Establishing A Grant Program for Cemetery Research and Producing Educational Materials

Floor Speech

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Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2385) to permit the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a grant program to conduct cemetery research and produce educational materials for the Veterans Legacy Program, as amended.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 2385

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. GRANTS FOR CEMETERY RESEARCH AND THE PRODUCTION OF EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS.

(a) Grants Authorized.--

(1) In general.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may establish a grant program to conduct cemetery research and produce educational materials for the Veterans Legacy Program.

(2) Eligible recipients.--The Secretary may award a grant under this section to any of the following entities:

(A) An institution of higher learning.

(B) A local education agency.

(C) A non-profit entity that the Secretary determines has a demonstrated history of community engagement.

(D) Another recipient the Secretary determines to be appropriate.

(3) Use of funds.--A recipient of a grant under this section may use the grant amount to--

(A) conduct research related to national, State, or Tribal veterans' cemeteries;

(B) produce education materials that teach about the history of veterans interred in national, State, or Tribal veterans' cemeteries; and

(C) promote community engagement with the histories of veterans interred in national, State, or Tribal veterans' cemeteries.

(4) Maximum amount.--A grant awarded under this section may not exceed $500,000.

(b) Regulations.--If the Secretary establishes a grant program under this section, the Secretary shall prescribe regulations regarding--

(1) the evaluation of applications for grants under the program; and

(2) administration of the program.

(c) Report Required.--Not later than two years after the Secretary establishes a grant program under this section, the Secretary shall submit to the committees on Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Senate a report regarding the determination of the Secretary whether the grant program is a financially effective means to promote the purposes in subsection (a)(3).

(d) Definitions.--In this section:

(1) The term ``Veterans Legacy Program'' means the program of the National Cemetery Administration that is responsible for providing engagement and educational tools and opportunities to the public regarding the service and sacrifice of veterans interred in national, State, or Tribal veterans' cemeteries.

(2) The term ``institution of higher learning'' has the meaning given that term in section 3452(f) of title 38, United States Code.

(3) The term ``local educational agency'' has the meaning given that term in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).

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Mr. TAKANO. 2385, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2385, as amended. This bill was introduced by Representative Conor Lamb, vice chair of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. It would permit the Secretary of the VA to use grants rather than Federal contracts to fund cemetery research programs and produce educational materials as part of the Veterans Legacy Program. Switching to a grant program would ease many administrative burdens associated with Federal contracts, allow for more timely payment, and broaden the reach of the program to smaller organizations.

The Veterans Legacy Program was launched by VA's National Cemetery Administration in order to resurrect the stories of veterans interred at national cemeteries, to educate future generations, and to honor the legacy of our Nation's heroes.

This program is a broad collection of public history materials that tell the story of America's veterans buried in national cemeteries. It supports the National Cemetery Administration's mission to honor and memorialize our veterans by creating educational materials that local educators can use to teach their students and others about the veterans buried in local cemeteries.

Currently, the National Cemetery Administration awards Federal contracts to colleges, universities, and other institutions to support the Veterans Legacy Program. These contract awards are used to develop specific curricula.

Eligible recipients of these contracts include institutions of higher learning, local education agencies, nonprofit entities the Secretary determines have a demonstrated history of community engagement, or any other recipient the Secretary deems appropriate.

Contract funds can also be used to conduct research related to national, State, or Tribal veterans' cemeteries and produce educational materials about or promote community engagement with the history of the veterans interred at those cemeteries. The maximum contract amount is $500,000. Presently, 16 separate contracts have been awarded, which have produced an impressive array of digital and nondigital resources.

Cemetery directors say that they are pleased to see students visiting the cemeteries as part of their studies. This renewed interest, by the young and old alike, revives the lives and stories of American veterans.

However, the National Cemetery Administration and the institutions of higher education that most often receive and utilize these contracts tell us that working with grants is much more efficient and easier for them to administer than contracts.

For instance, grants allow an award cycle that more closely aligns with the academic calendar of schools and colleges. Administrators of the Veterans Legacy Program said grant programs would help increase the reach of the program beyond large universities to smaller groups that want to become involved.

A grant program also allows for faster funding. Contracts involve a onetime payment for work at the end of the project. A grant configuration, however, would allow for fluid and regular payments throughout the course of the work.

Memorializing veterans is a primary responsibility of this committee, and we need to support innovative ideas for bringing energy and interest into national veterans' cemeteries. The Veterans Legacy Program is just that.

Those currently working with the program at the National Cemetery Administration, in institutions of higher learning, and in community groups tell us that a grant program, as opposed to a Federal contract program, would solve most, if not all, of the administrative problems related to accessing funds in a consistent and flexible way.

H.R. 2385 does that by simply allowing the VA to provide grant funding to the Veterans Legacy Program.

Mr. DAVID P. ROE of Tennessee.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2385, as amended. This bill, which is sponsored by Congressman Conor Lamb from Pennsylvania, a United States Marine Corps veteran, would authorize the Department of Veterans Affairs to award grants instead of contracts to educational organizations that research the lives of those who are interred in our Nation's cemeteries.

I thank Chairman Takano for the amendment he offered during the committee markup of this bill to include report language to ensure that Congress has the information needed to determine whether this grant program is financially sound.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R.

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Mr. TAKANO. 2385.

In closing, I do want to mention a couple of important stories related to the Veterans Legacy Program.

Earlier this year, Professor Hedge Coke of the University of California, Riverside presented testimony supporting H.R. 2385, as amended.

Her research on the veterans buried at the Riverside National Cemetery--by the way, the largest national cemetery in terms of its geography in my district. She developed teaching curricula for local teachers. She has remarkable energy in the remarkable attention that she has brought to the cemetery. Her students use her educational programs to revitalize the stories of the men and women buried there.

And, Mr. Speaker, at our hearing, Professor Hedge Coke told us that the Veterans Legacy Program doesn't just bring students and community members to the cemeteries; it takes the history of the cemeteries back to the classrooms. Undergraduates, graduate students, and recent alumni of UC Riverside go to local classrooms, from kindergarten through high school, to foster this programming.

She said that in almost every classroom, a good third of the students have significant ties to the cemetery they didn't know anything about. This allows discovery of family and neighborhood ties and encourages cultural development within the community.

To date, her program has produced dozens of lesson plans, and she has worked with over 2,700 students in local public schools, including the Sherman Indian High School.

I also want to say that one of the heroes that is buried at that cemetery, Riverside National Cemetery, is Ysmael ``Smiley'' Villegas from Casa Blanca, who earned the Medal of Honor by charging enemy foxholes in World War II. He was killed 1 day short of his 21st birthday.

Smiley Villegas' neighborhood, Casa Blanca, is a small neighborhood of about 225 families; yet this neighborhood of 225 families sent 254 troops to serve in World War II.

Mr. Speaker, the Veterans Legacy Program helps to memorialize veterans like Smiley and the enormous contributions of minority communities like Casa Blanca.

The program recently created an interactive web app and digital mapping of Riverside National Cemetery. It includes gravestone tributes from local students, along with information about the cemetery's construction, history, and notes of interest, such as Native American and indigenous American veterans buried there.

In Professor Hedge Coke's words: ``The Legacy Program delivers this terrific meeting of story and culture to the university, K-12 schools, and the surrounding cultures and communities that make up our region.''

Mr. Speaker, I wholeheartedly encourage all of my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 2385, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

The yeas and nays were ordered.

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