38 U.S. Code § 2410 - Burial of cremated remains in Arlington National Cemetery

(a) The Secretary of the Army shall designate an area of appropriate size within Arlington National Cemetery for the unmarked interment, in accordance with such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, of the ashes of persons eligible for interment in Arlington National Cemetery whose remains were cremated. Such area shall be an area not suitable for the burial of casketed remains.

(b) The Secretary of each military department shall make available appropriate forms on which those members of the Armed Forces who so desire may indicate their desire to be buried within the area to be designated under subsection (a).

(c)

(1) The Secretary of the Army shall ensure that, under such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, the cremated remains of any person described in paragraph (2) are eligible for above ground inurnment in Arlington National Cemetery with military honors in accordance with section 1491 of title 10.

(2) A person described in this paragraph is a person whose service has been determined to be active duty service pursuant to section 401 of the GI Bill Improvement Act of 1977 (Public Law 95–202; 38 U.S.C. 106 note) as of the date of the enactment of this paragraph.

(Added Pub. L. 101–237, title V, § 502(a), Dec. 18, 1989, 103 Stat. 2093, § 1010; amended Pub. L. 102–54, § 14(b)(22), June 13, 1991, 105 Stat. 284; renumbered § 2410, Pub. L. 102–83, § 5(a), Aug. 6, 1991, 105 Stat. 406; Pub. L. 114–158, § 1(a), May 20, 2016, 130 Stat. 394.)

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The date of the enactment of this paragraph, referred to in subsec. (c)(2), is the date of enactment of Pub. L. 114–158, which was approved May 20, 2016.

Amendments

2016—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 114–158 added subsec. (c).

1991—Pub. L. 102–83 renumbered section 1010 of this title as this section.

Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 102–54 substituted “each military department” for “the military departments”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date of 2016 Amendment

Pub. L. 114–158, § 1(b), May 20, 2016, 130 Stat. 394, provided that:

“(1) In general.—

The amendment made by subsection (a) [amending this section] shall apply with respect to—

“(A) the remains of a person that are not formally interred or inurned as of the date of the enactment of this Act [May 20, 2016]; and

“(B) a person who dies on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.

“(2) Formally interred or inurned defined.—

In this subsection, the term ‘formally interred or inurned’ means interred or inurned in a cemetery, crypt, mausoleum, columbarium, niche, or other similar formal location.”