Bill
S 1318
Creates a time-limited program at ABMC to identify Jewish service members buried overseas with non-Jewish markers and replace them with accurate markers after proof and kin consent
Status (federal): Introduced April 7, 2025 (Sen. Jerry Moran). Referred to the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs; committee hearing May 21, 2025; ordered reported favorably July 30, 2025; Senate Report No. 119‑89 filed Oct 22, 2025 (Calendar No. 201); passed the Senate by unanimous consent Nov 20, 2025 and transmitted to the House. (A companion House bill is H.R. 2701.)
Note: the provided packet also included unrelated state-level material (Massachusetts S.B. 1318) that is not part of this federal measure. The summary below describes the federal S.1318.
Purpose and intent
- Directs the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) to establish a time‑limited program to identify American Jewish servicemembers buried in U.S. military cemeteries overseas whose grave markers incorrectly indicate a non‑Jewish religious symbol (typically a Latin cross), and to facilitate replacement with an accurate marker where appropriate.
Key provisions
- Establishes the “Fallen Servicemembers Religious Heritage Restoration Program” at ABMC.
- Duration: the program is to be carried out during the first 10 fiscal years after enactment.
- Contracts: each fiscal year ABMC shall seek to enter into a one‑year contract with a qualified nonprofit (defined as a 501(c)(3)) to perform identification, genealogical and archival research, and survivor outreach. Each contract is for $500,000.
- Authorization: $500,000 is authorized to be appropriated to ABMC for each fiscal year covered (i.e., up to $500,000 per year for 10 years).
- Priority: ABMC must prioritize organizations with demonstrated capability and expertise in this work.
- Definitions: “Covered member” means a deceased member of the Armed Forces who was Jewish and is buried in a U.S. military cemetery outside the United States under a marker that indicates the member was not Jewish.
- Practice safeguards: ABMC will replace mistaken markers; replacement requests require incontrovertible proof of the servicemember’s religion and consent from the next of kin (as described in committee materials).
Who is affected
- ABMC (administers program and awards contracts).
- Nonprofit genealogical/heritage organizations (eligible for prioritized contracts).
- Survivors, descendants, and communities of identified servicemembers.
- Visitors, historians, and stakeholders in ABMC’s 26 overseas cemeteries.
- The program targets an estimated pool of historically identified cases (committee materials cite about 900 WWI/WWII-era servicemembers buried under incorrect markers).
Potential impacts and considerations
- Financial: up to $500,000 annually authorized for contract work (total potential authorization up to $5 million over 10 years).
- Operational: mobilizes outside nonprofit expertise to perform archival research and family outreach that ABMC may not routinely conduct at scale.
- Cultural/historical: aims to correct historical errors and ensure religious heritage is accurately represented, contingent on proof and next‑of‑kin consent.
- Legal/administrative: ABMC has authority to replace incorrect markers; the bill formalizes a funded, time‑limited process to identify candidates and manage outreach.
Sponsors and cosponsors (selected)
- Sponsor: Sen. Jerry Moran (KS). Original cosponsors include Sens. Jacky Rosen, Richard Blumenthal, and John Cornyn; additional bipartisan cosponsors listed in committee report.
Related: Companion H.R. 2701; prior/similar measures referenced in the bill packet.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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