III 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 365 

Honoring the 50th anniversary of the National Cemetery Administration 

of the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 26 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 22), 2023 

Mr. TESTER (for himself and Mr. MORAN) submitted the following resolution; 

which was considered and agreed to 

RESOLUTION 

Honoring the 50th anniversary of the National Cemetery 

Administration of the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

Whereas, in 1973, Congress passed the National Cemeteries 

Act of 1973 (Public Law 93–43), creating an agency 

within the Veterans Administration to oversee the national cemetery system; 

Whereas, in 2023, the National Cemetery Administration 

(NCA) celebrates 50 years of upholding a sacred duty to 

inter, honor, and memorialize those who have served in 

the United States Armed Forces; 

Whereas the National Cemetery Administration operates and 

ensures perpetual care of 155 national cemeteries and 34 

soldiers’ lots and monument sites that honor and serve 

as the final resting places for 4,000,000 veterans repVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:55 Sep 27, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR365.ATS SR365

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•SRES 365 ATS 

resenting every era throughout the history of the United 

States; 

Whereas the National Cemetery Administration provides burial and memorial benefits for eligible veterans and family 

members, at no cost, including— 

(1) a gravesite or niche in any national cemetery 

with available space; 

(2) opening and closing of the grave and perpetual 

care; and 

(3) a government headstone, marker, or medallion, 

burial flag, and Presidential memorial certificate; 

Whereas the establishment of the Veterans Cemetery Grants 

Program (VCGP) has furthered the commitment of the 

United States to the proper burial and honoring of veterans by awarding more than $1,000,000,000 to assist 

States, Territories, and Tribal governments in establishing, expanding, and operating veterans’ cemeteries 

that complement and help expand burial access; 

Whereas, through the VCGP, the National Cemetery Administration has provided grant funding to 122 veterans’ 

cemeteries in 49 States, Tribal trust lands, and Territories including Guam, Saipan, and Puerto Rico; 

Whereas, in fiscal year 2022, the National Cemetery Administration processed more than 350,000 requests for 

headstones, markers, and medallions to honor veterans 

and their loved ones in national, State, Tribal, and private cemeteries, and issued more than 463,000 Presidential memorial certificates to the family members of 

veterans; 

Whereas the sacred landscapes in national cemeteries and 

grant-funded veterans’ cemeteries serve as places of solVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:55 Sep 27, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR365.ATS SR365

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emn remembrance to convey the stories of generations of 

veterans encompassing the entirety of United States history, including 529 recipients of the Medal of Honor and 

those honored by nearly 1,370 military memorial monuments; 

Whereas the consistent commitment of the National Cemetery Administration to ‘‘national shrine’’ standards of 

care for 50 years has preserved the beauty of the sites 

that veterans and their families deserve, welcoming more 

than 1,700,000 visitors at national cemeteries in fiscal 

year 2022, and has immortalized those who lay at rest 

on those sacred grounds, ensuring that all visitors, past 

and present, are able to bear witness to the serene and 

historic shrines and leave with a sense of awe and gratitude for the sacrifices those heroes made for the United 

States; 

Whereas the National Cemetery Administration has been 

awarded a score of 97, the highest achieved score on 

record, in the reputable American Customer Satisfaction 

Index, leading all organizations, public or private, for the 

seventh consecutive time, a testament to the exemplary 

service of National Cemetery Administration team members to veterans and their families; 

Whereas the National Cemetery Administration established 

the Veterans Legacy Program (VLP), which has funded 

35 programs that engage students and teachers in communities large and small to further educate themselves 

and their communities on the legacies and service of veterans by using the expansive resources within the Department of Veterans Affairs, resulting in the production 

of over 2,500 veteran biographies, 50 documentary videos, and over 100 lesson plans; and 


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•SRES 365 ATS 

Whereas the National Cemetery Administration continues to 

memorialize the stories and sacrifices of veterans through 

the Veterans Legacy Memorial (VLM), a digital interactive platform created to preserve the memories of nearly 5,000,000 veterans laid to rest in cemeteries managed 

and funded by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Department of Defense cemeteries, and National Park Service cemeteries: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) applauds the National Cemetery Adminis3 tration, on its 50th anniversary, having stood firm 

4 in its mission of ensuring proper final resting places 

5 adhering to national shrine standards that com6 memorate the extraordinary commitment of veterans 

7 and their families to the United States; 

8 (2) recognizes that the National Cemetery Ad9 ministration has been a driving force in the preser10 vation of, and passing down, the heroic heritage and 

11 stories of members of the United States Armed 

12 Forces of all backgrounds, from all corners of the 

13 United States, and in educating future generations 

14 on the importance of the service and sacrifice of vet15 erans; and 

16 (3) commends the individuals who work for the 

17 National Cemetery Administration for their contin18 ued excellence ensuring that the veterans of the 

19 United States are forever honored and remembered 


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1 in the hallowed grounds of the national cemeteries of 

2 the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

Æ 


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