{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://shuster.house.gov/index.cfm?sectionid=49&itemid=813", "Shuster's Legislation to Honor Fallen Veterans Passes House", "2016-12-06", "2016", "2016-12", "Republican", "House", "PA", "Bill Shuster", "S001154", "shuster.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, DC\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Congressman Bill Shuster\u2019s (R-Hollidaysburg) measure, the Dignified Interment of our Veterans Act, was included in H.R. 6416, the Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act on Tuesday. H.R. 6416 passed with Shuster\u2019s support.\u00a0A similar version of the legislation has been introduced by Senator Toomey (R-PA) in the Senate.\r\n\r\n\t\u201cWe should never forget our heroes that protect this nation, and it is tragic that the remains of thousands of our veterans are sitting on shelves collecting dust,\u201d said Congressman Shuster. \u201cMy measure will take the steps needed to begin addressing this issue by finding the full scope of the problem and laying the groundwork to develop a plan to ensure our veterans get the burials they all deserve.\u201d\r\n\r\n\t\u201cWhen our veterans pass away, they should be honored in a way that reflects the bravery and sacrifice they showed in defending our country,\u201d said Senator Toomey. \u201cI believe Congress needs to better understand the problems surrounding the VA\u2019s process of recovering veterans\u2019 cremated, unclaimed remains and develop a plan of action to help resolve this issue. Our veterans deserve it.\u201d\r\n\r\n\tCongressman Shuster\u2019s Dignified Interment of our Veterans Act will help address the major problem of thousands of unclaimed veterans remains across the country by directing the Department of Veterans Affairs to conduct a study aimed at identifying the underlying causes that prevent the timely claiming and interring of veteran remains. The measure will also generate recommendations for improvement.\u00a0\r\n\r\n\tAccording to the Missing in America Project (MIAP) there are an estimated 47,000 veterans remains stored throughout the United States that have yet to be claimed. This legislation is the first step in addressing this issue so no veteran is left without the proper burial they deserve.\r\n\r\n\tEarlier this session of Congress, Shuster\u2019s legislation passed the House as a standalone measure and Senator Toomey had a similar version pass in the Senate. The differences between the two were negotiated and the final version was included in today\u2019s veterans legislative package.\r\n\r\n\t###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://shuster.house.gov/index.cfm?sectionid=49&itemid=813"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8986168541014194, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}