Oklahoma § 72-36 - Short title - Dignity in Burial Act

§ 72-36. Short title - Dignity in Burial Act

A. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Dignity in

Burial Act".

B. The Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs shall establish

a program to ensure a dignified burial for honorably discharged

veterans of the United States Armed Forces who, prior to death,

lacked the financial capacity to prepare for or to provide for an

interment or cremation befitting a veteran of the United States

Armed Forces. The program shall aid in obtaining any available

burial benefits from the United States Department of Veterans

Affairs or through private organizations. The program shall provide

a burial grant for any veteran or any person who qualifies for

reimbursement, as determined by the Oklahoma Department of Veterans

Affairs, for unpaid expenses directly resulting from interment or

cremation. The maximum amount of reimbursement, not including

private funds, shall not exceed One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) per

application.

C. Eligibility requirements for the program shall be as

follows:

1. The deceased shall be a veteran as defined in Section 2 of

Title 72 of the Oklahoma Statutes;

2. The veteran shall have died in Oklahoma;

3. The veteran shall not have been in the custody of the

Department of Corrections at the time of death;

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 72. Soldiers and Sailors

4. The applicant shall provide documentation establishing the

burial location of the deceased veteran's remains in a cemetery or

the location where the deceased veteran's cremains have been

permanently placed;

5. The applicant shall provide documentation establishing that

the deceased veteran was provided an appropriate casket if the

deceased veteran was interred; and

6. The applicant shall provide documentation establishing that

the deceased veteran received a proper memorial headstone or marker

at the place of his or her interment as provided in 38 U.S.C.,

Section 2306 or that a memorial headstone or marker meeting the same

physical standards for size, material, composition, placement, and

informational content was provided in the event the deceased veteran

did not qualify under the provisions of 38 U.S.C., Section 2306.

D. The Executive Director of the Oklahoma Department of

Veterans Affairs or his or her designee shall make final approval of

the Dignity in Burial Act applications, shall determine whether the

deceased meets eligibility criteria, and may approve funds to

reimburse the costs of interment or cremation.

E. Reimbursement shall be paid from the Indigent Veteran Burial

Revolving Fund provided in Section 34 of Title 72 of the Oklahoma

Statutes. If there are insufficient resources in the Indigent

Veteran Burial Revolving Fund, payment shall be made from the

Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs Revolving Fund.

F. An application process for the implementation of this

program shall be developed by the Oklahoma Department of Veterans

Affairs.

G. Rules for the implementation of this program shall be

promulgated by the Oklahoma Veterans Commission.

Added by Laws 2022, c. 90, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2022.

NOTE: Editorially renumbered from § 72.35 of this title to avoid a

duplication in numbering.