Press Releases

Washington, D.C. – Today the Senate passed a bill authored by Congressman Jim Banks (IN-03) that would correct existing law regarding headstones provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to the spouses and dependent children of veterans whose remains are never located. The bill previously passed the House on November 6, 2017 and now heads to President Trump’s desk to be signed into law.


“I am pleased that the Senate has passed this legislation to ensure a promise made to our veterans is fulfilled,” said Banks. “The VA pays for the headstones of veterans’ spouses and dependents whose remains are never found. This bill would fix current law so that the eligibility dates are consistent for the two groups. In some cases, a spouse and child have passed away in the same accident, and the spouse received a headstone, while the child did not. This legislation will fix this unfortunate situation, and I look forward to President Trump signing it into law.”

Background:

Public Law 105-368 provides headstones for spouses and was enacted in 1998. Public Law 109-461 provides headstones for dependent children and was enacted in 2006. Under current law, both groups are eligible for this benefit as of the date of enactment. However, these two laws did not go into effect at the same time, potentially opening the door for a parent to receive this benefit but not a child.

The Banks bill would amend title 38 of the United States Code to provide for a consistent eligibility date for spouses and dependent children to receive memorial headstones. The date for both would be set at the current date for spouses – November 11, 1998.

Click here or on the image below to view Congressman Banks speak on the House floor about his bill last year.

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Interested members of the media may contact Andrea Palermo at andrea.palermo@mail.house.gov.