Montgomery County Veterans Service Commission: Indigent Veteran Burial

Ohio requires each county veterans service commission to bury or cremate a veteran, or a veteran's parent, spouse or surviving spouse, who died without the means to pay, with the county paying up to $1,000 (Revised Code 5901.25 to 5901.27; see the Ohio entry). How Montgomery County runs it. The commission gives up to $1,000 toward indigent burial expenses. The funeral home makes the application, and it must pass the same review as a financial assistance application, so expect the commission to ask about the estate, insurance and the family's means. Its page speaks only of veterans; a family burying a veteran's spouse, surviving spouse or parent should ask, since the statute covers them too. VA figures on the page are out of date. The commission's burial page says VA pays up to $300 toward burial and funeral costs and a $300 plot allowance when a death is not service-connected. Those were the rates around 2001. For a death on or after October 1, 2026, VA pays a $1,032 burial allowance and $1,032 for a plot when the death is not service-connected, and up to $2,000 when it is. The page's guidance on military honors and Dayton National Cemetery scheduling (1-800-535-1117) is current.