"I AM COMMITTED TO SEEING THIS CEMETERY THROUGH TO OPENING"

Washington, Feb 5, 2007 - "I am pleased to see that the President's budget calls for $22.4 million to build the national veterans' cemetery in Jacksonville," stated Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-Sixth). "Each year we need to ensure funding for this new cemetery, and as a senior member of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, I am committed to seeing this cemetery through to opening." The 569-acre cemetery is set to open in 2009 for burials.

Since 1996, Stearns has offered legislation to establish a new veterans cemetery in Jacksonville. His language for this cemetery was enacted in 2003. "Florida has the second largest veterans population, which continues to grow each day," explained Stearns. "When the Jacksonville area VA cemetery was approved in Congress, there were 325,000 veterans in the area. Yet, the closest open cemetery is a three-hour drive away. This new cemetery will accommodate veterans and their loved ones in north Florida and south Georgia, providing a final tribute to their service to our country."