New authority to provide outer burial receptacles

February 18, 2025

The National Cemetery Administration and Veterans Affairs are implementing a new authority to provide outer burial receptacles (OBRs) for graves with casketed burials in VA grant-funded cemeteries. OBRs reduce maintenance costs at cemeteries by preventing the ground over and around the casket from sinking and by preventing grave headstones from sinking or tilting. Further, OBRs assure the continuation of regular surface contours in cemeteries, advancing both aesthetic and public safety purposes. Read more about this benefit on page 13 in the November 2024 issue of Army Echoes, located here: https://soldierforlife.army.mil/Documents/echoes/latest.pdf