DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

FUNCTIONS

OFFICE OF SECRETARY

The Department is headed by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. Appointed by the Governor with Senate advice and consent, the Secretary must be an honorably discharged veteran. The Secretary serves on the Governor's Executive Council; the Governor's Commission on Maryland Military Monuments; the Interdepartmental Advisory Committee for Minority Affairs; and the Task Force to Study State Assistance to Veterans.

Jeffrey Building, 16 Francis St., Annapolis, Maryland, September 2001. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.

MARYLAND VETERANS HOME COMMISSION

The Maryland Veterans Home Commission was created in 1975 to provide a home for veterans in Maryland (Chapter 575, Acts of 1975). In 1999, the Commission became part of the Department of Veterans Affairs (Chapter 125, Acts of 1999). The Commission advises the Department on issues relating to State veteran homes. The only veterans home in Maryland is Charlotte Hall Veterans Home in St. Mary's County.

The Commission has fourteen members. Eleven are named to five-year terms by the Governor with Senate advice and consent. Three serve ex officio (Code State Government Article, secs. 9-917 through 9-928).

CHARLOTTE HALL VETERANS HOME
29449 Charlotte Hall Road, Charlotte Hall, MD 20622

To provide residential and long-term health care to geriatric, chronically ill or disabled veterans, Charlotte Hall Veterans Home opened in January 1985 in St. Mary's County. The Home provides comprehensive nursing-care, comprehensive care, and assisted living. A comprehensive nursing-care wing opened in March 1986, and a comprehensive-care wing, including a specialized unit for Alzheimer's care, opened in 1993. Located on 126 acres in St. Mary's County, another wing opened in 2003 to expand the availability of assisted living. Currently, the Home has 100 assisted-living beds and 278 nursing-care beds.

On Veterans Day 2004, spouses of veterans who did not themselves serve in the armed forces became eligible for admission to the Home (Executive Order 01.01.2004.61; Chapter 238, Acts of 2006).

Applications for residency in the Home may be secured from the Maryland Veterans Home Commission or the Charlotte Hall Veterans Home.

WAR MEMORIAL COMMISSION

Authorization for the War Memorial Commission was enacted in 1924 (Chapter 537, Acts of 1924). In 1970, the Commission became part of the Department of General Services. It transferred to the Department of Veterans Affairs in 1999 (Chapter 125, Acts of 1999).

War Memorial Building, 101 North Gay St., Baltimore, Maryland, June 2006. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.

The Commission has custody and supervision of the War Memorial Building and the War Memorial Plaza. Both were erected in 1927 in Baltimore to honor those Marylanders who died in World War I. The War Memorial Building lies directly across from City Hall, and, with the Plaza, was designed by Baltimore architect, Lawrence Hall Fowler.

The Building is open and available for meetings of veterans' groups and patriotic societies, and for civic gatherings, provided that no collection or donation is taken nor any admission charged. Maintenance costs are shared equally by the State and the City of Baltimore.

The Commission's ten members serve five-year terms. Five are appointed by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs with the Governor's approval, and five by the Mayor of Baltimore (Code State Government Article, secs. 9-931 through 9-935).

MARYLAND VETERANS COMMISSION

Origins of the Maryland Veterans Commission trace to 1924, when the Soldiers' Relief Fund Commission formed to administer a State relief fund for disabled veterans of World War I (Chapter 344, Acts of 1924). The Commission became the Veterans Relief Commission in 1929 (Chapter 134, Acts of 1929). It was renamed the Maryland Veterans Commission in 1935 (Chapter 481, Acts of 1935). In 1971, the Commission joined the Department of Employment and Social Services, which was renamed the Department of Human Resources in 1975 (Chapters 370 and 617, Acts of 1971). In 1977, the Commission was made an independent agency (Chapter 895, Acts of 1977). With the Maryland Veterans Home Commission and the War Memorial Commission, the Maryland Veterans Commission became part of the Department of Veterans Affairs in October 1999 (Chapter 125, Acts of 1999).

Federal Building, 31 Hopkins Plaza, Baltimore, Maryland, April 2001. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.

The Commission advises the Secretary on all issues relating to veterans.

Twenty-seven Maryland veterans comprise the Commission. They are appointed to five-year terms by the Governor. The Governor names the Chair (Code State Government Article, secs. 9-904 through 9-914).

VETERANS CEMETERY PROGRAM

Crownsville State Veterans Cemetery entrance, 1122 Sunrise Beach Road, Crownsville, Maryland, October 2000. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.

Through the Veterans Cemetery Program, the Department now operates five cemeteries for veterans and their dependents. The Department sets eligibility requirements for burial. The cemeteries are located in Allegany, Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Dorchester and Prince George's counties. A permanent registry of graves of all who served in the U.S. military or naval forces in time of war and who are buried in Maryland also is maintained by the Department (Code State Government Article, secs. 9-913 through 9-914).

WASHINGTON CEMETERY BOARD OF TRUSTEES
When the Department of General Services was formed in 1970, the Washington Cemetery Board of Trustees was made part of the Department. In 1982, the Washington Cemetery Board of Trustees transferred from the Department of General Services to the Maryland Veterans Commission (Chapter 269, Acts of 1982). In June 2006, the Board moved under the direct supervision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (Chapter 238, Acts of 2006). The Board oversees maintenance of Washington Cemetery, Hagerstown, where the Confederate dead of the battles of Antietam and South Mountain are buried. At the Cemetery, 2,468 bodies are interred. Of this number, 346 have been identified.

The Cemetery's Board of Trustees was chartered in 1870 (Chapter 213, Acts of 1870). Originally, it was to have had five members: three from Maryland and one each from Virginia and West Virginia. Virginia and West Virginia contributed to the cost for funding and maintaining the Cemetery initially and so were given a place on the Board. In over one hundred and thirty years, however, neither Virginia nor West Virginia has appointed a representative. The Board's three Maryland members are appointed to three-year terms by the Governor.

VETERANS MEMORIALS & MONUMENTS PROGRAM

MARYLAND WORLD WAR II MEMORIAL
Route 450 at Naval Academy Bridge
1920 Ritchie Highway, Annapolis, MD 21401

Dedicated July 23, 1998, the Maryland World War II Memorial was assigned to the Program in 1999 (Chapter 125, Acts of 1999).

MARYLAND KOREAN WAR MEMORIAL
Canton Waterfront Park
2903 Boston St., Baltimore, MD 21224

The Maryland Korean War Memorial was dedicated May 27, 1990. Administration of the Maryland Korean War Memorial was reassigned from the Korean War Memorial Commission to the Maryland Veterans Commission in 1989. In June 2006, oversight for all veterans memorials and monuments was transferred from the Commission to the Department (Chapter 238, Acts of 2006).

MARYLAND VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL
Middle Branch Park
2825 South Hanover St., Baltimore, MD 21225

Responsibility for administering the Maryland Vietnam Veterans Memorial transferred from the Maryland Vietnam Veterans Memorial Commission to the Maryland Veterans Commission in 1989 (Chapter 790, Acts of 1989). The Maryland Vietnam Veterans Memorial was dedicated May 28, 1989. In June 2006, oversight for all veterans memorials and monuments was transferred from the Commission to the Department (Chapter 238, Acts of 2006).

VETERANS SERVICE PROGRAM

Trained in veteran laws and regulations, Veterans Service officers present and prosecute claims before the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. They represent claimants by power-of-attorney through the adjudication and appellate processes.

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