Department of Veterans Affairs December 8, 2022 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) proposes to revise its regulation that governs the program that furnishes caskets and urns for the burial of remains of veterans with no known next-of-kin (NOK) where sufficient resources are not available for this purpose. First, VA proposes to implement the Charles Duncan Buried with Honor Act of 2016 that expanded the casket and urn authority to apply to eligible veteran burials in State and Tribal cemeteries that received a VA cemetery grant. Further, VA proposes to issue flat-rate allowances for caskets and urns rather than calculate the average cost for those items on an annual basis. Using flat-rate allowances would promote consistency and efficiency in the administration of this program. Additionally, we propose an update to the casket specifications based on feedback from funeral directors and other funeral industry professionals. Finally, VA proposes to amend the regulation by eliminating the retroactive reimbursement provisions. This change would reflect the fact that these provisions are no longer needed because the relevant applicability period has passed.