The Overview
If a loved one who served dies, Pennsylvania now gives your funeral director 96 hours to tell the county veterans office, so your family hears about the burial benefits it may be owed. The law, "An Act amending Title 51 (Military Affairs) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, in Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, providing for burial benefits," applies to licensed funeral directors and funeral entities, and it took effect Sept. 18, 60 days after Gov. Josh Shapiro signed it July 20.
Cemetery companies carry the same duty only when they inter cremated remains and no funeral director or funeral entity was involved. PennWatch reported the aim is to make sure families hear about U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs burial benefits, which matters because the VA says its burial allowances help with only certain funeral, burial, plot or interment, and transportation costs, so families who pay upfront could be left with a bill.
The Debate
Sen. Doug Mastriano, a Republican, sponsored the bill, joined by nine co-sponsors: Republicans Rosemary Brown, Tracy Pennycuick, Kristin Phillips-Hill, Judy Ward, Cris Dush and Devlin Robinson, and Democrats Jay Costa, Wayne Fontana and Christine Tartaglione.
The Senate passed the bill 49 to zero on March 25, 2025. The House Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee advanced it 26 to zero on June 4, 2025. The Senate Appropriations Committee cleared it 22 to zero on March 24, 2025, and the Senate Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee reported it 11 to zero on Jan. 28, 2025.
What's Next
The enacted text does not establish a penalty for noncompliance, name an enforcement agency, or appropriate dedicated funding for the notification requirement. The bill is now state law as Act 42 of 2026, so the notification duty is already in force.
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