(a) The Department of Veterans Service is authorized to establish, operate, and maintain Georgia veterans cemeteries in this state; provided, however, that the Georgia veterans cemetery in existence on July 1, 2002, shall be known as the “Georgia Veterans Memorial Cemetery.”
(b) The Department of Veterans Service has the primary responsibility for verifying eligibility for interment in a Georgia veterans cemetery. Eligibility criteria for interment in a Georgia veterans cemetery is the same as required for interment in a national cemetery as provided by federal law and rules and regulations applicable thereto.