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burialstate

A State Grave Marker — Ordered by Your County Service Officer

The commissioner of veterans affairs may provide a marker to permanently mark the grave of a veteran buried inside Minnesota. The request must come from a county veterans service officer or a chartered veterans organisation.

Verified August 23, 2026

What this benefit is

The commissioner of veterans affairs may provide a marker to permanently mark the grave of a veteran buried inside Minnesota. The request must come from a county veterans service officer or a chartered veterans organisation.

What it's worth: A grave marker provided by the State, within available funds

  • The statute names no dollar figure and no maximum. It authorises the commissioner to provide markers "within available funds", so the benefit is a marker rather than a sum of money.
  • The weight stands for the rough cost of a modest privately bought grave marker, not for anything the statute promises. A family that already has a federal marker on the way gains nothing here.
  • Because funding is the stated limit, availability in a given year is a question for the county service officer rather than something the statute settles.

Who is entitled to it

  • You are the veteran, or a family member arranging the grave.
  • Your home is in Minnesota.

Not sure whether that describes you?

Answer a few questions about this benefit specifically — we only ask what this one actually depends on, and we stop as soon as we know.

How to claim it

  1. 1Go to the county veterans service officer, not to the State. The statute lets the commissioner act only on the request of a county veterans service officer or a congressionally chartered veterans organisation.
  2. 2A veterans organisation you already belong to is the other lawful route — a chartered post can make the request in place of the county office.
  3. 3Check the burial location first. The statute reaches a grave of a veteran buried within the limits of the state, so an out-of-state burial is outside it.
  4. 4Confirm the veteran meets the definition in Minn. Stat. §197.447, which is the definition §197.23 uses rather than a separate test of its own.
  5. 5Ask about the federal marker in the same conversation. The two are different programmes, and the officer can tell you which one is actually being ordered for the grave in front of you.
  6. 6Ask specifically whether funds are available this year. "Within available funds" is a real condition in the statute, not boilerplate.
File with
Your county veterans service officer
Documents you will need
dd214
No renewal
Once granted it does not need renewing.
CorrectionThis is not a benefit a family applies for. The request has to come from a county veterans service officer or a congressionally chartered veterans organisation, so the first call is to that office rather than to the department.
Worth knowingThe statutory purpose is memorial — permanently marking the grave. It is worth asking the service officer whether the grave already has, or is entitled to, a federal marker before a state marker is requested.
Known gapThe statute sets no dollar amount, no marker specification and no annual cap, and it makes the whole thing conditional on available funds. None of those operating figures are published in the statute, so ask the county office what is actually available this year.

Sources

This finder provides an informational match, not a government eligibility determination. The responsible agency decides your application.