NY Exec L § 354-B (2021)
2021 New York Laws EXC - Executive Article 17 - Veterans' Services 354-B - New York state supplemental burial allowance for members of the armed forces of the United States killed in combat or duty subject to hostile fire or imminent danger, as defined in 37 USC

§  354-b.  New York state supplemental burial allowance for members of the armed forces of the United States killed in combat or  duty  subject to  hostile  fire  or imminent danger, as defined in 37 USC § 310. 1. As used in this section, "parent"  means  a  father,  a  mother,  a  father through adoption, a mother through adoption, or an individual who, for a period  of  not  less  than  one year, at any time before the decedent's entry into active military service stood in the relationship of a parent to a decedent who died in combat or duty  subject  to  hostile  fire  or imminent  danger,  as  defined in 37 USC § 310, or who died from a wound incurred in combat or while serving on duty subject to hostile  fire  or imminent  danger, as defined in 37 USC § 310 or, if two persons stood in the relationship of a parent for one year or more, the person  who  bore the expenses of the funeral of the decedent.   2.  As  used in this section, (a) "wound" means a physical injury to a servicemember on active duty caused by (i) a bullet, shrapnel, or  other projectile;  (ii)  a mine or trap; (iii) an explosion; (iv) a vehicle or aircraft accident not caused by the servicemember's willful  misconduct; or  (v)  any  other  action  caused  or  induced  by  the enemy directly resulting in physical harm to the servicemember.  (b) "burial receptacle" means (i) a casket, which shall mean  a  rigid container  that  is  designed  for  the  encasement of human remains and customarily ornamented and lined with fabric, (ii) an urn,  which  shall mean a container of wood, metal, pottery, or other material designed for the  storage  of  cremated  human  remains, and/or (iii) an outer burial receptacle, which shall  mean  a  graveliner,  burial  vault,  or  other similar type of container for the placement of a casket or urn.   3.  There  is  hereby established within the division a New York state supplemental burial allowance for any member of the armed forces of  the United States who: (a) died in combat or duty subject to hostile fire or imminent  danger,  as  defined  in  37  USC  §  310 or died from a wound incurred in combat or while serving on duty subject to hostile  fire  or imminent  danger,  as defined in 37 USC § 310, other than the exceptions noted in paragraphs (d),  (e)  and  (f)  of  subdivision  four  of  this section, and (b) who was (i) a resident of New York state at the time of his  or her death or (ii) a nonresident of New York state at the time of his or her death and a member of the New York Army National Guard or New York Air National Guard at the time he or she entered title  10,  United States  Code,  federal active duty status during which period of service he or she died.   4. (a) The purpose of the program  is  to  administer  and  monitor  a supplemental allowance program to aid families of military personnel who died  in  combat  or duty subject to hostile fire or imminent danger, as defined in 37 USC § 310, or died from a wound incurred in combat or duty subject to hostile fire or imminent danger, as defined in 37 USC §  310, with  respect  to  expenses  incurred  in connection with the decedent's funeral and the burial, burial receptacle, cremation, or other interment of the decedent's remains.  (b) Eligible recipients under this program shall be those who bore the cost of the decedent's funeral and burial, burial receptacle, cremation, or other interment, in the following order of priority: (i) a  surviving spouse  or  domestic partner of the decedent; (ii) adult children of the decedent, to include step-children and adopted children;  (iii)  parents or    grandparents    of    the    decedent,   and   parents-in-law   or grandparents-in-law of the decedent; (iv) brothers  or  sisters  of  the decedent,  to  include  brothers  or  sisters  adopted by the decedent's immediate family and brothers or sisters with whom the  decedent  shares only  one parent in common, and brothers-in-law or sisters-in-law of the decedent; (v) aunts, uncles, and first cousins of the decedent; and (vi)  any  other  relative.  Any  applicant  convicted  of  making  any  false statement  in  the application for the reimbursement shall be subject to the penalties prescribed in the penal law.  (c)  Such  burial  allowance is a partial reimbursement of an eligible decedent's funeral and burial, burial  receptacle,  cremation  or  other interment  costs.  The  reimbursement  is  generally  applicable  to two components: (i) funeral expenses, and (ii)  expenses  arising  from  the burial,   burial  receptacle,  cremation,  or  other  interment  of  the decedent's remains. Any allowance  granted  by  the  government  of  the United  States, pursuant to 38 U.S.C. § 2301, 2302, 2303, 2306, 2307 and 2308 or 10 U.S.C. § 1482, or by the decedent's state of residence in the case of an allowance eligible pursuant to subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (b) of subdivision three of this section, shall be first applied  toward funeral  and  burial,  burial  receptacle,  cremation or other interment costs. The state may award an allowance of up to six thousand dollars to cover any remaining expenses.  (d) The state shall  not  award  any  funds  from  this  allowance  to reimburse any costs for the headstone, grave marker, or medallion of the decedent.  (e)  The  state shall not grant supplemental burial allowance payments for the funeral or the burial, burial receptacle,  cremation,  or  other interment  of  remains  of  any  decedent  whose  relations received any reimbursement from this allowance for any previous  funeral  or  burial, burial  receptacle,  cremation,  or  other interment of remains for this same decedent.  (f) The state shall not grant supplemental burial  allowance  payments for  any  person  filing a completed application for such allowance with the state later than: (i) two years after the applicant  received  final written  notice  from  the  United States Department of Veterans Affairs regarding an application for reimbursement of funeral or burial,  burial receptacle,  cremation  or  other  interment  expenses  pursuant  to  38 U.S.C.§§ 2301, 2302, 2303, 2306, 2307, or 2308, or 10 U.S.C.§  1482,  or any  combination thereof; or (ii) two years after the expiration date of the filing deadline to  apply  for  reimbursement  of  funeral,  burial, burial receptacle, cremation or other interment expenses from the United States  Department  of Veterans Affairs, as defined in 38 U.S.C. § 2304, if the applicant never applied for  reimbursement  of  funeral,  burial, burial  receptacle,  cremation  or  interment  expenses  from the United States  Department  of  Veterans  Affairs.  Any  applications   received subsequent to these prescribed periods shall be denied as time-barred.  (g)  Any  family  members  of  an  individual who died after September eleventh, two thousand one for whom the time  limitations  described  in paragraph  (f)  of  this  subdivision have expired, and who prior to the effective date of this paragraph did  not  receive  reimbursement  under this  section  but would have qualified if the criteria in paragraph (a) of this subdivision had been in effect at the  time  of  the  decedent's death, shall have two years from the effective date of this paragraph to file a completed application for this supplemental burial allowance with the  state  director.  Any  application  filed  under this paragraph and received  subsequent  to  this  two-year  period  shall  be  denied   as time-barred.  (h)  Applicants  shall  furnish  evidence  of  the decedent's military service and relevant after action reports or other documents  explaining why  the application meets eligibility requirements for each case in the manner and form prescribed by the state director or his or her designee. Upon being satisfied that the facts in the  application  are  true,  the state  director  or  his  or  her  designee  shall  certify to the state comptroller the name and address of such recipient. The decision of  the  state  director  or  designee  on all matters regarding any payment from this allowance shall be final.  (i)  The  state  director  shall  submit a report to the governor, the chairperson of the senate finance committee, and the chairperson of  the assembly  ways  and  means committee not later than January fifteenth of each year in which this section is in effect. Such report shall include, but not be limited to, regulations promulgated pursuant to this section, allowances paid, and an account of the monies spent and the relationship of the distributees to the decedent.