-Caveat Lector- >From Veterans News Information Service (#1999-61) - Topics This Issue: 1) Arlington Cemetery Burial Eligibility, Administration's view Date: Mon, 22 Mar 1999 15:25:08 -0800 Subject: Arlington Cemetery Burial Eligibility, Administration's view Below is the Clinton administration's view on HR 70, the Arlington Cemetery Burial Eligibility Act. The House should be voting on HR 70 in the near future. Now we need you to contact Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA), Chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, and urge him to introduce a companion bill in the Senate. Sen. Specter can be contacted by calling the Capitol switchboard at 1-888-449-3511, compliments of The Retired Officers Association. VIEWS OF THE ADMINISTRATION STATEMENT BY MR. PATRICK T. HENRY, ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE ARMY (MANPOWER AND RESERVE AFFAIRS) AND MR. JOHN C. METZLER, JR. SUPERINTENDENT, ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY FOR THE HOUSE VETERANS' AFFAIRS BENEFITS SUBCOMMITTEE, FIRST SESSION, 106TH CONGRESS, REGARDING H.R. 70, PROVIDED ON MARCH 16, 1999 We appreciate the opportunity to provide comment on the pending legislation regarding eligibility criteria for burial at Arlington National Cemetery (ANC). Arlington National Cemetery is America's most prominent National Cemetery and serves as a shrine honoring the men and women who have served in the armed forces and those Americans who have made extraordinary contributions to the nation. It is a visible reflection of America's appreciation for those individuals whose acts and accomplishments reflect the highest service to the country. Since its founding in 1864, the cemetery has functioned primarily as a military burial ground. Over the years, the symbolic significance of Arlington National Cemetery has evolved. The cemetery has become recognized as the nation's foremost national memorial to its military members and is the final resting place of Presidents and other leading public figures. It has also become the site of major memorial events and ceremonies, as well as a significant attraction for visitors to the Washington area. Our intent is to outline for the committee our effort to enhance the regulations that govern eligibility criteria for burial in Arlington, and to provide our views on pending legislation pertaining to the same. rules governing burial in Arlington are included in Title 32 of the Code of Federal Regulations. As a result of last year's hearing on this matter, we are in the process of revising the regulations that govern burial policy. The revised regulations, like H.R. 70, will continue the practice of allowing active members of the armed forces, retired members of the armed forces, highly-decorated <veterans>, former prisoners of war, and certain <veterans> discharged due to disability, to be buried in Arlington. In addition, the revised regulations are similar to H.R. 70 in that the regulations identify those categories of persons who may be considered for burial in the cemetery based on their relationship to an eligible <veteran>. In the past, exceptions were required to allow close relatives and former spouses burial in the same gravesite as an eligible <veteran>. In the past 10 years, these types of exceptions have constituted 76 percent of those granted. We agree that these individuals should be provided burial consideration, and not be viewed as an exception. Our revised regulations would differ from H.R. 70 in two major respects. first, H.R. 70 would eliminate the possibility of burial in Arlington that presently exists for former members of the armed forces who choose to continue their service to the country and attain high legislative, judicial and executive offices. This would include those in an elective office of the United States Government such as the Vice President, United States Senators, and Members of the United States House of Representatives; appointed officials which include the Chief Justice and Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States; Ambassadors at our largest and most important overseas missions; cabinet members; and government officials at a level I and level II position. Under the revised army regulations governing burial at Arlington, certain <veterans> who have served their country in these specific high government offices would continue to be allowed to be buried in Arlington based on their distinguished service to the nation. Changing this rule would constitute a significant departure from current burial policies and would fundamentally change the character of the cemetery. under the pending legislation, our military heroes will no longer lie next to our nation's most revered statesmen and supreme court justices, an attribute of the cemetery which distinguishes it as the nation's most revered burial grounds. Second, the pending legislation precludes any discretion to grant exceptions under any circumstances. we believe that there should always be the opportunity for individuals who have made extraordinary public contributions to be considered for burial at Arlington, and for an exception to be granted, if appropriate. Arlington should be preserved as a national shrine honoring the men and women who have served in the armed forces and a limited number of exceptional americans who have made or will make extraordinary public contributions, the vast majority of which are <veterans> of our armed forces. If there is one thing we know, it is that life is uncertain. we believe that there must be a mechanism to deal with facts and events that are impossible to predict with certainty today. we believe that the President, through his designee, the Secretary of the Army, should have the discretion to grant exceptions to allow for burial in Arlington of individuals whose acts, services, or contributions, on behalf of the armed forces or the nation, are extraordinary and substantially similar to the acts, services, or contributions made by the individuals who are entitled to burial. To keep the public and the Congress informed of exceptions that are granted, we require a public disclosure form be signed by each requestor and, with each approval, we notify the appropriate Congressional Oversight Committees. We believe that current procedures for handling exception requests are highly-effective, due to the fact that decisions concerning burials are time-sensitive, extremely emotional, and require prompt action. Finally, the pending legislation includes a provision that addresses the placement of memorials and monuments, other than private markers at individual gravesites. we support efforts to limit these memorials and monuments to those that commemorate service in the armed forces by an individual or group, and those that commemorate particular military events. we also approve of restricting the placement of memorials or monuments commemorating military events until twenty-five years after the event. this time period ensures that the event being commemorated is of fitting historical significance. The Army takes very seriously its responsibility to administer and to uphold the sanctity of Arlington National Cemetery as we pay final tribute to men and women who have served our country with distinction. in this regard, the Army has recently completed a master plan, which is designed to ensure that Arlington will remain active as the nation's foremost military cemetery. this plan requires a review of the eligibility standards every five years to determine what standards are appropriate given land availability. The plan also identifies fourteen parcels of land that are located in close proximity to the cemetery and that could be used for future burials. We intend to examine those parcels that would be made available so that the future needs of the cemetery are met. these parcels include contiguous land sites that will be vacated by the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps, including the Navy Annex and a portion of Fort Myer. We solicit your support for this initiative. funds are included in the President's Budget for Fiscal Years 1999-2003 to prepare concept plans to develop those parcels of land owned by the Federal government when they become excess to government needs in the near future. Acquisition of this property will allow for continued operation of the cemetery through the twenty-first century. Thank you for the opportunity to comment on this important issue. -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Retired Enlisted Association's (TREA) Legislative Affairs Office Mission Statement: Protect and Ensure benefits for enlisted military retirees and their families/survivors. TREA Legislative Affairs Office 909 N. Washington Street, Suite 301 Alexandria, VA. 22314-1555 (800) 554-8732 (703) 684-1981 Fax: (703) 548-4876 Membership Information: (800) 808-4517 Check out TREA's Web Site at: http://www.trea.org To receive TREA's weekly electronic legislative update send email to: "mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]" Check out The Military Coalition's Web Site at: http://www.themilitarycoalition.org Email and Fax Numbers of Congress at: http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------ End veterans Digest (03/22/1999 18:00) ************************************** Disclaimer of Endorsement: Reference herein to any specific commercial products, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by VNIS. 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