To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to furnish or replace a headstone, marker, or medallion for the grave of an eligible Medal of Honor recipient regardless of the recipient’s dates of service in the Armed Forces, and for other purposes.
Analysis under review: This bill has generated analysis that may be too generic or incomplete. Clause-level evidence remains available below.
Summary
What This Bill Does
The Mark Our Place Act expands eligibility for government-furnished headstones, markers, or medallions to honor all Medal of Honor recipients, regardless of when they served in the military. Previously, some recipients were excluded based on their dates of service.
Who Benefits and How
Medal of Honor recipients who served before certain eligibility cutoff dates, and their families, now qualify for government-provided memorial markers. Families of deceased Medal of Honor recipients from earlier military eras (such as the Civil War, World War I, or other historical conflicts) can now request headstones or medallions for their loved ones' graves at no cost. Veterans organizations also benefit from this expansion of honors for America's most decorated service members.
Who Bears the Burden and How
The Department of Veterans Affairs will see a modest increase in administrative costs and spending to provide these additional memorial markers. Federal taxpayers bear minimal additional costs, as the number of newly eligible recipients is relatively small given the Medal of Honor's rarity.
Key Provisions
- Removes eligibility restrictions based on dates of military service for Medal of Honor recipients seeking government-furnished headstones, markers, or medallions
- Ensures all Medal of Honor recipients, including those from historical conflicts, qualify for memorial benefits
- Makes a technical correction updating a statutory cross-reference from section 491 to section 2732
- Amends Section 2306(d)(5)(C) of title 38 of the United States Code
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Expands eligibility for government-furnished headstones, markers, or medallions to all Medal of Honor recipients regardless of their dates of military service.
Who Benefits
- Medal of Honor recipients (and their families) who previously fell outside eligibility windows
- Families of deceased Medal of Honor recipients from earlier eras
- Veterans organizations
Who Bears Costs
- Department of Veterans Affairs (modest administrative costs)
- Federal taxpayers (minimal additional spending)
Key Policy Areas
Veterans Affairs, Military Honors, Federal Benefits
Primary Purpose
Expands eligibility for government-furnished headstones, markers, or medallions to all Medal of Honor recipients regardless of their dates of military service.
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Remove service date restrictions to extend memorial benefits to all Medal of Honor recipients, including those who served before certain eligibility cutoff dates."
Identified Gains
- Medal of Honor recipients (and their families) who previously fell outside eligibility windows
- Families of deceased Medal of Honor recipients from earlier eras
- Veterans organizations
Identified Costs
- Department of Veterans Affairs (modest administrative costs)
- Federal taxpayers (minimal additional spending)
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
IntroducedMr. Braun (for himself, Mr. Brown, and Mr. Tester) introduced …
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Families of deceased Medal of Honor recipients from earlier military eras, Medal of Honor recipients who served before eligibility cutoff dates
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Veterans Affairs
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology