President Donald Trump signed into law an annual bill to provide a cost-of-living adjustment to veterans' benefits, equal to the COLA for Social Security, according to an announcement from the White House this week.
Veterans will likely see an about 1.3% cost-of-living adjustment for their benefits in 2021, under the bill.
Capitol Hill lawmakers in September approved the cost-of-living increase for veterans benefits, which will match the increase approved by the Social Security Administration for its beneficiaries.
The cost-of-living adjustment affects disability payments. dependent compensation, survivor benefits and clothing allowances and is set to go into effect for veterans on Dec. 1, 2020.
Early forecasts suggested the 2021 increase might be one of the lowest in recent years, with early estimates suggesting anywhere from 1.1% to 1.3%.
Last year, veterans and Social Security beneficiaries received a 1.6% cost-of-living increase. In 2019, the cost-of-living adjustment for Social Security was a 2.8% increase.
The Social Security Administration bases its annual COLA on the Consumer Price Index, determined each December by the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The bill, sponsored in the House by Navy veteran Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Virginia and Rep. Mike Bost, R-Florida, and introduced in the Senate by Senate Veterans Affairs Chairman Jerry Moran, R-Kansas, and ranking member Jon Tester, D-Montana, was approved by both chambers unanimously.
“As a 20-year Navy veteran, I understand how important it is to ensure that veterans’ benefits reflect the rising costs of living,” Luria said in a previous statement.
“This cost of living adjustment makes certain that the benefits provided to our veterans through programs at the VA are aligned with inflation and will ensure that our veterans receive the resources they need to succeed in a changing economy and market,” Moran said in a statement following the Senate vote.
“Our men and women in uniform deserve to have Washington in their corner working tirelessly to ensure they can keep up with the rising costs of housing, utilities, and food when they return to civilian life," Tester said.
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