burialstate

State Veterans Memorial Cemeteries — Around $950 a Person, Not Free

Two state veterans memorial cemeteries, at Newton and Kilmichael, take veterans discharged under conditions other than dishonorable, together with spouses and dependants. Under the Burial Equity Act the family pays roughly $950 per person, plus $115 for a niche cover or $445 for a ground burial.

Verified August 22, 2026

What this benefit is

What it's worth: A veterans cemetery place at roughly $950 a person, plus $115 for a niche cover or $445 for ground burial

These are CHARGES, not savings. The figures are what the family pays the cemetery; the benefit is the difference between that and a private plot and interment, which the agency does not publish.
The agency describes the per-person figure as approximate and ties it to the Burial Equity Act effective 1 July 2024, so it is a current schedule rather than a permanent one.

Who is entitled to it

Interment runs to the veteran.
Spouses and dependants are eligible alongside the veteran.
Your discharge is under conditions other than dishonorable.
You are in this state.

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

1Budget for it. This is not a free burial: expect roughly $950 per person, plus $115 for a niche cover if the cremated remains go in the columbarium, or $445 for a ground burial of a casket or cremated remains.
2Have the payment method ready in the right form. The cemetery takes payment directly by cashier’s cheque or money order — not by card, and not through the funeral home’s account.
3Gather the deceased veteran’s DD-214 and discharge documents first, then choose the cemetery and the burial type before contacting anyone.
4Fax the discharge papers to the cemetery office. That is the step that starts the eligibility check.
5Coordinate with a funeral director for the rest. Burials happen Monday to Friday, so a death at a weekend sets the timetable back.
6The headstone, marker or medallion comes from the federal VA at no charge to you, and a family may ask for a commemorative plaque or urn instead. Ask about that before buying anything privately.

Form: Discharge papers faxed to the cemetery office, then arrangements through a funeral director
File with: The cemetery office at Newton or Kilmichael
Documents you will need: dd214
No renewal: Once granted it does not need renewing.

CorrectionThe single most costly assumption a family can make here is that a state veterans cemetery is free. It is not. Several states in this corpus bury a veteran without charge; this one charges roughly $950 a person under the Burial Equity Act, with a further $115 or $445 depending on the type of interment. Plan for it.

Worth knowingThe charge is per PERSON, so a veteran and a spouse interred in the same plot are two charges, not one.

Worth knowingTwo locations operate — Newton and Kilmichael — and each has its own office and telephone number, so deal with the one you have chosen rather than the agency’s central line.

Known gapThe Miss. Code section behind the cemeteries was not read this session; the agency’s page points at the 2024 bill rather than at codified law, and the state’s code is not served from a host this research could reach. The figures above rest on the agency’s own page, which is why this record is tier B.

Sources

authority · published policyMississippi Veterans Affairs — Veterans Memorial Cemeteries: eligibility, locations and costs
operating · published policyMississippi Veterans Affairs — agency programmes and services

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