PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. The 3.6% raise disabled veterans have been told to expect for 2027 is not law yet. Social Security and military retired pay adjust on their own. VA disability compensation and survivors’ benefits do not. That increase only happens when Congress passes a veterans COLA bill and the president signs it, and the House is set to vote on this year’s version, H.R. 8552, on Monday, Nov. 9, two days before Veterans Day, according to the House Republican Cloakroom floor schedule.
We pulled the bill text and the congressional records for this year’s bill and last year’s. The House vote is a real step. But the Senate has not touched its version since May, the Dec. 1 effective date is three weeks out, and last year the same law was signed on Nov. 25, six days before the deadline.
What H.R. 8552 actually orders the VA to do
The bill is two pages long. Rep. Morgan Luttrell, R-Texas, introduced it on April 28 with Rep. Morgan McGarvey, D-Ky., as the original cosponsor, according to the bill text on GovInfo. Effective Dec. 1, 2026, it tells the VA Secretary to raise the dollar amounts for:
- Disability compensation under 38 U.S.C. 1114
- Additional compensation for dependents
- The annual clothing allowance
- Dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC) for surviving spouses and children
The size of the raise is tied to whatever Social Security goes up on Dec. 1. The Social Security Administration set that at 3.6% in October, which we reported when the September inflation numbers locked in the 2027 COLA. The bill also requires the VA to publish the new rates in the Federal Register.
At a June 25 hearing, Luttrell said the bill gives veterans and survivors the same yearly adjustment Social Security beneficiaries get. “Congress has a responsibility to ensure that the value of these earned benefits aligns with a veteran’s financial needs,” he said, according to the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee.
What 3.6% means on a VA check
A veteran rated 100% with no dependents would go from $3,939 a month to $4,080, according to figures from the law firm CCK cited by Stars and Stripes. A veteran rated 10% with no dependents would go from $180.42 to $186.92. Stars and Stripes reported that the first payment at the new rate should land around Dec. 31 or in early January, and no paperwork is required.
Florida has a big stake in the vote. The state is home to nearly 1.4 million veterans, second only to Texas, according to the Florida Department of Veterans’ Affairs. Every disabled veteran and surviving spouse here drawing VA compensation or DIC is waiting on the same bill.
The calendar from here to Dec. 1
H.R. 8552 cleared the Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs subcommittee by voice vote on June 30 and never got a full committee markup, according to the Congress.gov status record posted on GovInfo and updated Nov. 5. Monday’s vote comes under suspension of the rules, the House fast track for bills that aren’t expected to draw a fight. It needs two-thirds of the members voting to pass.
The Senate version, S. 4487 from Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., has 15 cosponsors from both parties. Its status record shows no action since it was referred to the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee on May 11. Both chambers have to pass the same bill before it goes to the president.
Here is how the 2025 version, S. 2392, moved last year, according to its congressional record:
- Nov. 9, 2025: The Senate passed it by unanimous consent.
- Nov. 17, 2025: The House passed it by voice vote under suspension.
- Nov. 25, 2025: The president signed it, and it became Public Law 119-42.
This year the House is going first. If it passes Monday, the Senate can clear H.R. 8552 as written, or the two chambers have to settle on one bill. The bill raises the rates in effect on Nov. 30. It does not touch anyone’s current payment while Congress works.
What to watch this week
The House meets for legislative business at 2 p.m. Eastern on Monday, per the floor schedule. Watch the tally on H.R. 8552, then watch whether the Senate takes it up by unanimous consent before Thanksgiving, the way it did last year. Claims are moving faster too: the VA said it cleared a record 3.1 million claims last fiscal year. If your rating changed this year, our guide to the 2026 VA disability rating changes walks through it, and the rest of our coverage is on the Veterans page.
A cost-of-living raise for a disabled veteran shouldn’t need a fresh act of Congress every November. Social Security adjusts on its own. Military retired pay adjusts on its own. VA compensation should too. Pass this bill Monday, get the Senate moving before Thanksgiving instead of the week of, and then fix the law so no veteran ever has to watch a House floor schedule to know whether his check keeps up with the grocery bill.
See something we got wrong, or have a tip on this story? Reach us through our Contact page.
Rocci J. Stucci is the founder and CEO of Stucci Media and host of The Rocci Stucci Show.
