IB 

Union Calendar No. 45 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1627 

[Report No. 112–84, Part I] 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for certain requirements 

for the placement of monuments in Arlington National Cemetery, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 15, 2011 

Mr. MILLER of Florida (for himself, Mr. ROE of Tennessee, Mr. LAMBORN, 

and Mr. JOHNSON of Ohio) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, and in addition to the 

Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 

as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

MAY 20, 2011 

Reported from the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

MAY 20, 2011 

The Committee on Armed Services discharged; committed to the Committee 

of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on April 15, 2011] 


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A BILL 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for certain 

requirements for the placement of monuments in Arlington National Cemetery, and for other purposes. 


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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Honoring American Vet5 erans Act of 2011’’. 

6 SEC. 2. REQUIREMENTS FOR THE PLACEMENT OF MONU7 MENTS IN ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY. 

8 Section 2409(b) of title 38, United States Code, is 

9 amended— 

10 (1) by striking ‘‘Under’’ and inserting ‘‘(1) 

11 Under’’; 

12 (2) by inserting after ‘‘Secretary of the Army’’ 

13 the following: ‘‘and subject to paragraph (2)’’; and 

14 (3) by adding at the end the following new para15 graphs: 

16 ‘‘(2)(A) Except for a monument containing or mark17 ing interred remains, no monument (or similar structure, 

18 as determined by the Secretary of the Army in regulations) 

19 may be placed in Arlington National Cemetery except pur20 suant to the provisions of this subsection. 

21 ‘‘(B) A monument may be placed in Arlington Na22 tional Cemetery if the monument commemorates— 

23 ‘‘(i) the service in the Armed Forces of the indi24 vidual, or group of individuals, whose memory is to 

25 be honored by the monument; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) a particular military event. 

2 ‘‘(C) No monument may be placed in Arlington Na3 tional Cemetery until the end of the 25-year period begin4 ning— 

5 ‘‘(i) in the case of the commemoration of service 

6 under subparagraph (B)(i), on the last day of the pe7 riod of service so commemorated; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) in the case of the commemoration of a par9 ticular military event under subparagraph (B)(ii), on 

10 the last day of the period of the event. 

11 ‘‘(D) A monument may be placed only in those sections 

12 of Arlington National Cemetery designated by the Secretary 

13 of the Army for such placement and only on land the Sec14 retary determines is not suitable for burial. 

15 ‘‘(E) A monument may only be placed in Arlington 

16 National Cemetery if an appropriate non-governmental en17 tity has agreed to act as a sponsoring organization to co18 ordinate the placement of the monument and— 

19 ‘‘(i) the construction and placement of the monu20 ment are paid for only using funds from private 

21 sources; 

22 ‘‘(ii) the Secretary of the Army consults with the 

23 Commission of Fine Arts before approving the design 

24 of the monument; and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) the sponsoring organization provides for 

2 an independent study on the availability and suit3 ability of alternative locations for the proposed monu4 ment outside of Arlington National Cemetery. 

5 ‘‘(3)(A) The Secretary of the Army may waive the re6 quirement under paragraph (2)(C) in a case in which the 

7 monument would commemorate a group of individuals who 

8 the Secretary determines— 

9 ‘‘(i) has made valuable contributions to the 

10 Armed Forces that have been ongoing and perpetual 

11 for longer than 25 years and are expected to continue 

12 on indefinitely; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) has provided service that is of such a char14 acter that the failure to place a monument to the 

15 group in Arlington National Cemetery would present 

16 a manifest injustice. 

17 ‘‘(B) If the Secretary waives such requirement under 

18 subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall— 

19 ‘‘(i) make available on an Internet website noti20 fication of the waiver and the rationale for the waiv21 er; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Af23 fairs and the Committee on Armed Services of the 

24 Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and 

25 the Committee on Armed Services of the House of 


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1 Representatives written notice of the waiver and the 

2 rationale for the waiver. 

3 ‘‘(4) The Secretary of the Army shall provide notice 

4 to the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on 

5 Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Vet6 erans’ Affairs and the Committee on Armed Services of the 

7 House of Representatives of any monument proposed to be 

8 placed in Arlington National Cemetery. During the 60-day 

9 period beginning on the date on which such notice is re10 ceived, Congress may pass a joint resolution of disapproval 

11 of the placement of the monument. The proposed monument 

12 may not be placed in Arlington National Cemetery until 

13 the later of— 

14 ‘‘(A) if Congress does not pass a joint resolution 

15 of disapproval of the placement of the monument, the 

16 date that is 60 days after the date on which notice 

17 is received under this paragraph; or 

18 ‘‘(B) if Congress passes a joint resolution of dis19 approval of the placement of the monument, and the 

20 President signs a veto of such resolution, the earlier 

21 of— 

22 ‘‘(i) the date on which either House of Con23 gress votes and fails to override the veto of the 

24 President; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the date that is 30 session days after 

2 the date on which Congress received the veto and 

3 objections of the president.’’. 

4 SEC. 3. CODIFICATION OF PROHIBITION AGAINST RESERVA5 TION OF GRAVESITES AT ARLINGTON NA6 TIONAL CEMETERY. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 24 of title 38, United 

8 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 2410 the 

9 following new section: 

10 ‘‘§ 2410A. Arlington National Cemetery: other admin11 istrative matters 

12 ‘‘(a) ONE GRAVESITE PER FAMILY.—(1) Not more 

13 than one gravesite may be provided at Arlington National 

14 Cemetery to a veteran or member of the Armed Forces who 

15 is eligible for interment at such cemetery and the family 

16 members of such veteran or member who are also eligible 

17 for interment at such cemetery. 

18 ‘‘(2) The Secretary may waive the requirement under 

19 paragraph (1) in extreme circumstances, as determined by 

20 the Secretary. If the Secretary waives such requirement 

21 under this paragraph, the Secretary shall submit notice of 

22 the waiver to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and the 

23 Committee on Armed Services of the Senate and the Com24 mittee on Veterans’ Affairs and the Committee on Armed 

25 Services of the House of Representatives. 


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1 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION AGAINST RESERVATION OF

2 GRAVESITES.—A gravesite at Arlington National Cemetery 

3 may not be reserved for an individual before the death of 

4 such individual.’’. 

5 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections at 

6 the beginning of chapter 24 of such title is amended by in7 serting after the item relating to section 2410 the following 

8 new item: 

‘‘2410A. Arlington National Cemetery: other administrative matters.’’. 

9 (c) APPLICABILITY.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para11 graph (2), section 2410A of such title, as added by 

12 subsection (a), shall apply with respect to all inter13 ments at Arlington National Cemetery after the date 

14 of the enactment of this Act. 

15 (2) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (b) of such section, 

16 as so added, shall not apply with respect to the inter17 ment of an individual for whom a written request for 

18 a reserved gravesite was submitted to the Secretary of 

19 the Army before January 1, 1962, and subsequently 

20 approved. 

21 (d) REPORT.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after 

23 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

24 the Army shall submit to Congress a report on resVerDate Mar 15 2010 20:44 May 20, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H1627.RH H1627

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1 ervations made for interment at Arlington National 

2 Cemetery. 

3 (2) ELEMENTS.—The report required by para4 graph (1) shall include the following: 

5 (A) The number of requests for reservation 

6 of a gravesite at Arlington National Cemetery 

7 that were submitted to the Secretary of the Army 

8 before January 1, 1962. 

9 (B) The number of gravesites at such ceme10 tery that, on the day before the date of the enact11 ment of this Act, were reserved in response to 

12 such requests. 

13 (C) The number of such gravesites that, on 

14 the day before the date of the enactment of this 

15 Act, were unoccupied. 

16 (D) A list of all reservations for gravesites 

17 at such cemetery that were extended by individ18 uals responsible for management of such ceme19 tery in response to requests for such reservations 

20 made on or after January 1, 1962. 

21 (E) A description of the measures that the 

22 Secretary is taking to improve the accountability 

23 and transparency of the management of gravesite 

24 reservations at Arlington National Cemetery. 


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1 (F) Such recommendations as the Secretary 

2 may have for legislative action as the Secretary 

3 considers necessary to improve such account4 ability and transparency. 

5 SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING THE PROVISION 

6 OF A MEMORIAL MARKER ON CHAPLAINS 

7 HILL TO HONOR THE MEMORY OF THE JEW8 ISH CHAPLAINS WHO DIED WHILE ON ACTIVE 

9 DUTY IN THE ARMED FORCES OF THE UNITED 

10 STATES. 

11 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following findings: 

12 (1) 13 Jewish chaplains have died while on ac13 tive duty in the Armed Forces of the United States. 

14 (2) Army Chaplain Rabbi Alexander Goode died 

15 on February 3, 1943, when then U.S.S. Dorchester 

16 was sunk by German torpedoes off the coast of Green17 land. 

18 (3) Chaplain Goode received the Four Chaplains’ 

19 Medal for Heroism and the Distinguished Service 

20 Cross for his heroic efforts to save the lives of those 

21 onboard the Dorchester. 

22 (4) Army Chaplain Rabbi Irving Tepper was 

23 killed in action in France on August 13, 1944. 


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1 (5) Chaplain Tepper also saw combat in Mo2 rocco, Tunisia, and Sicily while attached to an infan3 try combat team in the Ninth Division. 

4 (6) Army Chaplain Rabbi Louis Werfel died on 

5 December 24, 1944, at the young age of 27, in a plane 

6 crash while en route to conduct Chanukah services. 

7 (7) Chaplain Werfel was known as ‘‘The Flying 

8 Rabbi’’ because his duties required traveling great 

9 distances by plane to serve Army personnel of Jewish 

10 faith at outlying posts. 

11 (8) Army Chaplain Rabbi Meir Engel died at 

12 the Naval Hospital in Saigon, Vietnam, on December 

13 16, 1964, after faithfully serving his country during 

14 World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam 

15 War. 

16 (9) Army Chaplain Rabbi Morton Singer died 

17 on December 17, 1968, in a plane crash while on a 

18 mission in Vietnam to conduct Chanukah services. 

19 (10) Army Chaplain Rabbi Herman Rosen died 

20 in service of his faith and his country on June 18, 

21 1943. 

22 (11) His son, Air Force Chaplain Solomon 

23 Rosen, also died in service of his faith and his coun24 try on November 2, 1948. 


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1 (12) Army Chaplain Rabbi Nachman Arnoff 

2 died in service of his faith and his country on May 

3 9, 1946. 

4 (13) Army Chaplain Rabbi Frank Goldenberg 

5 died in service of his faith and his country on May 

6 22, 1946. 

7 (14) Army Chaplain Rabbi Henry Goody died 

8 in service of his faith and his country on October 19, 

9 1943. 

10 (15) Army Chaplain Rabbi Samuel Hurwitz 

11 died in service of his faith and his country on Decem12 ber 9, 1943. 

13 (16) Air Force Chaplain Rabbi Samuel Rosen 

14 died in service of his faith and his country on May 

15 13, 1955. 

16 (17) Air Force Chaplain Rabbi David Sobel died 

17 in service of his faith and his country on March 7, 

18 1974. 

19 (18) Chaplains Hill in Arlington National Cem20 etery memorializes the names of 242 chaplains who 

21 perished while serving on active duty in the Armed 

22 Forces of the United States. 

23 (19) None of the 13 Jewish chaplains who have 

24 died while serving on active duty are memorialized 

25 on Chaplains Hill. 


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1 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Congress 

2 that an appropriate site on Chaplains Hill in Arlington 

3 National Cemetery should be provided for a memorial 

4 marker, to be paid for with private funds, to honor the 

5 memory of the Jewish chaplains who died while on active 

6 duty in the Armed Forces of the United States, so long as 

7 the Secretary of the Army has exclusive authority to ap8 prove the design and site of the memorial marker. 

9 SEC. 5. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING THE SERVICE 

10 AND SACRIFICE OF MEMBERS OF THE UNITED 

11 STATES ARMED FORCES WHO ARE SERVING 

12 IN, OR HAVE SERVED IN, OPERATION ENDUR13 ING FREEDOM, OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM, 

14 AND OPERATION NEW DAWN. 

15 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following findings: 

16 (1) More than 2,000,000 members of the Armed 

17 Forces have deployed to the theaters of war since the 

18 commencement of Operation Enduring Freedom, Op19 eration Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn. 

20 (2) Hundreds of thousands of such members have 

21 deployed for multiple tours of duty, leaving their 

22 homes, their families, and in many cases, their civil23 ian jobs. 


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1 (3) More than 5,500 members of the Armed 

2 Forces have made the ultimate sacrifice for the United 

3 States while serving in Iraq or Afghanistan. 

4 (4) Tens of thousands of additional members of 

5 the Armed Forces have been seriously wounded in the 

6 line of duty while serving in these theaters of war. 

7 (5) These members of the Armed Forces have an8 swered the Nation’s call to duty, serving bravely and 

9 nobly and, in most cases, without fanfare or acclaim. 

10 (6) These members of the Armed Forces have per11 sonified the virtues of patriotism, service, duty, cour12 age, and sacrifice. 

13 (7) All Americans recognize the service and sac14 rifices made by these members of the Armed Forces 

15 and their families. 

16 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—Congress— 

17 (1) honors the members of the Armed Forces who 

18 are serving in Operation Enduring Freedom, Oper19 ation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn and 

20 the members and veterans who have previously served 

21 in Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi 

22 Freedom, and Operation New Dawn; and 

23 (2) calls on all Americans to reflect on the serv24 ice of these members and veterans and to hold them 

25 in a special place of honor now and in the future. 


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Union Calendar No. 45 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1627 

[Report No. 112–84, Part I] 

A BILL 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide 

for other purposes. monuments in Arlington National Cemetery, and for certain requirements for the placement of 

MAY 20, 2011 

Reported from the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs with 

M

an amendment 

AY 20, 2011 

The Committee on Armed Services discharged; committed 

the Union and ordered to be printed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of 


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