§ 354-b. New York state supplemental burial allowance for members of the armed forces of the United States killed in combat or duty subject to hostile fire or imminent danger, as defined in 37 USC § 310. 1. As used in this section, "parent" means a father, a mother, a father through adoption, a mother through adoption, or an individual who, for a period of not less than one year, at any time before the decedent's entry into active military service stood in the relationship of a parent to a decedent who died in combat or duty subject to hostile fire or imminent danger, as defined in 37 USC § 310, or who died from a wound incurred in combat or while serving on duty subject to hostile fire or imminent danger, as defined in 37 USC § 310 or, if two persons stood in the relationship of a parent for one year or more, the person who bore the expenses of the funeral of the decedent. 2. As used in this section, (a) "wound" means a physical injury to a servicemember on active duty caused by (i) a bullet, shrapnel, or other projectile; (ii) a mine or trap; (iii) an explosion; (iv) a vehicle or aircraft accident not caused by the servicemember's willful misconduct; or (v) any other action caused or induced by the enemy directly resulting in physical harm to the servicemember.

(b) "burial receptacle" means (i) a casket, which shall mean a rigid container that is designed for the encasement of human remains and customarily ornamented and lined with fabric, (ii) an urn, which shall mean a container of wood, metal, pottery, or other material designed for the storage of cremated human remains, and/or (iii) an outer burial receptacle, which shall mean a graveliner, burial vault, or other similar type of container for the placement of a casket or urn. 3. There is hereby established within the division a New York state supplemental burial allowance for any member of the armed forces of the United States who: (a) died in combat or duty subject to hostile fire or imminent danger, as defined in 37 USC § 310 or died from a wound incurred in combat or while serving on duty subject to hostile fire or imminent danger, as defined in 37 USC § 310, other than the exceptions noted in paragraphs (d), (e) and (f) of subdivision four of this section, and (b) who was (i) a resident of New York state at the time of his or her death or (ii) a nonresident of New York state at the time of his or her death and a member of the New York Army National Guard or New York Air National Guard at the time he or she entered title 10, United States Code, federal active duty status during which period of service he or she died. 4. (a) The purpose of the program is to administer and monitor a supplemental allowance program to aid families of military personnel who died in combat or duty subject to hostile fire or imminent danger, as defined in 37 USC § 310, or died from a wound incurred in combat or duty subject to hostile fire or imminent danger, as defined in 37 USC § 310, with respect to expenses incurred in connection with the decedent's funeral and the burial, burial receptacle, cremation, or other interment of the decedent's remains.

(b) Eligible recipients under this program shall be those who bore the cost of the decedent's funeral and burial, burial receptacle, cremation, or other interment, in the following order of priority: (i) a surviving spouse or domestic partner of the decedent; (ii) adult children of the decedent, to include step-children and adopted children; (iii) parents or grandparents of the decedent, and parents-in-law or grandparents-in-law of the decedent; (iv) brothers or sisters of the decedent, to include brothers or sisters adopted by the decedent's immediate family and brothers or sisters with whom the decedent shares only one parent in common, and brothers-in-law or sisters-in-law of the decedent; (v) aunts, uncles, and first cousins of the decedent; and (vi) any other relative. Any applicant convicted of making any false statement in the application for the reimbursement shall be subject to the penalties prescribed in the penal law.

(c) Such burial allowance is a partial reimbursement of an eligible decedent's funeral and burial, burial receptacle, cremation or other interment costs. The reimbursement is generally applicable to two components: (i) funeral expenses, and (ii) expenses arising from the burial, burial receptacle, cremation, or other interment of the decedent's remains. Any allowance granted by the government of the United States, pursuant to 38 U.S.C. § 2301, 2302, 2303, 2306, 2307 and 2308 or 10 U.S.C. § 1482, or by the decedent's state of residence in the case of an allowance eligible pursuant to subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (b) of subdivision three of this section, shall be first applied toward funeral and burial, burial receptacle, cremation or other interment costs. The state may award an allowance of up to six thousand dollars to cover any remaining expenses.

(d) The state shall not award any funds from this allowance to reimburse any costs for the headstone, grave marker, or medallion of the decedent.

(e) The state shall not grant supplemental burial allowance payments for the funeral or the burial, burial receptacle, cremation, or other interment of remains of any decedent whose relations received any reimbursement from this allowance for any previous funeral or burial, burial receptacle, cremation, or other interment of remains for this same decedent.

(f) The state shall not grant supplemental burial allowance payments for any person filing a completed application for such allowance with the state later than: (i) two years after the applicant received final written notice from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs regarding an application for reimbursement of funeral or burial, burial receptacle, cremation or other interment expenses pursuant to 38 U.S.C.§§ 2301, 2302, 2303, 2306, 2307, or 2308, or 10 U.S.C.§ 1482, or any combination thereof; or (ii) two years after the expiration date of the filing deadline to apply for reimbursement of funeral, burial, burial receptacle, cremation or other interment expenses from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, as defined in 38 U.S.C. § 2304, if the applicant never applied for reimbursement of funeral, burial, burial receptacle, cremation or interment expenses from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. Any applications received subsequent to these prescribed periods shall be denied as time-barred.

(g) Any family members of an individual who died after September eleventh, two thousand one for whom the time limitations described in paragraph (f) of this subdivision have expired, and who prior to the effective date of this paragraph did not receive reimbursement under this section but would have qualified if the criteria in paragraph (a) of this subdivision had been in effect at the time of the decedent's death, shall have two years from the effective date of this paragraph to file a completed application for this supplemental burial allowance with the state director. Any application filed under this paragraph and received subsequent to this two-year period shall be denied as time-barred.

(h) Applicants shall furnish evidence of the decedent's military service and relevant after action reports or other documents explaining why the application meets eligibility requirements for each case in the manner and form prescribed by the state director or his or her designee. Upon being satisfied that the facts in the application are true, the state director or his or her designee shall certify to the state comptroller the name and address of such recipient. The decision of the state director or designee on all matters regarding any payment from this allowance shall be final.

(i) The state director shall submit a report to the governor, the chairperson of the senate finance committee, and the chairperson of the assembly ways and means committee not later than January fifteenth of each year in which this section is in effect. Such report shall include, but not be limited to, regulations promulgated pursuant to this section, allowances paid, and an account of the monies spent and the relationship of the distributees to the decedent.