I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7727 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure that grants provided 
by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for State veterans’ cemeteries do 
not restrict States from authorizing the interment of certain deceased 
members of the reserve components of the Armed Forces in such ceme-
teries, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 22, 2020 
Mr. PAPPAS (for himself, Mr. PALAZZO, and Ms. KUSTER of New Hampshire) 
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
Veterans’ Affairs 
A BILL 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure that grants 
provided by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for State 
veterans’ cemeteries do not restrict States from author-
izing the interment of certain deceased members of the 
reserve components of the Armed Forces in such ceme-
teries, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Burial Equity for 
Guards and Reserves Act of 2020’’. 
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SEC. 2. PROHIBITIONS ON RESTRICTING INTERMENT OF 
CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS IN CERTAIN STATE 
VETERANS’ CEMETERIES. 
Section 2408 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) in subsection (c)(2), by striking ‘‘The Sec-
retary may’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as provided in 
subsection (e), the Secretary may’’; 
(2) by redesignating subsections (e) and (f) as 
subsections (g) and (h), respectively; and 
(3) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol-
lowing new subsections: 
‘‘(e)(1) The Secretary may not establish a condition 
for a grant under this section that restricts the ability of 
a State receiving such a grant to inter in a veterans’ ceme-
tery owned by that State any individual described in para-
graph (2) solely by reason of the ineligibility of such indi-
vidual for burial in an open national cemetery under the 
control of the National Cemetery Administration under 
section 2402(a) of this title. 
‘‘(2) An individual described in this paragraph is the 
following: 
‘‘(A) Any member of a reserve component of 
the Armed Forces whose service was terminated 
under honorable conditions. 
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‘‘(B) Any member of the Army National Guard 
or the Air National Guard whose service was termi-
nated under honorable conditions. 
‘‘(C) Any member of the Reserve Officers’ 
Training Corps of the Army, Navy, or Air Force 
whose death occurs under honorable conditions while 
a member of the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps of 
the Army, Navy, or Air Force. 
‘‘(D) Any spouse of any member described in 
subparagraphs (A) through (C). 
‘‘(f) The Secretary may not deny an application for 
a grant under this section solely on the basis that the 
State receiving such grant may use funds from such grant 
to expand, improve, operate, or maintain a veterans’ ceme-
tery to allow for the interment of individuals described in 
subsection (e)(2).’’. 
SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON ENFORCING CERTAIN CONDI-
TIONS ON GRANTS FOR STATE VETERANS’ 
CEMETERIES. 
The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may not enforce 
a condition on a grant described in subsection (e)(1) of 
section 2408 of title 38, United States Code, as added by 
section 2(3), that was established before the date of the 
enactment of this Act. 
Æ 
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