Congress is working on legislation called the Take Care of America's Veterans Act, or TCAVA — a sweeping bill designed to expand support for the nation's veterans. Most of what's in it is uncontroversial. But buried inside is a single provision, Section 108, that has united veterans service organizations across the political spectrum in opposition. The reason is straightforward: Section 108 would pay for new veterans programs by reducing disability compensation for roughly 1.5 million veterans in the future.

What Section 108 Actually Does

Under current law, veterans who receive VA disability compensation and also collect military retirement pay or Social Security can, in some cases, receive both. Section 108 would change the formula used to calculate concurrent receipt, effectively lowering monthly disability payments for a large category of future beneficiaries. According to DAV (Disabled American Veterans), the cumulative reduction over time would reach $57 billion — a figure representing real money taken from veterans who were promised those benefits when they served.

The rationale from supporters of the provision is that the savings offset the cost of other veteran-focused programs in the same bill. But that framing itself is what alarms advocacy groups. Using disability compensation as a funding mechanism sets a precedent — one that could be applied again and again every time Congress wants to expand veteran services without finding new money.

Broad, Bipartisan Opposition From Veterans Organizations

The opposition isn't coming from one corner. A coalition of 15 major military and veterans organizations warned Congress that Section 108 would place an enormous financial burden on future veterans, as reported by Military.com. The Veterans of Foreign Wars cautioned that the provision could permanently alter how VA disability benefits are structured going forward, creating a new normal in which earned compensation is treated as a budget line item to be trimmed, per Military.com.

A DAV survey found that opposition among veterans and the public is not close. GlobeNewswire reported the survey results showing that the vast majority of respondents — veterans and non-veterans alike — reject the idea of funding new veterans programs by cutting disability benefits for other veterans. A separate analysis highlighted by Military.com put opposition to Section 108 specifically at 71 percent.

The Senate Has Already Pushed Back

The bill has already hit resistance in the Senate. As Newsweek reported, senators blocked an earlier version over concerns about the disability offset mechanism — a sign that Section 108 remains the central sticking point preventing the broader legislation from moving forward. WMAR-2 News noted that veterans groups largely support other parts of TCAVA but view Section 108 as a dealbreaker that poisons an otherwise worthwhile effort.

The Core Issue

Disability compensation exists because veterans were injured in service to this country. Treating those payments as an available pool of savings — to be drawn down whenever Congress wants to fund something new — fundamentally changes the nature of that commitment. Veterans groups argue the math is simple: you don't help veterans by taking money from other veterans.

The petition linked below calls on congressional leadership and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to strip Section 108 from TCAVA and prohibit Congress from using disability compensation reductions to finance future veterans programs. If that principle matters to you, this is the moment to say so.

Click below to make a difference.