On July 13, 2023, U.S. Senators Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) and Martin Heinrich (D-NM) introduced the New Mexico Veteran Burial Dignity and Honor Act, a legislation aimed at honoring and commemorating U.S. veterans with dignity and respect. The proposed act seeks to repeal a 1999 provision that permitted the use of flat gravestones at the Santa Fe National Cemetery and instead, replace them with upright markers, symbolizing a more dignified tribute to the veterans according to a press release.
“New Mexico has a proud legacy of service and it’s our duty to honor and commemorate our veterans and their families,” Luján said in a press release.
Luján visited the Santa Fe National Cemetery, where he honored the lives and sacrifices of those buried there.
According to a press release, Luján continued, “On my recent visit to the Santa Fe National Cemetery, I was proud to stand alongside veterans and families in remembering the brave New Mexicans, who fought for freedom and chose Santa Fe as their final resting place. This legislation reinforces the Santa Fe National Cemetery’s stature as a national shrine and fixes an inequity created by the 1999 provision that required a small percentage of veterans buried in the Cemetery to have flat headstones.”
Luján's cosponsor, Heinrich, had this to say on the legislation.
“New Mexico’s fallen heroes deserve our full respect and honor. That includes a final resting place with the traditional, upright grave markers that are synonymous with all of our national cemeteries—from Arlington to Santa Fe,” said Heinrich in the same press release. “I am proud to stand with New Mexico’s veterans and military families to restore this tradition for the men and women laid to rest in Santa Fe who answered our nation’s call to duty.”