Description
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) proposes to amend its adjudication regulations pertaining to burial benefits to conform to recent statutory changes enacted by the Johnny Isakson and David P. Roe, M.D. Veterans Health Care and Benefits Improvement Act of 2020 and the Burial Equity for Guards and Reserves Act of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022. The conforming regulatory changes would implement an expansion of the transportation benefit and provision of a single payment rate for non-service- connected burial allowances regardless of the location of a qualifying Veterans death and would coincide with the effective date for the statutory amendments (January 5, 2023). The conforming regulatory changes would also implement the extension of the VA plot or interment allowance to Tribal organizations for interment of eligible Veterans on trust land owned by, or held in trust for, the Tribal organization and would coincide with the effective date for the statutory amendments (March 15, 2022). VA also proposes some additional clarifying changes to its burial benefits regulations.