Add Art 4 §44, Veterans' Services L; amd §148, Gen Muni L; amd §4203, Pub Health L
Relates to the appointment of the memorial affairs coordinator; relates to the burial indigent members of the uniformed services of the United States; relates to the disposition of the remains of veterans.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
11294
IN ASSEMBLY
May 8, 2026
___________
Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Stern) --
read once and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
AN ACT to amend the veterans' services law, in relation to the appoint-
ment of the memorial affairs coordinator; to amend the general munici-
pal law, in relation to the burial indigent members of the uniformed
services of the United States; and to amend the public health law, in
relation to the disposition of the remains of veterans
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The veterans' services law is amended by adding a new arti-
2 cle 4 to read as follows:
3 ARTICLE 4
4 MEMORIAL AFFAIRS
5 Section 44. Memorial affairs coordinator.
6 § 44. Memorial affairs coordinator. 1. As used in this section, the
7 following terms shall have the following meanings:
8 (a) "burial" means all the legal methods of disposing of the remains
9 of a deceased person, including, but not limited to, cremation, burial
10 at sea, and medical school donation;
11 (b) "custodian" means any person, organization, or state or local
12 government agency in possession of human remains, such as a funeral
13 director, undertaker or funeral firm, medical examiner or coroner, law
14 enforcement agencies, or medical, educational, and correctional facili-
15 ties;
16 (c) "dignified burial" means a deceased person's remains are interred
17 in a final resting place, including but not limited to a national ceme-
18 tery, a state veteran's cemetery, or a private cemetery;
19 (d) "eligible person" means any service member or veteran or spouse,
20 child, parent or other relation of a service member or veteran eligible
21 for burial benefits under chapters 23 and 24 of title 38 of the United
22 States Code or any provision of state law or local law; and
23 (e) "local coordinators" means a person, association or commission
24 designated under section one hundred forty-eight of the general munici-
25 pal law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD15813-01-6
A. 11294 2
1 2. The state commissioner shall appoint a "memorial affairs coordina-
2 tor" whose general duties shall include:
3 (a) serving as a liaison between the United States Department of
4 Veterans Affairs, relevant state and local agencies, custodians, and
5 local coordinators to facilitate the dignified burial of deceased
6 service members, veterans and other eligible persons in the state;
7 (b) proving information to custodians regarding the funeral, burial
8 and memorial benefits available for the burial of eligible persons and
9 to outline procedures to be followed;
10 (c) developing and maintaining a clearinghouse of information and
11 resources for survivors of deceased service members, veterans and other
12 eligible persons, regarding federal, state and local benefits that
13 assist with funeral, burial and memorial costs;
14 (d) conducting outreach to veterans service organizations for the
15 purpose of encouraging the participation of such organizations in funer-
16 al and burial services as provided in section one hundred forty-eight of
17 the general municipal law and section forty-two hundred three of the
18 public health law and connecting such organizations to custodians and
19 local coordinators. The memorial affairs coordinator shall maintain a
20 list of veterans service organizations that have agreed to be available
21 to provide such services and the areas of the state in which such organ-
22 izations operate. Such list shall be made available to custodians and
23 local coordinators;
24 (e) providing training and assistance to local coordinators regarding
25 their duties and responsibilities under section one hundred forty-eight
26 of the general municipal law, all training courses shall be developed by
27 the memorial affairs coordinator and an initial course of training shall
28 be scheduled for local coordinators within ninety days of the depart-
29 ment's receipt of the notification provided by a local coordinator under
30 section one hundred forty-eight of the general municipal law, thereafter
31 all local coordinators shall annually receive supplemental trainings
32 provided by the department.
33 (f) developing a statewide program for the purpose of supporting coun-
34 ties and the city of New York in providing and maintaining appropriate
35 headstones or markers under section one hundred forty-eight of the
36 general municipal law including assistance with applications for head-
37 stones or markers available at the expense of the United States under
38 section 2306 of title 38 of the United States Code; and
39 (g) planning or promoting events, activities, or programs that memori-
40 alize service members and veterans or support the dedication or preser-
41 vation of military and veteran memorials including encouraging the
42 participation of local governments in the veterans memorial registry
43 established under section twenty-nine-a of this chapter.
44 3. The memorial affairs coordinator shall:
45 (a) help facilitate the disposition of remains pursuant to the program
46 established in section forty-two hundred three of the public health law;
47 (b) provide information to custodians regarding points of contact and
48 resources available through the United States Department of Veterans
49 Affairs for assisting with researching veteran status for indigent and
50 deceased veterans whose remains are unclaimed;
51 (c) develop and disseminate to custodians uniform guidelines, proce-
52 dures and best practices for identifying deceased individuals as eligi-
53 ble persons, locating the next of kin of an eligible person and facili-
54 tating the burial of such persons;
A. 11294 3
1 (d) coordinate and implement data-sharing agreements with federal,
2 state and local government agencies and private entities to identify
3 veterans and other eligible persons whose remains are unclaimed; and
4 (e) develop a comprehensive estimate of all deceased veterans and
5 other eligible persons whose remains are unclaimed awaiting burial in
6 the state and a plan for facilitating the internment of such persons.
7 4. The annual report required by subdivision seventeen of section four
8 of this chapter shall contain a description of the activities of the
9 memorial affairs coordinators' activities undertaken since the last
10 annual report, the number of burials facilitated by the memorial affairs
11 coordinator pursuant to this section or reported to the coordinator
12 under section one hundred forty-eight of the general municipal law or
13 section forty-two hundred three of the public health law and any recom-
14 mendations of the department for the improvement of the programs estab-
15 lished under this section or the administration of funeral, burial and
16 memorial benefits to eligible persons by the state.
17 § 2. Paragraphs (a) and (d) of subdivision 1 of section 148 of the
18 general municipal law, paragraph (a) as amended by section 62 of part
19 PP of chapter 56 of the laws of 2022, and paragraph (d) as amended by
20 chapter 613 of the laws of 1986, are amended to read as follows:
21 (a) The [board of supervisors] governing body in each of the counties,
22 [or the board of estimate] and the governing body in the city of New
23 York, shall designate some proper person, association or commission,
24 other than that designated for the care of burial of public charges or
25 criminals, who shall cause to be interred the body of any member of the
26 uniformed services of the United States who (i) was honorably discharged
27 from such service or (ii) had a qualifying condition, as defined in
28 section one of the veterans' services law, and received a discharge
29 other than bad conduct or dishonorable from such service, or (iii) was a
30 discharged LGBT veteran, as defined in section one of the veterans'
31 services law, and received a discharge other than bad conduct or
32 dishonorable from such service, or the body of any minor child or either
33 parent, or the spouse or unremarried surviving spouse of any such member
34 of the uniformed services of the United States, if such person shall
35 hereafter die in a county or in the city of New York without leaving
36 sufficient means to defray [his or her] their funeral expenses.
37 (d) Such interment shall not be made in a cemetery or cemetery plot
38 used exclusively for the burial of needy persons deceased, and the
39 [board of supervisors] governing body of each county [is] and the city
40 of New York are hereby authorized and empowered to purchase and acquire
41 lands, or to appropriate money for the purchase and acquisition of
42 lands, for a cemetery or cemetery plot for the burial of any such
43 persons and also to provide for the care, maintenance or improvement of
44 any cemetery or plot where such persons are buried or may hereafter be
45 buried.
46 § 3. Paragraph (e) of subdivision 1-a of section 148 of the general
47 municipal law, as added by chapter 29 of the laws of 2016, is amended
48 to read as follows:
49 (e) A congressionally chartered veterans' organization determining in
50 good faith that it cannot financially bear the costs of the requested
51 funeral and burial services as described in paragraph (b) of this subdi-
52 vision, and declaring in good faith to the requesting county or the city
53 of New York that the organization is unable to pay for these expenses,
54 shall not be required by the county or the city of New York to initially
55 fund these requested services. The person, association or commission,
56 designated pursuant to this section shall notify the memorial affairs
A. 11294 4
1 coordinator and the Director of the United States Department of Veterans
2 Affairs regional office for the area in which the veteran died and,
3 pursuant to existing programs, work with such coordinator or director to
4 immediately complete arrangements for burial of such veteran in a
5 national cemetery or, State or Tribal veterans cemetery.
6 § 4. Paragraphs (c) and (e) of subdivision 2 of section 148 of the
7 general municipal law, paragraph (c) as amended by chapter 265 of the
8 laws of 1990, and paragraph (e) as amended by chapter 322 of the laws of
9 2021, are amended to read as follows:
10 (c) Such headstone shall be of such design and material as shall be
11 approved by the [board of supervisors] governing body of the county or
12 the city of New York. The memorial affairs coordinators shall issue
13 guidelines for governing bodies in approving such headstones.
14 (e) The [board of supervisors] governing body of the county or the
15 city of New York of which such deceased person was a resident at the
16 time of [his or her] death is hereby authorized and directed to audit
17 the account and pay the expenses of such burial and headstone, and a
18 reasonable sum for the services and necessary expenses of the person,
19 association or commission so designated. In case such person shall be at
20 the time of [his or her] death an incarcerated individual of any state
21 institution, including state hospitals and soldiers' homes, or any
22 institution, supported by the state and supported by public expense
23 therein, the expense of such burial and headstone shall be a charge upon
24 the county of [his or her] their legal residence.
25 § 5. Subdivision 3 of section 148 of the general municipal law, as
26 added by chapter 871 of the laws of 1948, is amended and a new subdivi-
27 sion 4 is added to read as follows:
28 3. Reports. (a) It shall be the duty of the person, association, or
29 commission in this section provided, [prior to the annual meeting of the
30 board of supervisors to] to promptly inform the commissioner of veter-
31 ans' services of their designation or appointment by the governing body
32 pursuant to subdivision one-a of this section, in a form and manner to
33 be prescribed by the commissioner.
34 (b) The person, association, or commission in this section provided,
35 shall make an annual report to such [board of supervisors] governing
36 body of all the applications since the last annual report for burial and
37 the erection of tombstones as provided herein, together with the amounts
38 allowed. All applications herein referred to shall accompany said annual
39 report and be placed and kept on file with the [board of supervisors]
40 governing body. A copy of the annual report shall be transmitted to the
41 memorial affairs coordinator and copies of any applications herein
42 referred shall be made available to the coordinator upon request.
43 4. Definitions. As used in this section:
44 (a) "governing body" means the board of supervisors or the elected
45 county legislative body of a county or the city council in the city of
46 New York; and
47 (b) "memorial affairs coordinator" or "coordinator" shall mean the
48 memorial affairs coordinator of the department of veterans' services
49 appointed under section forty-four of the veterans' services law.
50 § 6. Paragraph (f) of subdivision 1 of section 4203 of the public
51 health law, as amended by chapter 444 of the laws of 2010, is amended
52 and two new paragraphs (g) and (h) are added to read as follows:
53 (f) "local veterans' service agencies" shall [have the meaning set
54 forth in section three hundred fifty-seven of the executive law] mean a
55 county or a city veterans' service agency established under section
56 fourteen of the veterans' services law.
A. 11294 5
1 (g) "state veterans' cemeteries" means a cemetery established under
2 section twenty-four of the veterans' services law.
3 (h) "memorial affairs coordinator" or "coordinator" shall mean the
4 memorial affairs coordinator of the department of veterans' services
5 appointed under section forty-four of the veterans' services law.
6 § 7. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 3 of section 4203 of the public
7 health law, as amended by chapter 34 of the laws of 2023, is amended to
8 read as follows:
9 (a) Notwithstanding any law or regulation to the contrary, nothing in
10 this section shall prevent a funeral director, undertaker or funeral
11 firm from sharing information with the United States department of
12 veterans affairs (VA), the department of veterans' services, a local
13 veterans' service agency, a veterans' service organization, a national
14 cemetery, or county veterans cemetery for the purpose of determining
15 whether the cremated or naturally organically reduced remains are those
16 of a veteran. If a funeral director, undertaker or funeral firm has
17 reason to believe that the remains belong to a veteran or other eligible
18 person as defined in section forty-four of the veterans' services law,
19 the funeral director, undertaker or funeral firm shall at a minimum
20 notify the department of veterans' services.
21 § 8. Paragraph (b) of subdivision 4 of section 4203 of the public
22 health law, as added by chapter 444 of the laws of 2010, is amended and
23 a new paragraph (c) is added to read as follows:
24 (b) The method of disposition shall be made pursuant to section
25 forty-two hundred two of this title in a national cemetery, a county
26 veterans cemetery, a state veterans cemetery, a section of a cemetery
27 corporation where veterans are memorialized by a veteran's marker if
28 eligible, a veterans' section of a cemetery corporation or a veterans'
29 cemetery if the deceased veteran is eligible for interment in such a
30 manner.
31 (c) If a funeral director, undertaker or funeral firm does not relin-
32 quish possession of the cremated or naturally organically reduced
33 remains to a veterans' service organization, such funeral director,
34 undertaker or funeral firm shall, before disposing of the remains,
35 notify the memorial affairs coordinator and the Director of the United
36 States Department of Veterans Affairs regional office for the area in
37 which the veteran died and work with such coordinator or director to
38 immediately complete arrangements for burial of such veteran in a
39 national cemetery or, State or Tribal veterans cemetery.
40 § 9. Subdivisions 6 and 7 of section 4203 of the public health law, as
41 amended by chapter 34 of the laws of 2023, are amended to read as
42 follows:
43 6. The estate of the decedent shall be responsible for reimbursing a
44 funeral director, undertaker, funeral firm or veterans' service organ-
45 ization for all reasonable expenses incurred in relation to the disposi-
46 tion of such cremated or naturally organically reduced remains. Where
47 the decedent has died without leaving sufficient means to defray the
48 cost of funeral and burial expenses, the memorial affairs coordinator
49 shall offer assistance to a funeral director, undertaker, funeral firm
50 or veterans' service organization in obtaining any reimbursement to
51 which such individuals or organizations may be entitled under federal or
52 state law.
53 7. A funeral director, undertaker or funeral firm shall establish and
54 maintain a record identifying the veterans' service organization receiv-
55 ing the cremated or naturally organically reduced remains and the site
56 designated for final disposition of the cremated or naturally organ-
A. 11294 6
1 ically reduced remains. A copy of such record shall be transmitted to
2 the memorial affairs coordinator.
3 § 10. Nothing in this act shall be construed as affecting the lawful
4 designation of a proper person, association or commission pursuant to
5 section 148 of the general municipal law made prior to the effective
6 date of this act. A person, association, or commission so designated
7 shall inform the commissioner of veterans' services of their desig-
8 nation, by the governing body of the county, or the board of estimate in
9 the city of New York or such other person or body lawfully acting in
10 place of the former board of estimate in the city of New York, in a form
11 and manner to be prescribed by the commissioner of veterans' services,
12 within thirty days of the effective date of this act.
13 § 11. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day
14 after it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition,
15 amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the
16 implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be
17 made and completed on or before such effective date.
