§2400. Establishment of National Cemetery System; composition of such system; appointment of director

(a) There shall be within the Department a National Cemetery System for the interment of deceased servicemembers and veterans. Such system shall be headed by the Director of the National Cemetery System, who shall perform such functions as may be assigned by the Secretary.

(b) The National Cemetery System shall consist of-

(1) national cemeteries transferred from the Department of the Army to the Veterans' Administration by the National Cemeteries Act of 1973;

(2) cemeteries under the jurisdiction of the Veterans' Administration on the date of enactment of this chapter; and

(3) any other cemetery, memorial, or monument transferred to the Veterans' Administration by the National Cemeteries Act of 1973, or later acquired or developed by the Secretary.

(Added Pub. L. 93–43, §2(a), June 18, 1973, 87 Stat. 75 , §1000; amended Pub. L. 99–576, title VII, §701(52), Oct. 28, 1986, 100 Stat. 3295 ; Pub. L. 100–527, §13(i), Oct. 25, 1988, 102 Stat. 2644 ; Pub. L. 101–237, title III, §313(b)(1), Dec. 18, 1989, 103 Stat. 2077 ; renumbered §2400 and amended Pub. L. 102–83, §§4(a)(3), (4), 5(a), Aug. 6, 1991, 105 Stat. 404 , 406.)

References in Text

The National Cemeteries Act of 1973, referred to in subsec. (b)(1), (3), is Pub. L. 93–43, June 18, 1973, 87 Stat. 75 , as amended, which is classified principally to this chapter (§2400 et seq.). For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 1 of Pub. L. 93–43 set out as a Short Title of 1973 Amendment note under section 101 of this title and Tables.

For national cemeteries transferred from the Department of the Army to the Veterans' Administration by the National Cemeteries Act of 1973, and any other cemetery, memorial, or monument transferred to the Veterans' Administration by the National Cemeteries Act of 1973, referred to in subsec. (b)(1), (3), see Transfer of Functions note set out under section 2404 of this title.

The date of enactment of this chapter, referred to in subsec. (b)(2), is the date of enactment of Pub. L. 93–43, which was approved June 18, 1973.

Amendments

1991-Pub. L. 102–83, §5(a), renumbered section 1000 of this title as this section.

Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 102–83, §4(a)(3), (4), substituted "Department" for "Veterans' Administration".

1989-Subsec. (b)(3). Pub. L. 101–237 substituted "Secretary" for "Administrator".

1988-Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 100–527 substituted "Such system shall be headed by the Director of the National Cemetery System, who shall perform such functions as may be assigned by the Secretary" for "The Administrator may appoint a Director, National Cemetery System, who shall perform such functions as may be assigned by the Administrator".

1986-Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 99–576 substituted "servicemembers" for "servicemen" and "The Administrator" for "To assist him in carrying out his responsibilities in administering the cemeteries within the System, the Administrator".

Effective Date of 1988 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 100–527 effective Mar. 15, 1989, see section 18(a) of Pub. L. 100–527, set out as a Department of Veterans Affairs Act note under section 301 of this title.

Effective Date

Section 10(a) of Pub. L. 93–43 provided that: "The first section [set out as a Short Title of 1973 Amendment note under section 101 of this title] and sections 2 [enacting this chapter and amending section 5316 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees], 3 [set out as a note under section 2404 of this title], 4 [enacting section 218 and repealing section 625 of this title], and 8 [amending section 3505 [now 6105] of this title] of this Act shall take effect on the date of enactment of this Act [June 18, 1973]."

Short Title

For short title of Pub. L. 93–43, June 18, 1973, 87 Stat. 75 , which enacted this chapter, as the "National Cemeteries Act of 1973", see section 1 of Pub. L. 93–43 set out as a Short Title of 1973 Amendment note under section 101 of this title.

Reports on National Cemetery System

Section 412 of Pub. L. 99–576 directed Administrator of Veterans' Affairs to submit to Committees on Veterans' Affairs of Senate and House of Representatives a report on National Cemetery System established by this section not later than 90 days after Oct. 28, 1986, and a second such report not later than 60 months after such date.

Authority To Establish National Cemeteries

Section 414 of Pub. L. 99–576 provided that:

"(a) Authority.-The authority of the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs under chapter 24 of title 38, United States Code, to develop and acquire cemeteries as part of the National Cemetery System includes, but is not limited to, the authority to establish additional national cemeteries to serve the needs of veterans and their families in-

"(1) San Francisco, California;

"(2) Chicago, Illinois;

"(3) Cleveland, Ohio;

"(4) Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania;

"(5) Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas;

"(6) Miami, Florida;

"(7) Seattle, Washington;

"(8) Atlanta, Georgia;

"(9) Phoenix/Tucson, Arizona;

"(10) Birmingham, Alabama; and

"(11) any other State in which a national cemetery is not available for the burial of veterans.

"(b) Land Acquisition.-The Administrator may acquire land necessary for a cemetery authorized by subsection (a) of this section by donation, purchase, condemnation, exchange of lands in the United States public domain, or otherwise."

Section Referred to in Other Sections

This section is referred to in section 307 of this title.