,i  #aaith ,,congress  #ast ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #fiba  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,december #bc1       
#bjbe,mr4 ,case 7for himself and ,ms4   
,tokuda7 introduced the following bill2 
which was referred to the ,committee on 
,veterans' ,affairs  ,a ,,bill  ,to     
require the ,secretary of ,veterans     
,affairs to establish a new national    
cemetery in the ,state of ,hawai'i1 and 
for other purposes4  #a4 ,short title   
,this ,act may be cited as the ,hawai#8i
 ,national ,cemetery ,act4  #b4         
,findings ,congress finds the following3
 7#a7 ,veterans1 members of the ,armed  
,forces1 spouses1 and dependents may be 
eligible for burial in a national       
cemetery pursuant to regulations        
prescribed under section #bdjb of title 
#ch1 ,united ,states ,code4  7#b7       
,according to the ,national ,cemetery   
,administration ,strategic ,plan and    
,performance ,goals1 the ,secretary of  
,veterans ,affairs seeks to ensure that 
#ie percent of veterans live within #ge 

miles of a national1 ,state1 or ,tribal 
veterans cemetery4  7#c7 ,the ,national 
,cemetery ,administration's ,long ,range
 ,plan1 as detailed in the budget       
submission of the ,department of        
,veterans ,affairs for fiscal year      
#bjbf1 sets goals that seek to improve  
burial benefits1 including the          
following3 7,a7 ,veterans and eligible  
family members will have increased      
access to burial benefits4  7,b7 ,more  
veterans and eligible family members    
will use such burial and memorial       
benefits4  7,c7 ,veterans will be       
memorialized through enhanced tributes  
befitting their service and sacrifice to
 the ,nation4  7,d7 ,stakeholders will  
place greater trust in the ,national    
,cemetery ,administration based on      
enhanced accountability4  7,e7          
,stakeholders will be served more       
efficiently and effectively by internal 
capacity of the ,national ,cemetery     
,administration4  7#d7 ,the goals       
described in paragraph 7#c7 do not      

account for veterans in ,hawai#8i who   
prefer to be buried in a national       
cemetery even if other options exist4   
,hawai#8i's only national cemetery1 the 
,national ,memorial ,cemetery of the    
,pacific1 has been essentially closed to
 casketed burials since #aiia and will  
stop accepting cremated remains by      
#bjcf4 ,should a veteran in ,hawai#8i   
prefer an inground burial in a national 
cemetery1 they are forced to select a   
cemetery at least #b1ejj miles away4    
,this distance can create significant   
financial and logistical burdens        
compared to veterans in the continental 
,united ,states1 as air travel that is  
often cost-prohibitive is required for  
casket transportation and visitation4   
7#e7 ,to maintain equitable access to   
burial benefits in a national cemetery  
for veterans residing in ,hawai#8i1 the 
,secretary of ,veterans ,affairs must   
initiate the construction of a new      
national cemetery in ,hawai#8i to       
supplement the remaining columbarium    

space at the ,national ,memorial        
,cemetery of the ,pacific4 ,the work    
should begin immediately1 as developing 
a new national cemetery must pass       
through six phases and such a cemetery  
can take more than eight years to       
construct4  7#f7 ,while ,hawai#8i is    
home to many great ,state ,veterans     
,cemeteries1 establishment of a new     
national cemetery would align with the  
,national ,cemetery ,administration's   
access goals and increase options for   
veterans and other beneficiaries in the 
,pacific4  #c4 ,establishment of new    
national cemetery in the ,state of      
,hawai#8i  7a7 ,establishment ,in       
accordance with chapter #bd of title    
#ch1 ,united ,states ,code1 and the     
,national ,environmental ,policy ,act of
 #aifi 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #dcba et seq471   
the ,secretary of ,veterans ,affairs    
shall establish a new national cemetery 
in the ,state of ,hawai#8i4  7b7 ,site  
selection ,in selecting a location for  
the national cemetery described in      

subsection 7a71 the ,secretary shall--  
7#a7 give priority to a location that-- 
7,a7 is near population centers2  7,b7  
is accessible by existing modes of      
transportation2 and  7,c7 minimizes     
environmental impact2 and  7#b7 consult 
with-- 7,a7 the ,governor of ,hawai#8i2 
7,b7 local representatives of veterans  
service organizations2 and  7,c7 other  
entities the ,secretary determines      
appropriate4  7c7 ,reports  7#a7        
,potential sites ,not later than one    
year after the date of the enactment of 
this ,act1 the ,secretary shall submit  
to the appropriate congressional        
committees a report identifying sites   
that the ,secretary determines          
appropriate for the national cemetery   
described in subsection 7a74  7#b7      
,progress reports ,not later than two   
years after the date of the enactment of
 this ,act1 and annually thereafter     
until the national cemetery described in
 subsection 7a7 is operational1 the     
,secretary shall submit to the          

appropriate congressional committees a  
report regarding the establishment of   
such national cemetery1 including       
progress regarding the following        
elements3 7,a7 ,site selection4  7,b7   
,environmental impact assessment4  7,c7 
,land acquisition4  7,d7 ,master        
planning and design development4  7,e7  
,preparation of construction documents4 
7,f7 ,award of construction contracts4  
7,g7 ,completion of construction4  7,h7 
,beginning of operations4  7d7          
,appropriate congressional committees   
defined ,in this section1 the term      
appropriate congressional committees    
means-- 7#a7 the ,committee on          
,veterans' ,affairs of the ,senate2 and 
7#b7 the ,committee on ,veterans'       
,affairs of the ,house of               
,representatives4