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[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4949 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        S.4949

                    One Hundred Seventeenth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America

                          AT THE SECOND SESSION

           Begun and held at the City of Washington on Monday,
          the third day of January, two thousand and twenty two

                                 An Act

 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to address green burial sections 
             in national cemeteries, and for other purposes.

    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 ``National Cemeteries Preservation and 
Protection Act of 2022''.
SEC. 2. PLOT AND INTERMENT ALLOWANCES FOR VETERANS BURIED BEFORE MARCH 
15, 2022, IN CEMETERIES ON TRUST LAND OWNED BY, OR HELD IN TRUST FOR, 
TRIBAL ORGANIZATIONS.
    The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall pay a plot or interment 
allowance under paragraph (1) of section 2303(b) of title 38, United 
States Code, for a veteran if--
        (1) the veteran was buried, before March 15, 2022, in a 
    cemetery, or in a section of a cemetery, that is on trust land 
    owned by, or held in trust for, a tribal organization;
        (2) the tribal organization that is responsible for operating 
    and maintaining the cemetery, or the section of cemetery, applies 
    for such allowance;
        (3) a plot or interment allowance was not already paid for the 
    burial of such veteran under paragraph (2) of such section; and
        (4) the burial of the veteran otherwise meets the requirements 
    under paragraph (1) of such section.
SEC. 3. GREEN BURIAL SECTIONS AT NATIONAL CEMETERIES.
    Section 2404 of title 38, United States Code, is amended--
        (1) in subsection (c)(2)--
            (A) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``; and'' and 
        inserting a semicolon;
            (B) in subparagraph (D), by striking the period at the end 
        and inserting ``; and''; and
            (C) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
        ``(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
        (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(i)(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.''.
SEC. 4. TRANSFER OF ADMINISTRATIVE JURISDICTION OVER LAND AT FORT 
BLISS, TEXAS, FOR EXPANSION OF FORT BLISS NATIONAL CEMETERY.
    (a) Transfer Authorized.--The Secretary of the Army may transfer to 
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs administrative jurisdiction over a 
parcel of real property consisting of approximately two acres located 
at Fort Bliss, Texas, directly adjacent to, and contiguous with, Fort 
Bliss National Cemetery.
    (b) Condition of Transfer.--
        (1) In general.--As a condition of the transfer authorized by 
    subsection (a), the Secretary of Veterans Affairs may complete 
    appropriate environmental, cultural resource, and other due 
    diligence activities on the real property described in subsection 
    (c) before determining whether the property is suitable for 
    cemetery purposes.
        (2) Coordination.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
    coordinate with the Secretary of the Army as needed during the 
    performance of the activities described in paragraph (1).
    (c) Description of Property.--
        (1) In general.--The exact acreage and legal description of the 
    real property to be transferred under this section shall be 
    determined by a survey satisfactory to the Secretary the Army.
        (2) Cost of survey.--The cost of the survey described in 
    paragraph (1) shall be borne by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
    (d) Additional Terms and Conditions; Costs of Transfer.--
        (1) Additional terms and conditions.--The Secretary of the Army 
    may require such additional terms and conditions in connection with 
    the transfer under this section as the Secretary considers 
    appropriate to protect the interests of the United States.
        (2) Reimbursement of costs .--
            (A) In general.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
        reimburse the Secretary of the Defense for costs incurred by 
        the Secretary of the Army in implementing this section, 
        including the costs of any surveys.
            (B) No payment for value of real property.--Notwithstanding 
        any other legal requirement that might otherwise apply, the 
        Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall not be required to make 
        payment of any kind for the value of the real property 
        described in subsection (c).
SEC. 5. TRANSFER OF DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR LAND FOR USE AS A 
NATIONAL CEMETERY.
    Section 2406 of title 38, United States Code, is amended--
        (1) by striking ``As additional lands'' and inserting ``(a) In 
    General.--As additional lands''; and
        (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(b) Transfer of Department of the Interior Land for Use as a 
National Cemetery.--Notwithstanding section 204(d) of the Federal Land 
Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1714(d)), if the Secretary 
and the Secretary of the Interior agree to a transfer under subsection 
(a) of any land for use by the Department as a national cemetery, the 
land shall be--
        ``(1) withdrawn from all forms of appropriation under the 
    public land laws, including the mining laws, the mineral leasing 
    laws, and the geothermal leasing laws;
        ``(2) subject to valid existing rights;
        ``(3) transferred to the administrative jurisdiction of the 
    Secretary of Veterans Affairs; and
        ``(4) deemed to be property (as defined in section 102(9) of 
    title 40) for as long as the land remains under the administrative 
    jurisdiction of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.''.
SEC. 6. EXPANSION OF PROHIBITION AGAINST INTERMENT OR MEMORIALIZATION 
IN THE NATIONAL CEMETERY ADMINISTRATION OR ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY 
OF PERSONS COMMITTING CERTAIN CRIMES.
    (a) In General.--Section 2411 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended--
        (1) in the section heading--
            (A) by inserting ``certain'' before ``Federal''; and
            (B) by striking ``capital'';
        (2) in subsection (b)--
            (A) in paragraph (4)--
                (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``(42 U.S.C. 16901 
            et seq.);'' and inserting ``(34 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.); 
            and''; and
                (ii) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``or to a period 
            of 99 years or more'' after ``life imprisonment''; and
            (B) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
        ``(5) A person who--
            ``(A) is found (as provided in subsection (c)) to have 
        committed a Federal or State crime that would cause the person 
        to be a tier III sex offender for purposes of the Sex Offender 
        Registration and Notification Act (34 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.); 
        but
            ``(B) has not been convicted of such crime by reason of 
        such person not being available for trial due to death or 
        flight to avoid prosecution.'';
        (3) in subsection (c), by striking ``subsection (b)(3)'' and 
    inserting ``paragraph (3) or (5) of subsection (b)'';
        (4) in subsection (d)(2)(A)(ii), by striking ``or a State 
    capital crime'' and inserting ``, a State capital crime, or a 
    Federal or State crime that would cause the person to be a tier III 
    sex offender for purposes of the Sex Offender Registration and 
    Notification Act (34 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.),''; and
        (5) in subsection (e)(1)(B), by striking ``or a State capital 
    crime'' and inserting ``, a State capital crime, or a Federal or 
    State crime that would cause the person to be a tier III sex 
    offender for purposes of the Sex Offender Registration and 
    Notification Act (34 U.S.C. 20901 et seq.),''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
chapter 24 of such title is amended by striking the item relating to 
section 2411 and inserting the following new item:
``2411. Prohibition against interment or memorialization in the National 
          Cemetery Administration or Arlington National Cemetery of 
          persons committing certain Federal or State crimes.''.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.
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