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119th CONGRESS
2d Session |
To amend title 10, United States Code, to increase, and provide a cost-of-living adjustment with respect to, the death gratuity for families of deceased members of the Armed Forces.
Mr. Sheehy introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services
To amend title 10, United States Code, to increase, and provide a cost-of-living adjustment with respect to, the death gratuity for families of deceased members of the Armed Forces.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
This Act may be cited as the “Honor Gold Star Families Act”.
SEC. 2. Increase in and cost-of-living adjustment of death gratuity.
(a) Increase in death gratuity.—
(1) INCREASE.—Section 1478(a) of title 10, United States Code, is amended, in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking “$100,000” and inserting “$200,000”.
(2) RETROACTIVE APPLICABILITY.—The amendment made by paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to deaths occurring on or after January 1, 2026.
(b) Cost-of-Living adjustment of death gratuity.—Section 1478 of title 10, United States Code, as amended by subsection (a), is further amended by inserting after subsection (b) the following new subsection:
“(c) Annual adjustment to death gratuity.— (1) On January 1, 2027, and January 1 of each year thereafter, the amount of the death gratuity payable under subsection (a) shall be increased by the percentage (if any) by which the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, during the preceding calendar year exceeds such Consumer Price Index for the calendar year before such preceding calendar year, rounded to the nearest $100.
“(2) The Secretary of Defense shall annually publish the amount of the death gratuity payable under subsection (a), as adjusted by paragraph (1), in the Federal Register.”.