[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 168 (Monday, November 16, 2015)]
[House]
[Pages H8174-H8175]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            DIGNIFIED INTERMENT OF OUR VETERANS ACT OF 2015

  Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
pass the bill (H.R. 1338) to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
to conduct a study on matters relating to the burial of unclaimed 
remains of veterans in national cemeteries, and for other purposes, as 
amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1338

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Dignified Interment of Our 
     Veterans Act of 2015''.

     SEC. 2. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS STUDY ON MATTERS 
                   RELATING TO BURIAL OF UNCLAIMED REMAINS OF 
                   VETERANS IN NATIONAL CEMETERIES.

       (a) Study and Report Required.--Not later than one year 
     after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 
     Veterans Affairs shall--
       (1) complete a study on matters relating to the interring 
     of unclaimed remains of veterans in national cemeteries under 
     the control of the National Cemetery Administration; and
       (2) submit to Congress a report on the findings of the 
     Secretary with respect to the study required under paragraph 
     (1).
       (b) Matters Studied.--The matters studied under subsection 
     (a)(1) shall include the following:
       (1) Determining the scope of issues relating to unclaimed 
     remains of veterans, including an estimate of the number of 
     unclaimed remains of veterans.
       (2) Assessing the effectiveness of the procedures of the 
     Department of Veterans Affairs for working with persons or 
     entities having custody of unclaimed remains to facilitate 
     interment of unclaimed remains of veterans in national 
     cemeteries under the control of the National Cemetery 
     Administration.
       (3) Assessing State and local laws that affect the ability 
     of the Secretary to inter unclaimed remains of veterans in 
     national cemeteries under the control of the National 
     Cemetery Administration.
       (4) Developing recommendations for such legislative or 
     administrative action as the Secretary considers appropriate.
       (c) Methodology.--
       (1) Number of unclaimed remains.--In estimating the number 
     of unclaimed remains of veterans under subsection (b)(1), the 
     Secretary may review such subset of applicable entities as 
     the Secretary considers appropriate, including a subset of 
     funeral homes and coroner offices that possess unclaimed 
     veterans remains.
       (2) Assessment of state and local laws.--In assessing State 
     and local laws under subsection (b)(3), the Secretary may 
     assess such sample of applicable State and local laws as the 
     Secretary considers appropriate in lieu of reviewing all 
     applicable State and local laws.

     SEC. 3. LIMITATION ON AWARDS AND BONUSES PAID TO SENIOR 
                   EXECUTIVE EMPLOYEES OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 
                   AFFAIRS.

       Section 705 of the Veterans Access, Choice, and 
     Accountability Act of 2014 (Public Law 113-146; 38 U.S.C. 703 
     note) is amended by striking the period at the end and 
     inserting the following: ``, of which, during fiscal year 
     2016, not more than an aggregate amount of $2,000,000 may be 
     paid to employees of the Department of Veterans Affairs who 
     are members of the Senior Executive Service.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Miller) and the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Brown) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida.


                             General Leave

  Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their 
remarks or to add any extraneous material they may have on H.R. 1338, 
as amended.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Florida?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I do urge all Members to support H.R. 1338, the 
Dignified Interment of Our Veterans Act of 2015.
  This very important bill, which was introduced by my good friend, Mr. 
Shuster of Pennsylvania, would help ensure that deceased veterans are 
treated with respect and with dignity.
  H.R. 1338, as amended, would require that the Department of Veterans 
Affairs conduct a study on the serious problem of unclaimed remains of 
deceased veterans. VA will provide a dignified burial in national 
cemeteries for those who die with no family to claim their remains or 
who did not have enough money to cover burial expenses.
  Unfortunately, the remains of deceased veterans may end up on the 
shelf at a funeral home or the shelf of a coroner's office, and VA may 
not be aware that the veteran's remains were not interred.
  In 2013, Congress passed legislation in an attempt to ensure that all 
deceased veterans are treated with the honor that they had earned. The 
Dignified Burial and Other Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 2012 
directed VA to work with Veterans Service Organizations and assist 
States, cities, and funeral directors to identify the unclaimed remains 
of veterans and to arrange for their burials in one of our national 
cemeteries.
  Unfortunately, the law has not resolved this issue and too many 
veterans may not be receiving a dignified burial. That is 
unconscionable. The men and women who have served our Nation in uniform 
have the right to expect that our Nation will make every effort to 
treat them with honor and deference even after they pass away.
  This study would determine the scope of the problem and identify any 
obstacles associated with claiming or interring veteran remains.
  Additionally, VA would also be required to make recommendations on 
how we can better ensure that our Nation's heroes are properly laid to 
rest.
  I reserve the balance of my time.

                              {time}  1700

  Ms. BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I rise in support of my friend Mr. Shuster's Dignified Interment of 
Our Veterans Act. This legislation will require the Department of 
Veterans Affairs to conduct a study on the unclaimed remains of 
veterans.
  Our Nation continues to be challenged by local and privately owned 
cemeteries that fail to identify and provide the VA with uninterred 
veterans' remains. It is our intent that the VA look into this issue 
and come up with some solutions to assist privately and locally owned 
cemetery homes with the information and the support they need to 
transfer those remains to the VA's National Cemetery Administration.
  Our Nation's veterans have earned a proper and honorable burial for 
their

[[Page H8175]]

service. This legislation will help the VA to help our veterans. I urge 
all of my colleagues to support it.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the 
gentleman from Everett, Pennsylvania (Mr. Shuster), the original 
sponsor of this particular piece of legislation.
  Mr. SHUSTER. I thank the chairman for working with me on this piece 
of legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to shed light on the issue plaguing our 
Nation's veterans. Specifically, there are an estimated 47,000 cremated 
veterans' remains that are waiting to be interred because it was not 
possible to identify the next of kin.
  Existing legislation directs the Veterans Health Administration, 
Veterans Service Organizations, and funeral directors to work together 
in the claiming and interring of deceased veterans. Unfortunately, 
numerous barriers prevent the effective collaboration among these 
stakeholders. As it stands today, these barriers are not fully 
understood, which is preventing an effective solution to the problem 
from being found.
  For instance, the Missing in America Project, a nonprofit service 
organization that was established to locate and bury unclaimed 
veterans' remains, identified 100 veterans who were awaiting burial 
within the State of Pennsylvania over the last couple of years. Some of 
those veterans waited more than 20 years for a dignified, military 
burial. We can speculate regarding the reason for this disgrace, but we 
cannot know for sure without giving this issue the attention it 
deserves.
  That is why I have introduced H.R. 1338, the Dignified Interment of 
Our Veterans Act of 2015. My bill requires the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs to conduct a study on matters relating to the claiming and 
interring of unclaimed veterans' remains. The intent of the study is to 
confirm the scope of this problem, to uncover any barriers associated 
with claiming and interring veterans' remains, and to solicit 
recommendations from the Department of Veterans Affairs on potential 
solutions.
  I would like to thank two of my constituents, Mr. Ron Metros and Mr. 
Lanny Golden, for working with me on this legislation.
  When asked why he is so passionate about this issue, Mr. Golden, a 
Vietnam veteran, simply replied that his brothers in arms deserve to be 
buried alongside those who have walked the same path.
  I fully agree with Mr. Golden, and I would like to say ``thank you'' 
to all of those who have served this great Nation.
  I would also like to take this time to thank my colleagues Chairman 
Miller and Ranking Member Brown for working with me. Of course, I thank 
the Veterans' Affairs Committee and the 98 bipartisan cosponsors of the 
House for their support.
  Also a special thanks to two people without whom I could not have 
done this. They are my military fellows. One is U.S. Marine Corps 
Sergeant Anna Lloyd. She helped start the process. We then finished up 
with Air Force Major Cheri Guikema. Both of them provided an invaluable 
service in putting this bill forward, and I can't thank them enough for 
their help and also for their continued service to the United States 
military.
  Now, more than ever, we need to stand together and show or veterans 
we care. None of our heroes should be forgotten, and this is a step 
forward in reaching that important goal.
  Ms. BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for 
time. I urge my colleagues to support the passing of H.R. 1338, as 
amended.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the Chair will note that 
the time previously controlled by the gentleman from Florida (Mr. 
Miller) will now be controlled by the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. 
Costello).
  There was no objection.
  Mr. COSTELLO of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Royce).
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of this 
legislation, the Dignified Interment of Our Veterans Act of 2015.
  In May of last year, reports emerged that the bodies of 52 veterans 
had remained unburied for over a year at the Los Angeles County 
Mortuary, located just outside of my district. Similar instances were 
discovered in 13 other States, demonstrating just how widespread this 
is. Stories of unburied veterans' bodies are deeply unsettling and the 
result of gaps in burial procedure policies at the VA. It has to be 
addressed. Our service men and women have made immense personal 
sacrifices on behalf of our Nation, and it is unacceptable for their 
remains to be treated with such a blatant lack of respect and dignity.
  Like the gentleman from Pennsylvania and many of my colleagues in the 
House and Senate, I introduced legislation in an effort to solve this 
issue. The Dignified Interment of Our Veterans Act directs the 
Department of Veterans Affairs to study the burial of veterans' 
unclaimed remains in national cemeteries and to report the findings of 
such studies to Congress. This legislation is an important step toward 
acknowledging and, ultimately, solving the problem.
  Last week, the Senate passed by unanimous consent the 21st Century 
Veterans Benefits Delivery Act, which incorporated the House 
legislation, and I am happy to see that the companion legislation is 
now being voted on in the House of Representatives, bringing it one 
step closer to the President's signature.
  We made a commitment to take care of our veterans in both life and 
death, and it is crucial that we follow through on it. I encourage my 
colleagues in the House of Representatives to vote in support of the 
Dignified Interment of Our Veterans Act.
  I thank the gentleman from Pennsylvania for his work on this issue 
and the gentleman from Florida for his continued efforts as the House 
Veterans' Affairs Committee chairman.
  Mr. COSTELLO of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I encourage all Members to 
support H.R. 1338, as amended.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Miller) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 1338, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. COSTELLO of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas 
and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further 
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.

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