WASHINGTON, D.C. – Montana’s Congressman, Denny Rehberg, sent a letter to Veterans Affairs Secretary Shinseki and Acting Under Secretary for Memorial Affairs Steve L. Muro urging them to re-evaluate the methodology used to establish new National Veterans Cemeteries.  Montana does not currently have a national cemetery even though it’s home to one of the highest per capita veterans populations in the country.  The Yellowstone County Veterans Cemetery (YCVC), a state veterans cemetery, has consistently been passed over for national designation as a result of urban-centric standards that don’t work in rural states like Montana.

“While Montana has four state veterans cemeteries, the fact that we’re consistently denied a national cemetery because of our rural nature is unacceptable,” said Rehberg, a member of the House Appropriations Committee. “A veteran’s service is no less honorable because they choose to live in a rural state instead of a large city.  Montana’s veterans deserve a national cemetery.  We know western states are underserved, but so far the VA just isn’t getting the message.”

Last year, Rehberg introduced legislation directing the Department of Veterans Affairs to determine if certain areas of the country are insufficiently served by the national cemeteries in their regions.  H.R. 1114 would instruct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a process to consider factors such as the number of vets in an area, how far they must travel to the nearest national cemetery, the availability of public transportation, the average cost of transport and other information. Currently, the VA requires a new national cemetery if a veteran population of 170,000 or more isn’t served by a national cemetery within a 75-mile radius.

The Department of Veterans Affairs National Cemetery Administration maintains 128 national cemeteries in 39 states (and Washington, D.C.). There are no active national cemeteries in Montana, Wyoming, Idaho or North Dakota. American Veterans and their spouses are afforded the honor of being buried at national and state cemeteries.

“This letter complements my legislation in drawing attention to this critical issue for Montana vets,” said Rehberg.  “They fought valiantly for all of us, the least I can do is fight for them in Congress.”

LETTER:

In November 2006, the voters of Yellowstone County, Montana made a commitment to honor America’s veterans by supporting the permanent mill levy that funds the Yellowstone County Veterans Cemetery (YCVC).  This cemetery, built to national standards and with room for expansion, is an ideal location for a national veterans cemetery that can serve veterans living in that State of Montana and the surrounding region.  However, Yellowstone County’s efforts and the needs of Montana’s veterans are being casually dismissed by the Veterans Administration and its urban-centric policies.
Recently, I received a study prepared by The National Cemetery Administration (NCA) regarding the feasibility of incorporating the YCVC as a national veterans cemetery. I was deeply disappointed to discover that the metric utilized by the NCA to determine feasibility applies an urban mindset to our rural state and does not accurately reflect the number of veterans who would be served by a veterans cemetery located in Yellowstone County.

The NCA’s current policy dictates that an area qualifies for a national cemetery only if there are 80,000 veterans living within a 75-mile radius of the cemetery.  This distance based calculation may be effective for evaluating the needs of urban areas, but in a state as vast, rural and isolated as Montana, a 75-mile drive is considered routine.  This calculation is particularly laughable when you consider that more than twenty-percent of Montana’s veterans live more than 75-miles away from a primary care VA medical facility but those veterans are not considered underserved.

While I appreciate the support that the VA has provided to Montana’s four state veterans cemeteries through the State Cemetery Grants Program (SCGP), the lack of a national cemetery in this area is an egregious oversight on the part of the VA. And as the sponsor of H.R. 1114, I respectfully request that the NCA re-examine this report and their decision not to incorporate the YCVC as a national veterans cemetery.  

Any report that applies an urban-centric methodology to rural states and does not take into consideration the geography and lifestyle of the area does a great disservice to our veterans and their legacy.  I have no doubt that if the YCVC is incorporated as a national veterans cemetery, it will serve not only the 104,000 veterans living in Montana, but the thousands of veterans living in nearby areas of Wyoming, Idaho and North Dakota as well. 

The voters of Yellowstone County did the right thing for Montana’s veterans when they built the cemetery to national veterans cemetery standards, and it is my sincere hope that the NCA will echo this commitment and evaluate our need for a national cemetery based on more than just numbers on a spreadsheet. 

If you have any further questions or would like more information, please do not hesitate to contact my office at (202) 225-3211.