SACRAMENTO, CA – Assemblymember Sharon Quirk-Silva and Assemblymember Steven Choi introduced important legislation that would allow the California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet) to design, develop, and construct a state-operated veterans cemetery in Orange County.
AB 1595 would allow CalVet to acquire, study, design, develop, construct, and equip a state-owned and state-operated Southern California Veterans Cemetery in Orange County. Home to former Army, Navy, and Marine bases, and an estimated 104,949 veterans, Orange County is the State’s largest county without a veteran’s cemetery.
“Since I began my term in the State Assembly in 2013, it has been a priority of mine to establish a veteran’s cemetery in Orange County. Today, with the introduction of AB 1595, I continue my commitment to creating a final resting place for the many men and women who have honorably served our country, “said Assemblymember Quirk-Silva.
Until very recently, the community had been challenged by a lack of consensus and divergent preferences on where the cemetery should be built. As of July 2021, the Orange County Board of Supervisors approved the allocation for $20 million for a veterans cemetery in Orange County. All thirty-four cities in Orange County have passed resolutions in support of the project.
Asssemblymember Steven Choi, Ph.D. stated “Building a Veterans Cemetery in Orange County has been a priority of mine for many years. I am proud to join as a Joint Author with my colleague Assemblymember Sharon Quirk-Silva for this priority legislation, which will provide a necessary final resting place for our brave veterans in Orange County.”