is not
possibility of developing interested at this time in
cooperating associations to pursuing retail sales at VA
allow for retail sales of national cemeteries, we
theme related products to will look into possible
further the support by the products appropriate for
public for national sale at our facilities.
cemeteries. However, legislation would
be required to provide
authority for NCA to
sponsor or endorse sale of
retail items.
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Goal 3 cont'd: Recommendation 3.3: Actionable: NCA provided guidance
Ensure that national That NCA cooperate with NCA is happy to assist to Mr. Tom Ruck in
cemeteries are maintained as individuals or individuals or publishing his book
national shrines, dedicated organizations that may want organizations who want to ``Sacred Ground: A
to preserving our Nation's to publish positive, publish positive books, Tribute to Americas
history, nurturing favorable or informative magazine articles and film Veterans.'' NCA
patriotism, and honoring the books about NCA. products about NCA burial provides access, as
service and sacrifice and memorial benefits and appropriate, to its
veterans have made facilities. facilities and
information for
legitimate and positive
projects. However, NCA
cannot conduct research
for those wishing to
publish materials about
NCA. Individual authors
are responsible for
developing content and
verifying accuracy.
NCA's Communications
Management Service has
not received any
additional formal
requests to approve or
provide information for
books about NCA.
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Goal 4: Recommendation 4.1: Non-Actionable: NOTE: NCA has offered
Provide One VA world-class Explore the possibilities The matter was researched the National Park
service to veterans and their of providing the Intranet and the initiative Service (NPS) its
families through the BIRLS/BDN Access (BBA) declined. Governance for Operational Standards
effective management of system to the Department of access to BIRLS is covered and Measures along with
people, technology, processes the Interior, National Park in 38 CFR 14.640-14.643, any support,
and financial resources Service national the Freedom of Information recommendations or
cemeteries, Anderson Act and Privacy Act. In advice NPS may need in
National Historic Site, and 1998, the issue was raised, implementing them or in
Andrew Johnson National researched, and declined support of its
Historic Site to enhance with respect to access by organizational goals.
burial eligibility State veterans cemeteries. NCA values NPS
verification. After consultation, the participation on its
restrictions that prohibit Advisory Committee on
granting access to NPS Cemeteries and
entities continue to apply. Memorials and would be
The Department recommends pleased to participate
that NPS cemeteries in an interagency
establish relationships Committee to help NPS
with their nearest VA and NCA achieve their
national cemetery for shared goals.
assistance with eligibility
determinations.
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Goal 4 cont'd: Recommendation 4.2: Non-Actionable: NOTE: Currently 87.4
Provide One VA world-class That NCA consider an Eligibility for burial in percent of veterans
service to veterans and their outreach program that Department of Veterans have access to a burial
families through the encourages veterans to pre- Affairs (VA) national option within 75 miles
effective management of register for eligibility cemeteries and for of their residence. The
people, technology, processes for VA veterans burial providing headstones or 90 percent goal will be
and financial resources benefits. markers and Presidential achieved in FY 2011.
Memorial Certificates are
made at the time of need.
Eligibility determinations
are made at the time of
death of a veteran or his
or her eligible dependents
in accordance with the
current statutory and
regulatory authority. At
the time of need, the
National Cemetery
Administration (NCA) is
expeditious in responding
to family schedules.
Currently, about 83 percent
of veterans have access to
a burial option within 75
miles of their residence.
VA's strategic goal is to
serve 90 percent of
veterans with a burial
option at a National
Cemetery or State veterans
Cemetery within 75 miles of
their residence by fiscal
year 2010. These burial
options are addressed in
current NCA outreach
materials and programs and
a new fact sheet, in
development, on End of Life
Considerations that further
address the necessary
documents a veteran and
their family should have so
that eligibility for VA
memorial benefits can be
made quickly at the time of
need.
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Goal 4 cont'd: Recommendation 4.3: Actionable: NCA developed and
Provide One VA world-class That NCA develop a Public VA restrictions on used an audio public
service to veterans and their Service Announcement (PSA) advertising were lifted on service announcement at
families through the regarding burial benefits June 16, 2008. The Under the Sarasota National
effective management of that may be used to Secretary for Memorial Cemetery Ground-
people, technology, processes highlight memorial benefits Affairs may now purchase breaking/Dedication
and financial resources where new national cemetery advertising in media ceremony.
dedication ceremonies are outlets to promote Currently NCA has two
taking place. awareness of benefits and advertising
services in coordination initiatives:
with the Departments Office (1) National Funeral
of Public and Directors Association
Intergovernmental Affairs (NFDA) Web-based TV
(OPIA). OPIA is evaluating show, available to
the possibility of a PSA/ NFDAs 10,000 funeral
Advertising campaign homes and 35,000
through a partnership with members. Funeral
the Ad Council and the Directors are key
possibility of hiring players in providing
contractors to develop a VA veterans and family
benefits PSA campaign. NCA members information on
will coordinate with OPIA VA memorial benefits.
to incorporate memorial (2) Sponsorship of
benefits into any overall Reflections: The
OPIA PSA/Advertising ``American Funeral,''
campaign. one-of-a-kind mobile
exhibition trailer
displaying the history
of American funeral
traditions. Sponsorship
of Reflections would
provide VA access to
core stakeholders and
the general public
through a new venue,
allowing VA to provide
information about
memorial benefits to
veterans and dependent
populations who may not
be familiar with VA
memorial benefits.
NCAs new outreach
video ``A Sacred
Trust'' is now
available on the VA
Internet and YouTube
sites.
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Goal 4 cont'd: Recommendation 4.4: Non-Actionable: NOTE: The
Provide One VA world-class The Advisory Committee VA appreciates the work ``Evaluation of the VA
service to veterans and their requests the opportunity to that the Advisory Committee Burial Benefits
families through the review and provide comments on Cemeteries and Memorials Program'' was delivered
effective management of on the draft VA Burial has done by providing to VA by the contractor
people, technology, processes Benefits Program Evaluation thoughtful and valuable in August 2008. VA has
and financial resources and if feasible for the input to the Burial reviewed the study's
authors to conduct outreach Benefits Program recommendations. If any
to the Committee. Evaluation. Committee changes to current
members participated in burial policies are
stakeholder sessions as the proposed, they would be
contract Statement of Work included in a future
was developed and with the budget request.
Program Evaluation
contractor, Caliber/ICF, as
part of the analysis plan
development. The National
Cemetery Administration
(NCA) will brief the
Committee on its findings
and recommendations after
the report is finalized. VA
looks forward to continuing
to work with the Committee
in the future and considers
the Committees continued
interest and input
regarding these findings
and recommendations of
value in assisting NCA to
make informed decisions
regarding memorial
benefits.
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Recommendation 4.5: Non-Actionable: NOTE: The
The Committee endorses A joint effort is ``Evaluation of the VA
continued evaluation and underway to conduct a Burial Benefits
efforts to study burial comprehensive program Program'' was delivered
benefits including service evaluation of the full to VA by the contractor
area and population array of burial benefits in August 2008. VA has
threshold. and services that VA reviewed the study's
provides. The program recommendations. If any
evaluation conducted by changes to current
NCA, in partnership with burial policies are
the Veterans Benefits proposed, they would be
Administration and the included in a future
Office of Policy, Planning, budget request.
and Preparedness, will
assess, develop, and update
program outcomes, goals,
and objectives, and compare
actual program results with
established goals. It is
anticipated that the study
is to be completed in FY
2008.
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Goal 4 cont'd: Recommendation 4.6: Actionable: Almost 59,000 wreaths
Provide One VA world-class That VA, through an award VA agrees that the Wreath were laid in ceremonies
service to veterans and their from the Sec VA, Across America program has at 125 VA national
families through the acknowledges Worchester promoted volunteerism and cemeteries in 2008.
effective management of Wreath Co. for their goodwill, and raised Former Secretary of
people, technology, processes philanthropic efforts in awareness of veterans, NCA, Veterans Affairs James
and financial resources organizing their Wreaths and VA. The Department will B. Peake M.D. expressed
Across America (WAA) consider appropriate ways his appreciation to
program. Additionally, that to recognize the Worchester company president
all VA national cemeteries Wreath Co. for the program. Morrill Worcester, by
support and participate in All VA national cemeteries presenting him with the
Wreaths Across America. currently participate in Secretary's VA
WAA. Each VA national Commendation Award
cemetery has a WAA ceremony (December 13, 2008)
and prepares a media during a ceremony at
advisory and news release Arlington National
to generate public and Cemetery.
media interest.
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