The board of county commissioners shall require the veterans service commission, upon application and with the approval of the family or friends of the deceased, to contract, at a fair and reasonable price, with the funeral director selected by the family or friends, and cause to be interred or cremated in a decent and respectable manner the body of any veteran, or the parent, spouse, or surviving spouse of any such veteran, who dies without the means to defray the necessary funeral or cremation expenses. Such a burial may be made in any cemetery or burial ground within the state, other than those used exclusively for the burial of paupers and criminals.
Effective Date: 08-05-1998 .