§ 2404 — Administration

(a) The Secretary is authorized to make all rules and regulations which are necessary or appropriate to carry out the provisions of this chapter, and may designate those cemeteries which are considered to be national cemeteries. (b) In conjunction with the development and administration of cemeteries for which the Secretary is responsible, the Secretary shall provide all necessary facilities including, as necessary, superintendents’ lodges, chapels, crypts, mausoleums, and columbaria. (1) Subject to paragraph (2), each grave in a national cemetery shall be marked with an appropriate marker. Such marker shall bear the name of the person buried, the number of the grave, and such other information as the Secretary shall by regulation prescribe. (2) The grave markers referred to in paragraph (1) shall be upright for interments that occur on or after January 1, 1987, except that— (A) in the case of any cemetery scheduled to be closed by September 30, 1991, as indicated in the documents submitted by the Administrator of Veterans’ Affairs to the Congress in justification for the amounts included for Veterans’ Administration programs in the President’s Budget for fiscal year 1987, the Secretary may provide for flat grave markers; (B) in the case of any cemetery with a section which has flat markers on October 28, 1986, the Secretary may continue to provide for flat grave markers in such section; (C) in the case of any cemetery located on the grounds of or adjacent to a Department health-care facility, the Secretary may provide for flat grave markers; (D) (E) in the case of grave sites in a green burial section designated under subsection (i), the Secretary may provide for grave markers of such type as the Secretary considers appropriate; and (F) in the case of Santa Fe National Cemetery, New Mexico, the Secretary may provide for flat grave markers in any section of such cemetery in which flat markers were in use on December 22, 2023. (d) There shall be kept in each national cemetery, and at the main office of the Department, a register of burials in each cemetery setting forth the name of each person buried in the cemetery, the number of the grave in which the veteran is buried, and such other information as the Secretary by regulation may prescribe. (e) In carrying out the Secretary’s responsibilities under this chapter, the Secretary may contract with responsible persons, firms, or corporations for the care and maintenance of such cemeteries under the Secretary’s jurisdiction as the Secretary shall choose, under such terms and conditions as the Secretary may prescribe. (1) The Secretary is authorized to convey to any State, or political subdivision thereof, in which any national cemetery is located, all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to any Government owned or controlled approach road to such cemetery if, prior to the delivery of any instrument of conveyance, the State or political subdivision to which such conveyance is to be made notifies the Secretary in writing of its willingness to accept and maintain the road included in such conveyance. Upon the execution and delivery of such a conveyance, the jurisdiction of the United States over the road conveyed shall cease and thereafter vest in the State or political subdivision concerned. (2) The Secretary may, to the extent of appropriated funds available for such purpose, make a contribution to local authorities for the construction of road improvements or traffic controls or other devices on land adjacent to a national cemetery if the Secretary determines that such a contribution is essential to ensure safe ingress to or egress from the cemetery. (g) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary may at such time as the Secretary deems desirable, relinquish to the State in which any cemetery, monument, or memorial under the Secretary’s jurisdiction is located, such portion of legislative jurisdiction over the lands involved as is necessary to establish concurrent jurisdiction between the Federal Government and the State concerned. Such partial relinquishment of jurisdiction under the authority of this subsection may be made by filing with the Governor of the State involved a notice of such relinquishment and shall take effect upon acceptance thereof by the State in such manner as its laws may prescribe. (1) With respect to the interment or funeral, memorial service, or ceremony of a deceased veteran at a national cemetery, the Secretary shall ensure that— (A) the expressed wishes of the next of kin or other agent of the deceased veteran are respected and given appropriate deference when evaluating whether the proposed interment or funeral, memorial service, or ceremony affects the safety and security of the national cemetery and visitors to the cemetery; (B) to the extent possible, all appropriate public areas of the cemetery, including committal shelters, chapels, and benches, may be used by the family of the deceased veteran for contemplation, prayer, mourning, or reflection; and (C) during such interment or funeral, memorial service, or ceremony, the family of the deceased veteran may display any religious or other symbols chosen by the family. (2) Subject to regulations prescribed by the Secretary under paragraph (4), including such regulations ensuring the security of a national cemetery, the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable, provide to any military or volunteer veterans honor guard, including such guards belonging to a veterans service organization or other nongovernmental group that provides services to veterans, access to public areas of a national cemetery if such access is requested by the next of kin or other agent of a deceased veteran whose interment or funeral, memorial service, or ceremony is being held in such cemetery. (3) With respect to the interment or funeral, memorial service, or ceremony of a deceased veteran at a national cemetery, the Secretary shall notify the next of kin or other agent of the deceased veteran of funeral honors available to the deceased veteran, including such honors provided by any military or volunteer veterans honor guard described in paragraph (2). (4) The Secretary shall prescribe regulations to carry out this subsection. (1) The Secretary may designate one or more sections in any national cemetery as green burial sections. (2) In this subsection, the term “green burial section” means a section of a cemetery in which the remains of individuals interred in that section— (A) have been prepared for interment in a manner that does not involve chemicals or embalming fluids; and (B) have been interred in a natural manner or in completely biodegradable burial receptacles.