[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 76 (Tuesday, May 25, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5956-S5957]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. SPECTER:
  S. 1115. A bill to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to 
establish a national cemetery for veterans in the Pittsburgh, 
Pennsylvania, area; to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.


               national cemetery in western pennsylvania

  Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, today I introduce legislation which will 
direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to establish a national 
cemetery in the Pittsburgh area of Western Pennsylvania.
  As chairman of the Committee on Veterans' affairs, I make it my 
responsibility to see that our nation's veterans are cared for after 
serving honorably in the Armed Forces. Part of this care involves 
honoring the memory of their service upon death. Our nation's veterans 
are an aging population. At present, 46% of the area's veterans 
population is over age 65. The General Accounting Office (GAO) has 
estimated that by the year 2008, the number of veterans' deaths will 
peak and remain at a high level for years afterward. To anticipate the 
increased demand for burial space and to accommodate family and friends 
wanting nearby cemeteries at which to honor and remember their loved 
ones, the Congress and VA must act now.
  The legislation that I introduce today will alleviate the long 
overdue wait for a national cemetery which the veterans in the western 
Pennsylvania area have had to endure. Such a cemetery is necessary due 
to the over 750,000 veterans who reside in the area, including veterans 
in parts of the neighboring states of Ohio, Maryland, and West 
Virginia. I should also point out that Pennsylvania, a state with the 
fifth highest veteran population in the country, has only one national 
cemetery within its borders open for new burials. This cemetery, at 
Indiantown Gap, serves veterans in the eastern portion of the 
Commonwealth and is more than 225 miles from Pittsburgh.

[[Page S5957]]

  In 1987, VA ranked the Pittsburgh-area among the top ten population 
centers most in need of a national cemetery. In 1991, VA began the 
process of cemetery site-selection and Congress appropriated $250,000 
for an Environmental Impact Statement. Four potential sites were 
identified in the Pittsburgh area. Despite this headway, construction 
on a national cemetery never commenced.
  The high veteran population of this region has waited far too long to 
see the creation of this national cemetery. Our nation's veterans, 
having given so much for us, deserve a proper burial site in the 
proximity of their homes. Veterans elsewhere around this country take 
for granted the availability of a nearby national cemetery. If passed, 
this legislation will ensure that what began over a decade ago will now 
become reality.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be printed in 
the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                S. 1115

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. ESTABLISHMENT.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
     establish, in accordance with chapter 24 of title 38, United 
     States Code, a national cemetery in the Pittsburgh, 
     Pennsylvania, area to serve the needs of veterans and their 
     families.
       (b) Consultation in Selection of Site.--Before selecting 
     the site for the national cemetery established under 
     subsection (a), the Secretary shall consult with appropriate 
     officials of the State of Pennsylvania and local officials of 
     the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, area.
       (c) Report.--As soon as practicable after the date of the 
     enactment of this act, the Secretary shall submit to Congress 
     a report on the establishment of the national cemetery under 
     subsection (a). The report shall set forth a schedule for the 
     establishment of the cemetery and an estimate of the costs 
     associated with the establishment of the cemetery.
                                 ______