American Heroes COLA Act

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 570) to amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for annual cost-of-living adjustments to be made automatically by law each year in the rates of disability compensation for veterans with service-connected disabilities and the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation for survivors of certain service-connected disabled veterans, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and add any extraneous material that they may have on H.R. 570, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might consume.

The author of the underlying bill, Mr. Runyan of New Jersey, has put forward a bipartisan proposal to make permanent the veterans cost-of- living adjustment. Currently, Congress must adopt annual COLA bills to ensure that payments to disabled veterans and survivors do not erode due to inflation.

Mr. Runyan's bill, which my amendment incorporates, would make this annual, and sometimes dangerously delayed, practice a thing of the past. A coalition of veterans groups expressed strong concern with some other elements of the underlying bill, which my amendment now seeks to address.

First, the concern was expressed that the bill would permanently extend the 20-year practice of rounding veterans COLA increases down to the next lower whole dollar. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that extending the round-down authority saves, relative to the baseline, over $1.3 billion over a 10-year period.

The veterans coalition was concerned about the cumulative effect that the permanent round-down would have, as well as the moral principle associated with logging savings on the backs of our disabled veterans.

To meet that concern, I worked with our ranking member to, first, sunset the round-down authority after 5 years, and second, we agreed with the committee's markup to find a way to reinvest savings associated with the round-down by improving benefits for other disabled veterans.

I am pleased to announce that my amendment contains such an improvement that it is now enthusiastically supported by the veterans groups.

Our bipartisan work would significantly increase the special monthly compensation payments made to our most severely disabled veterans by 30 percent through the year 2018, then 50 percent thereafter. This is a payment that goes to support catastrophically disabled veterans who are in need of aid and attendance. These are veterans who are missing limbs, totally blind, deaf, or who are so disabled that they require the need of special care in the home, all as a result of their military service.

Clearly, it's our duty to ensure that these most deserving service- disabled veterans are well-cared for, and my amendment to H.R. 570 will be a significant step in that direction.

And finally, the service organizations were concerned about the potential application of the so-called chained CPI at some point in the future that could potentially affect veterans COLAs. To allay that concern, my amendment specifies that the permanent veterans COLA only would be continued to the extent that the current inflationary index that is used now, the CPI for urban wage earners and clerical workers, continues in force.

I'm very pleased to say that, with the changes in my amendment, we now have a bill that can be supported by the veterans it is intended to benefit.

With that, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, at this time I'm happy to yield such time as he might consume to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Runyan), the chairman of the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, we have no further requests for time. We're prepared to close, if the ranking member is as well.

Mr. Speaker, I once again urge all of my colleagues to support H.R. 570, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Thank you, Ranking Member Michaud, for yielding and for your work and leadership on this critical issue that affects our Nation's heroes.

I support the American Heroes COLA Act, H.R. 570, which I introduced, along with my colleague and subcommittee chairman, John Runyan. This is important legislation that will protect our disabled veterans and their families' financial security.

Unlike with Social Security COLA increases, which are calculated automatically, Congress must act each year to provide veterans with their COLA increases they need and deserve. Our Nation's heroes should receive their full compensation payment each year as well in a timely fashion, removed from the occasional logjam here on Capitol Hill. Their livelihood should not be held hostage by political forces.

Nevada's veterans have struggled during this tough economic climate. Their rates of unemployment and homelessness are disproportionately

high, and as the cost of living has increased, so have their problems. And I know this is true of veterans around the country.

By permanently adjusting benefits to include automatic cost-of-living increases we are providing critical peace of mind to those who have bravely served our country. They will have the knowledge of knowing that assistance will be there.

Chairman Runyan and I have worked closely to improve this legislation since we first introduced the bill in February, and I fully support the amended version we are considering today. Changes concerning the round- down practice and the chained CPI are changes that will strengthen the bill.

I appreciate also the input we received from a number of veterans service organizations and believe that this improved version of the legislation clearly addresses their concerns.

In effect, H.R. 570 will direct the VA to increase rates of disability compensation for veterans with service-connected disabilities, as well as the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation for the survivors of veterans with specific service- connected claims.

The bill will protect veterans benefits from deteriorating over time as the costs of housing, medicine, food and clothing and utilities all increase.

I want to echo Ranking Member Michaud's sentiments regarding the importance of having these adjustments occur annually, regularly, and dependably. It's essential that Congress provide for the needs of our heroes, the brave men and women who answered the call to serve in our armed services, and for their families as well.

I thank Chairman Miller and Chairman Runyan for their work on this important issue, and I urge my colleagues to support the American Heroes COLA Act.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 570, as amended, the American Heroes COLA Act.

I wish to thank Mr. Runyan, the sponsor of H.R. 570, and the chairman of the Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee, as well as Ms. Titus, our subcommittee ranking member, for their hard work on this measure.

I'd also like to thank Chairman Miller for working closely with me, and with the veterans groups, to make the key improvements in this particular bill.

H.R. 570 would permanently index the annual veterans cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, to the increase provided to Social Security beneficiaries, but only if the Social Security COLA continues to be determined using the current methodologies.

This guards against automatically passing on any decrease to veterans that result from any future actions to implement a chained CPI regime.

Second, H.R. 570 extends a COLA round-down provision set to expire this year for 5 years, instead of making it permanent. This round-down provision was implemented many years ago as a means of budget savings, and many veterans groups voiced opposition to making such a decrease permanent.

Third, the savings generated from the round-down extension will be reinvested in veterans programs, namely, increasing the monthly amount provided to some of our veterans most in need of assistance and care.

H.R. 570 would increase the amount of what is called a ``special monthly compensation'' paid to catastrophically disabled veterans in need of aid and attendance. This monthly amount would be increased from $2,002 to $3,163, and for those most in need of care from $2,983 to $4,713. These final payments would be phased in to comply with PAYGO requirements.

H.R. 570, as amended, is a good bill, and I urge my colleagues to support this measure.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, at this time I'd like to yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from Nevada (Ms. Titus).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. O'Rourke).

In closing, Mr. Speaker, H.R. 570, as amended, is a solid piece of legislation that the veterans service organizations support, that the committee supports, and I would urge my colleagues to support this bill.

With that, Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 893) to provide for an increase, effective December 1, 2013, 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.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include any extraneous material on S. 893.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

As chairman of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, I rise today in support of S. 893, the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2013.

Mr. Speaker, it is entirely appropriate that we consider this legislation today after we honored America's veterans yesterday.

This is critically important legislation that authorizes a cost-of- living increase for disabled veterans in receipt of disability compensation payments from VA, veterans' clothing allowance payments, and other compensation for survivors of veterans who die as a result of their service to this country. The amount of the increase is determined by the consumer price index, which also controls the cost-of-living adjustment for Social Security beneficiaries. That increase is scheduled to be 1\1/2\ percent.

I want to thank Congressman Runyan of New Jersey, the chairman of the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs, for introducing H.R. 569, which was the companion bill to this piece of legislation.

I urge all my colleagues to support S. 893, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Runyan), the chairman of the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Benishek), the chairman of the Subcommittee on Health.

Mr. Speaker, I too ask all of my colleagues to support S. 893.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Yesterday was Veterans Day. Its origin began 95 years ago on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month. The armistice was signed marking the end of World War I. The next year we saw the first commemoration of Armistice Day, which became Veterans Day in 1954. Every Veterans Day since then has been a day of remembrance and commemoration for all of our veterans.

Today, we have the opportunity to put the thoughts and feelings of Veterans Day into practical action. Today, with the agreement of the House, we will ensure that veterans continue to receive the support they need.

On October 28, the Senate passed S. 893, the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2013, which provides that veterans receive a projected 1.5 percent cost-of-living adjustment beginning in January.

This bill directs the VA to increase the rate of basic compensation for disabled veterans and the rate of dependency and indemnity compensation for their survivors and dependents.

Since 1976, Congress has acted annually to increase these benefits by an amount estimated to keep pace with inflation. This year's increase is the same as that provided to Social Security recipients.

Without this annual COLA increase, veterans, their families, and survivors would see the value of their hard-earned benefits slowly erode.

Many of the millions of veterans and survivors who receive monthly benefits depend upon these payments in order to make ends meet. For some, it is their only source of income.

Providing for a cost-of-living increase is an important thing that we

all can do to help veterans and ensure that the value of their benefits does not decrease over time due to inflation. It is a way that we can, the day after Veterans Day, thank our veterans again for their service and their sacrifice. I urge my colleagues to support S. 893.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Nevada (Ms. Titus).