(a)
(1)A county veteran service officer that determines, pursuant to Section 951.5, that unclaimed remains are those of a veteran or dependent of a veteran, and that the remains meet the criteria for interment by a veterans’ remains organization pursuant to Section 952, shall report the following information to the Department of Veterans Affairs:
(A)
The name, rank, and branch of service of the deceased or, if the deceased is the dependent of a veteran, the name of the deceased and the name, rank, and branch of service of the eligible veteran.
(B)
Dates of service.
(C)
Location of the remains and a telephone number and name for the contact at that location.
(2)
If, pursuant to Section 951.5, the public administrator of a county determines, without the involvement of the county veteran service officer, that the remains belong to a veteran or dependent of a veteran, the public administrator shall report this information to the county veteran service officer. Following this report, the county veteran service officer shall follow the reporting procedures described in paragraph (1).
(b)
The Department of Veterans Affairs shall create and maintain a list of veterans and dependents of veterans whose remains are reported pursuant to subdivision (a). This list shall be available to the representatives of veterans’ remains organizations by telephone or in person.