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.
Key claim: HR6027 requires the VA to annually increase wartime disability compensation, dependent compensation, clothing allowance, and dependency and indemnity compensation by the same percentage as the Social Security COLA effective each December 1.
Abstract
(HR6027 · 119th Congress) This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to increase the amounts payable for wartime disability compensation, additional compensation for dependents, the clothing allowance for certain disabled veterans, and dependency and indemnity compensation for surviving spouses and children. Specifically, the VA must increase the amounts by the same percentage as the cost-of-living increase in benefits for Social Security recipients that is effective on December 1 of each year. The bill requires the VA to publish the amounts payable, as increased, in the Federal Register. The VA is authorized to make a similar adjustment to the rates of disability compensation payable to persons who have not received compensation for service-connected disability or death. Latest action (2025-11-17): Referred to the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.
Why this matters
HR6027 would codify automatic annual parity between VA disability/DIC rates and the Social Security COLA, ensuring millions of service-connected veterans and survivors receive inflation adjustments without requiring a separate COLA bill each year. For beneficiaries, it stabilizes purchasing power on a predictable December 1 schedule; for federal budgeters and VA administrators, it locks in a recurring cost driver tied to SSA’s index.