Tester, Moran Push to Deliver Annual Cost-of-Living Increase for Veterans

Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee leaders introduce bipartisan legislation to increase rates of disability compensation for veterans and survivors

Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and Ranking Member Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) introduced the Veterans’ Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Act of 2022 to increase the rates of compensation for veterans with service-connected disabilities and military survivors under the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

“When it comes to our nation’s veterans and their families, we’ve got to see to it that they don’t fall back on hard times,” said Chairman Tester. “Our bipartisan bill will ensure their benefits are keeping pace with the changing economy—providing these folks with the support they need and earned.”

“We have a responsibility to take care of our veterans, many of whom rely on VA for financial support,” said Ranking Member Moran. “As rampant inflation is driving up the cost of living, this legislation helps makes certain veterans are able to keep up with our changing economy and receive the benefits they have been promised.”

The Senators’ bill would increase certain VA benefits including disability and dependent compensation, clothing allowances, and dependency and indemnity compensation for surviving spouses and children to reflect increases in the cost of living. The cost of living adjustment will be determined by the annual COLA adjustment to social security benefits, as determined by the Social Security Administration, and would go into effect Dec. 1, 2022. The Social Security Administration bases their annual COLA adjustment on the Consumer Price Index, as determined each December by the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Text of the Veterans’ Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2022 can be found HERE.