Veterans to receive 3.6% benefit increase under new cost-of-living adjustment

Things are tough for a lot of people, especially for veterans. Jack Stein is an Army veteran who served in the Vietnam War. He's one of about 8 million Americans who receive monthly benefit payments because of their prior military service. And those payments are about to go up by 3.6% because of an annual cost-of-living adjustment for military retirees and veterans receiving disability benefits. Increase, of course, Puts that a little bit more in our veterans' pockets. It gives you that little bit extra to provide for your family, provide for yourself. The annual adjustment is based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and it's tied to inflation. But some experts say it still might not be enough to keep up with costs, especially here on Long Island. This isn't meant to put you into a better standard of living, but it is meant to help you or to prevent you from going backwards. And it doesn't appear that this is enough. Think about the sacrifice that not only the vets themselves made, but their families made. And it is important that we continue taking care of them because of the sacrifices that they made. The rate increase officially goes into effect on December 1st. Most veterans will likely see higher payments by the beginning of next year. For Taxing Long Island, Kevin Vesey, News 12.