HB53: HB53 Georgia veterans; allow certain persons to be buried in Georgia veterans cemeteries

Currently, Georgia veterans cemeteries generally follow federal eligibility rules for burial, which exclude most National Guard and other reserve component members unless they meet stricter federal cemetery standards. A 2021 federal law, the Burial Equity for Guards and Reserves Act, lets states expand who can be buried in state-owned veterans cemeteries without losing federal cemetery grants, and about 25 other states have already updated their laws to take advantage of this. This bill amends Georgia's veterans cemetery law (O.C.G.A. § 38-4-70) to add reserve component members who completed a full term of honorable service, ROTC members who died honorably while serving, and their spouses and children as eligible for burial, as long as the death occurred on or after August 1, 1990. It also lets the Department of Veterans Service charge a burial fee, since the federal government does not provide a plot allowance or marker for these burials at state cemeteries.

• Adds reserve component members (Army Reserve, Navy Reserve, Marine Corps Reserve, Air Force Reserve, Space Force Reserve, Coast Guard Reserve, Army and Air National Guard) as eligible for burial in Georgia veterans cemeteries if they completed a full term of honorable service.
• Extends eligibility to spouses, minor children, and unmarried adult children of qualifying reserve members and ROTC members.
• Makes ROTC members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, or Space Force who died honorably while serving eligible for burial.
• Limits this expanded eligibility to deaths occurring on or after August 1, 1990.
• Authorizes the Department of Veterans Service to charge a fee for burial services, based on the national cemetery burial allowance or another amount the commissioner sets.
• Adds legal definitions for 'full term' of service and 'reserve component' to the veterans cemetery law.

National Guard and reserve component members of the U.S. armed forces, ROTC members, and their spouses and children; the Department of Veterans Service, which manages eligibility and cemetery operations; and families seeking burial services at Georgia veterans cemeteries.

Reservists and National Guard members who serve honorably but do not qualify for national cemetery burial would gain access to Georgia veterans cemeteries, along with their families. Georgia would also start charging burial fees for these services, since the federal government doesn't cover plot allowances or markers for this group.

• Section 1 states legislative findings, including that federal law now allows states to expand veterans cemetery eligibility for reserve members without losing federal cemetery grants.
• Section 2 rewrites O.C.G.A. § 38-4-70 to define 'full term' and 'reserve component' and to add reserve members, ROTC members, and their families as eligible for burial.
• Section 2 restricts the new eligibility category to individuals who died on or after August 1, 1990 and completed a full term of service.
• Section 2 authorizes the Department of Veterans Service to charge burial fees, tied to the national cemetery burial allowance or another amount set by the commissioner.
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2025-05-13Effective Date 2025-07-01
2. 2025-05-13Act 179
3. 2025-05-13House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2025-04-07House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2025-03-27House Agreed Senate Amend or Sub (House)
6. 2025-03-25Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate)
7. 2025-03-25Senate Third Read (Senate)
8. 2025-03-21Senate Read Second Time (Senate)

• Josh Bonner (R, HD-073)Primary sponsor
• Charles Cannon (R, HD-172)
• David Clark (R, HD-100)
• Bethany Ballard (R, HD-147)
• Brian Prince (D, HD-132)
• Noelle Kahaian (R, HD-081)
• Ricky Williams (R, SD-025)

1. PassedHouse voteFebruary 20, 2025

   164 yea, 0 nay (13 not voting, 3 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #48

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 25, 2025

   54 yea, 0 nay (1 not voting, 1 absent)

   Passage By Substitute: Senate Vote #279

3. PassedHouse voteMarch 27, 2025

   163 yea, 0 nay (4 not voting, 13 absent)

   Agree To Senate Substitute: House Vote #327

• veterans cemeteries
• National Guard
• military reserves
• veterans benefits