VETERANS' COMPENSATION COST-OF-LIVING ADJUSTMENT ACT OF 2013 -- (House of Representatives - November 12, 2013)

Floor Speech

Mr. RUNYAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Miller for yielding me this time.

I rise today in strong support of S. 893, the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2013. This bill is a companion bill to H.R. 569, which I introduced earlier this year in the House of Representatives. H.R. 569 was included in H.R. 357, which passed the House Veterans' Affairs Committee earlier this year.

S. 893 provides a cost-of-living adjustment to veterans' disability compensation, survivors' dependency and indemnity compensation, and other benefits.

Mr. Speaker, many disabled veterans depend on these benefits to make ends meet, and this bill will assist these veterans as the cost-of-living continues to increase.

While I am very supportive of this bill, I would like to once again state that it is unfortunate that we have to be here to pass this bill each and every year. That is why I introduced H.R. 570, the American Heroes COLA Act, which would authorize a COLA every year without congressional action. This would ensure that the COLA for the most deserving Americans is not tied to action or inaction in Washington.

The House passed H.R. 570 earlier this year, and I remain hopeful that our colleagues in the Senate will follow suit so we can provide this needed benefit to veterans and their families without having to wait on Congress to act.

Once again, I thank Chairman Miller and the House leadership for bringing this important legislation to the floor. I urge all of my colleagues to fully support S. 893.

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