To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for an annual increase in the rates of compensation for veterans with service-connected disabilities and the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation for the survivors of certain disabled veterans, and for other purposes.
Summary
What This Bill Does
This bill adds a new section 120 to title 38. Each December 1, VA must increase specified compensation and survivor-benefit dollar amounts by the same percentage used for the Social Security title II cost-of-living adjustment under section 215(i) of the Social Security Act. Covered amounts include wartime disability compensation under section 1114, additional compensation for dependents under section 1115(1), the clothing allowance under section 1162, dependency and indemnity compensation for surviving spouses under section 1311(a) through (d), and DIC for children under sections 1313(a) and 1314. VA may make matching administrative adjustments for certain legacy compensation recipients under Public Law 85-857, and must publish the increased amounts in the Federal Register each fiscal year. The new section takes effect 180 days after enactment.
Who Benefits and How
Veterans with service-connected disabilities benefit because their monthly disability compensation rates automatically rise with the Social Security COLA. Surviving spouses and children receiving dependency and indemnity compensation benefit from the same annual COLA protection. Veterans with dependents benefit because additional dependent compensation is included in the yearly adjustment. Veterans receiving clothing allowance payments benefit because that dollar amount is also indexed. Claimants and veterans service organizations benefit from Federal Register publication of the updated rates each fiscal year.
Who Bears the Burden and How
VA benefits administrators must calculate, publish, and implement the annual rate tables every fiscal year. Federal veterans-benefit accounts bear higher outlays whenever the Social Security COLA increases. VA payment systems must update disability, dependent, clothing allowance, and DIC rates on the December 1 schedule. Budget planners lose the ability to treat these covered VA benefit increases as discretionary one-off adjustments.
Key Provisions
- Adds a new title 38 section requiring annual December 1 increases for covered VA compensation and DIC amounts.
- Ties the VA increase percentage to the Social Security title II COLA.
- Covers disability compensation, dependent compensation, clothing allowance, surviving-spouse DIC, and child DIC.
- Requires VA to publish updated rates in the Federal Register each fiscal year.
- Sets a 180-day effective date after enactment.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Creates a permanent annual cost-of-living adjustment for VA disability compensation, additional dependent compensation, clothing allowance, and dependency and indemnity compensation by tying the December 1 increase to the Social Security title II COLA and requiring VA to publish updated rates in the Federal Register each fiscal year.
Key Policy Areas
Veterans Benefits, VA, Social Security COLA
Primary Purpose
Creates a permanent annual cost-of-living adjustment for VA disability compensation, additional dependent compensation, clothing allowance, and dependency and indemnity compensation by tying the December 1 increase to the Social Security title II COLA and requiring VA to publish updated rates in the Federal Register each fiscal year.
Policy Domains
Substantive provisions
Identified Gains
- Veterans with service-connected disabilities
- Surviving spouses receiving DIC
- Children receiving DIC
- Veterans with dependents
- Veterans receiving clothing allowances
Identified Costs
- VA benefits administrators
- Federal veterans-benefit accounts
- VA payment-system staff
- Federal budget planners
Sponsors
Josh Gottheimer
D-NJ | Primary Sponsor
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeReferred to the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.
Mr. Gottheimer (for himself and Mr. Bacon) introduced the following …
Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
Introduced in House
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
Eligible survivors receiving annual dependency and indemnity compensation increases, Veterans with service-connected disabilities receiving annual compensation increases
VA officials responsible for administering and publishing the annual rate adjustments
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology