119-hr2078

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2078 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 2078

 To amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure that the prohibition 
 against interment or memorialization in the National Cemetery 
 Administration or Arlington National Cemetery of persons committing 
Federal or State capital crimes is consistently carried out, to direct 
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to disinter the remains of George E. 
 Siple from Indiantown Gap National Cemetery, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 March 11, 2025

 Mr. Perry 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

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure that the prohibition 
 against interment or memorialization in the National Cemetery 
 Administration or Arlington National Cemetery of persons committing 
Federal or State capital crimes is consistently carried out, to direct 
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to disinter the remains of George E. 
 Siple from Indiantown Gap National Cemetery, 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 ``Bertie's Respect for National 
Cemeteries Act''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITION AGAINST INTERMENT OR MEMORIALIZATION IN THE 
 NATIONAL CEMETERY ADMINISTRATION OR ARLINGTON NATIONAL 
 CEMETERY OF PERSONS COMMITTING FEDERAL OR STATE CAPITAL 
 CRIMES.

    (a) Responsibility of Appropriate Federal Official.--

Section 2411

    (a)

    (2) of title 38, United States Code, is amended--

    (1) by striking ``In the case'' and inserting ``
        (A) Except 
 as provided by subparagraph
        (B) , in the case''; and

    (2) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
 ``
        (B) The appropriate Federal official shall take every reasonable 
action, including by searching public records, to ensure that a person 
who will be interred in a cemetery in the National Cemetery 
Administration or in Arlington National Cemetery is not ineligible for 
such interment by reason of this section.''.

    (b) Authority To Disinter.--

Section 2
            (c) of the Alicia Dawn Koehl 
Respect for National Cemeteries Act (38 U.S.C. 2411 note) is amended--

    (1) by striking ``this section'' and inserting ``subsection

    (a) ''; and

    (2) by inserting after ``Arlington National Cemetery'' the 
 following: ``on or after the date of the enactment of such 
 

section 2411 and the amendment made by subsection

    (b) shall 
 apply with respect to any such interment or memorialization 
 conducted''.

SEC. 3. DISINTERMENT OF REMAINS OF GEORGE E. SIPLE FROM INDIANTOWN GAP 
 NATIONAL CEMETERY.

    (a) Disinterment of Remains.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
shall disinter the remains of George E. Siple from Indiantown Gap 
National Cemetery.

    (b) Notification of Next-of-Kin.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
shall--

    (1) notify the next-of-kin of record for George E. Siple of 
 the impending disinterment of his remains; and

    (2) upon disinterment, relinquish the remains to the next-
 of-kin of record for George E. Siple or, if the next-of-kin of 
 record for George E. Siple is unavailable, arrange for an 
 appropriate disposition of the remains.
 <all>