Fairness for Servicemembers and their Families Act of 2025
The Fairness for Servicemembers and their Families Act of 2025 would create a new requirement for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to periodically review the automatic maximum life insurance coverage provided under Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance (SGLI) and Veterans' Group Life Insurance (VGLI). Specifically, beginning January 1, 2026 and every five years after, the VA Secretary must compare the current automatic maximum coverage (as set in statute) to a CPI-adjusted target and then report the findings to Congress. The CPI-adjusted target is calculated as $500,000 multiplied by the average percentage change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) over the five fiscal years prior to the review. The results can guide potential increases in coverage within the agency’s existing incremental framework, but the bill does not automatically raise coverage or set new premium requirements. In short, the bill creates a structured, inflation-linked process to determine whether the automatic life-insurance ceiling for SGLI/VGLI should be increased in the future, with regular reporting to congressional committees to inform potential policy changes.
Key Points
- 1Creates new Sec. 1980B (Periodic review of automatic maximum coverage) in title 38, U.S. Code (Subchapter III, Chapter 19) for SGLI and VGLI.
- 2Review schedule: on January 1, 2026, and then every five years thereafter.
- 3Review requirements: compare the current maximum (as defined by 38 U.S.C. 1967(a)(3)(A)(i)) with an inflation-adjusted amount described in the bill; the results may guide coverage increases within the existing administrative structure.
- 4Amount described: $500,000 multiplied by the average percentage change of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) over the five fiscal years preceding the review.
- 5CPI reference: CPI for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- 6Reporting: VA Secretary must submit the results to the House and Senate Committees on Veterans’ Affairs.
- 7Effect on coverage: The bill does not automatically increase coverage; it provides a framework to guide potential increases within current administrative processes.