Presidential State Funerals: Past Practices and Current Considerations

Presidential State Funerals: Past Practices and Current Considerations

CRS INSIGHT Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress

INSIGHTi

Presidential State Funerals: Past Practices and Current Considerations

January 6, 2025

On December 29, 2024, former President James Earl “Jimmy” Carter, Jr. died. In the tradition of past presidential deaths, President Carter will receive a state funeral (designated as a National Special Security Event [NSSE]), which includes several ceremonial events in Washington, DC, prior to his burial in Plains, GA. The state funeral process is carried out by the Joint Task Force-National Capital Region, a division of the Military District of Washington (JTF-MDW). The official schedule for President Carter’s state funeral is available from MDW’s website.

Presidential State Funerals

A state funeral is “a national tribute which is traditionally reserved for a head of state” and is conducted “on behalf of all persons who hold, or have held, the office of president.” Including President Carter, 11 Presidents have been honored with a state funeral. Prior to President Carter’s death, the last state funeral occurred for President George H. W. Bush.

State funerals are traditionally initiated by a presidential proclamation to announce the former President’s death, authorize the JTF-MDW to begin the state funeral process, order flags to fly at half-staff, and declare a National Day of Mourning. For President Carter’s state funeral, President Joseph Biden issued a proclamation on December 29, 2024. The National Day of Mourning for President Carter will be held on January 9, 2025.

A state funeral often includes three traditional elements:

• military honors (e.g., a military escort, a guard of honor, Armed Forces body bearers to carry the casket, military clergy assistance, a flag-draped casket, a military flyover with the missing man formation, a caisson to carry the President’s casket, a caparisoned [riderless] horse, a 21-gun salute, firing of three volleys over the former President’s grave, and military musical honors);

• lying in state in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda (see “Use of the U.S. Capitol Rotunda” below). Not including President Carter, a total of 12 Presidents have lain in state in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda—Lincoln, Garfield, McKinley, Harding, Taft, Kennedy, Hoover,

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Eisenhower, Johnson, Reagan, Ford, and George H. W. Bush. Presidents Nixon, Truman, and Franklin D. Roosevelt were honored with state funerals but did not lie in state in the Capitol; and

• a memorial service (often at the National Cathedral in Washington, DC) and burial service. Figure 1 shows selected images of aspects of state funeral honors for past Presidents.

Figure 1. Selected Images of Presidential State Funerals Honors

Source: Proclamation (President Kennedy): The Gilder Herman Institute of American History, “Lyndon B. Johnson Proclaims a National Day of Mourning for JFK, 1963,” November 23, 1963; Lying in State (President George H. W. Bush): House of Representatives, “President George H. W. Bush Lying in State”; Funeral Service (President Ford): U.S. President (George W. Bush), “Boy Scouts Attending the State Funeral service for former President Gerald R. Ford at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.,” January 2007; Funeral Cortege (President Eisenhower): Dwight D.

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Eisenhower Memorial Library, Museum & Boyhood Home, “Eisenhower Funeral Photographs,” March 30, 1969; and Honor Guard (President Truman): Harry S. Truman Library and Museum, “Honor Guard Carrying Former President Harry S. Truman’s Casket,” December 27, 1972. Notes: For more information on the use of the Capitol Rotunda, see CRS Report RL34619, Use of the Capitol Rotunda, Capitol Grounds, and Emancipation Hall: Concurrent Resolutions, 101st to 118th Congresses, by Jacob R. Straus. For more resources on presidential funerals, see CRS Report R45121, Presidential Funerals and Burials: Selected Resources.

Considerations for Congress

Security

President Carter’s state funeral will be a NSSE due to the anticipated attendance of current and former Presidents. P.L. 106-544 designated the U.S. Secret Service as the lead federal agency responsible for coordinating, planning, exercising, and implementing security for NSSEs. Designation factors include

• anticipated attendance by U.S. officials and foreign dignitaries,

• size of the event, and

• significance of the event.

Past presidential state funeral security operations included the use of physical infrastructure security fencing, barricades, special access accreditation badges, K-9 teams, and other security technologies. For more information on presidential security and NSSEs, see CRS Report RS22754, National Special Security Events, by Shawn Reese.

Use of the U.S. Capitol Rotunda

Historically, Presidents lie in state in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda. Since the Rotunda is jointly controlled by the House of Representatives and the Senate, the use of the Rotunda often involves a concurrent resolution, agreed to by both the House and Senate. For example, in the 119th Congress (2025-2026), the Senate and the House agreed to S.Con.Res. 3, to authorize the use of the Rotunda for President Carter to lie in state January 7-9, 2025. For more information about the use of the Rotunda, see CRS Report RL34619, Use of the Capitol Rotunda, Capitol Grounds, and Emancipation Hall: Concurrent Resolutions, 101st to 118th Congresses, by Jacob R. Straus.

Congressional Attendance

Members of Congress often wish to pay their respects when a President lies in state. Historically, Members of Congress have been afforded several opportunities to do so, including attending the arrival ceremony (when the President’s casket arrives at the U.S. Capitol), the public viewing, and the funeral service at Washington National Cathedral (if the family chooses to hold a service there). To guide Members in their attendance at state funeral-related events, congressional leadership (often through the Sergeant at Arms) has issued guidance on attending the arrival ceremony in the Rotunda, the lying in state, and the funeral service. This guidance may also include instructions for congressional staff members wishing to attend the public viewing. On January 2, 2025, the Sergeant at Arms issued guidance to Members of Congress for President Carter’s arrangements.

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Author Information

Jacob R. Straus Specialist on the Congress

Shawn Reese

Analyst in Emergency Management and Homeland Security Policy

Disclaimer

This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress. Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the United States Government, are not subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in its entirety without permission from CRS. However, as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or material from a third party, you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you wish to copy or otherwise use copyrighted material.