MIL News Weekly

Edward: Welcome to the MIL News Weekly
for 12-18 October 2025, your essential

guide to the latest news impacting
the military and veteran community.

Whether you're currently serving in
uniform, a military retiree, a veteran,

or a family member, this is your source
for the critical updates you need to know.

Each week, we cut through the noise to
bring you the most important developments

from the Pentagon, Capitol Hill, and
the Department of Veterans Affairs.

We’ll cover everything from new
policies and pay raises affecting

active and reserve forces, to changes
in healthcare and benefits for

retirees, and the latest on VA services
and legislation for our veterans.

Let's get you informed.

Here’s what’s happened this past week.

Issues That Affect Active
and Reserve Military Personnel

The lapse in appropriations that began on
1 October 2025 immediately necessitated

the implementation of Department
of Defense (DoD) contingency plans.

For active duty personnel and reserve
components serving on federal active duty,

this meant mandatory continued service
under "excepted" essential duty status.

However, this designation did
not ensure timely compensation.

The Immediate Financial
Strain of the Shutdown

Under current law, absent a specific,
separate legislative action, military

personnel are subjected to delayed
payment during a funding lapse.

Service members were required to carry
out all assigned duties, including those

involving non-excepted activities only
where new obligations were not incurred,

knowing their paychecks would be withheld
until Congress reached a budget agreement.

This failure to achieve a budget
deal by the 1 October 2025 deadline

guaranteed that service members would
miss at least one paycheck if funding

was not restored by the mid-month
payment date of October 15, 2025.

The crisis underscored the
reliance on specialized legislation

to maintain pay continuity.

For instance, Republican Representative
Jen Kiggans of Virginia had introduced

the "Pay Our Troops Act of 2026" with
bipartisan support earlier in the month,

but it did not pass prior to the deadline.

In the absence of federal pay
certainty, military-affiliated

financial institutions stepped in.

The Navy Federal Credit Union and USAA
quickly announced that they would offer

zero percent annual percentage rate
loans to eligible members whose pay

was affected, continuing a pattern of
support seen during previous shutdowns.

The Coast Guard Pay Exception
and Policy Implications

A notable policy exception
emerged regarding the United

States Coast Guard (USCG).

Unlike the four DoD branches of the Armed
Forces, USCG members were successfully

insulated from the immediate pay delay.

USCG personnel were scheduled to
receive their mid-month check between

October 15 and October 17, 2025.

This financial continuity was
attributed by Department of Homeland

Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem
to a special funding arrangement

identified under the provisions of
the "One Big Beautiful Bill" (H.R.

1).

This success highlights a critical
disparity in the financial security

offered across uniformed services
during a lapse in appropriations.

While the Coast Guard, operating
under the DHS, secured a specialized

legislative carve-out to ensure
uninterrupted pay for its critical

homeland security and military missions,
the vast majority of active-duty

service members operating under the DoD
faced immediate financial precarity.

This scenario demonstrates that,
fundamentally, the government systemically

transfers the financial risk associated
with funding failures onto the operational

military workforce and their families,
necessitating reliance on political

maneuvering or external financial
institutions for basic compensation.

This reinforces the need for permanent,
universal legislative mechanisms to

guarantee pay for all uniformed personnel
during any future government lapse.

Issues That Affect
Retired Military Personnel

Retired military personnel and
federal annuitants demonstrated

significant financial stability
during the shutdown due to the funding

mechanisms governing their benefits.

Simultaneously, legislative actions
were taken in Congress to defend and

reform federal retirement systems.

Financial Continuity for Annuitants

Unlike active-duty military personnel,
retired military members and federal

annuitants did not experience an
interruption in their monthly payments.

Military retired pay, along with
annuities provided under the Federal

Employees Retirement System (FERS) and
the Civil Service Retirement System

(CSRS), are funded through mandatory
appropriations and established trust

funds, insulating them from the
lapse in discretionary spending.

Similarly, individuals collecting
Social Security—including federal

retirees, disabled Americans,
and dependents—did not see an

interruption in their monthly payments.

Defense and Reform of
Federal Retirement Benefits

The policy environment concerning
federal retirement systems during this

week was characterized by defensive
success against cuts and progress

toward historical equity reform.

Averted Cuts in H.R.

Federal employee advocates successfully
blocked significant cuts to earned

retirement benefits during the
legislative development of H.R.

1, the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act."

News confirmed that numerous provisions
aimed at reducing retirement and

health benefits—including the potential
elimination of the FERS annuity

supplement, which provides an additional
annuity amount to retirees before they

reach Social Security eligibility age—were
removed from the final version of H.R.

1 passed by the Senate in July 2025.

This defensive victory preserved the
current structure of FERS and CSRS

benefits, maintaining the security
of the retirement system for both

current and future annuitants.

The Federal Retirement Fairness Act (H.R.

1522)

Legislation was actively moving through
the House to address a long-standing

fairness issue within the FERS structure.

Bill: H.R.

1522 – Federal Retirement Fairness Act

Status: Introduced in
House (February 24, 2025).

Effects on Current and Retired
Federal Employees (FERS): H.R.

1522 proposes to amend Title 5 of the U.S.

Code to allow civilian service
performed in a temporary position after

31 December 1988, to be considered
creditable service under FERS.

The aim is to reinstate a mechanism
that existed prior to 1989,

allowing affected employees to make
"catch-up" retirement contributions

to retroactively purchase credit for
time spent in non-career positions.

This measure is supported by various
labor organizations and would benefit

many retirees by increasing their
total creditable service years and

consequently, their retirement annuities.

The stability of retiree
payments, combined with active

legislative progress on H.R.

1522 and the successful defense
against proposed cuts in H.R.

1, demonstrates that while short-term
appropriations failures create operational

chaos, the long-term, structural security
of federal retirement benefits remains

a core focus of legislative effort.

The administrative wall separating
the retirement trust funds from

annual discretionary spending ensures
immediate financial stability,

which then allows policy efforts to
concentrate on fundamental equity

reforms like those found in the
Federal Retirement Fairness Act.

Cost of Living Adjustment Update

While retirees’ 2025 cost-of-living
adjustment (COLA) of 2.5

percent had already been implemented,
affecting payments beginning in

January 2025 , the procedural
impacts of the shutdown delayed

the determination of the 2026 COLA.

This annual adjustment, determined
by the change in the Consumer

Price Index for Urban Wage Earners
and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), is

typically informed by the release of
the September data in mid-October.

Due to the appropriations lapse, the
release of the September 2025 CPI-W

figure was officially rescheduled
from 15 October 2025 to Friday,

24 October 2025, at 8:30 a.m.

(ET).

Issues That Affect Veterans Affairs

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
maintained nearly full functionality

during the government shutdown, ensuring
the continuity of essential services

for veterans, particularly those
receiving disability compensation.

The focus of the week was on the
expansive implementation of the

Sergeant First Class (SFC) Heath
Robinson Honoring our Promise to

Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act.

VA Operational Status During the Shutdown

The VA estimated that approximately
97 percent of its employees continued

working during the appropriations lapse.

This high rate allowed critical
services to remain operational: Health

Services: VA Medical Centers, outpatient
clinics, and Vet Centers remained

open and continued providing care.

Benefit Payments: The processing and
delivery of VA financial benefits,

including compensation, pension,
education, and housing benefits,

continued uninterrupted, as these are
considered essential expenditures.

Support Services: The Veterans Crisis
Line (Dial 988, Press 1) remained

operational 24/7, and burials
continued at VA national cemeteries.

The primary impact on veterans' services
was felt administratively, as VA

benefits regional offices were closed.

This closure limited in-person
consultations and localized

claims assistance, but did not
affect the mailing or electronic

processing of existing benefits.

Expansive PACT Act Implementation

The year 2025 marked a period of
accelerated implementation for the PACT

Act, significantly expanding benefits for
disabled veterans exposed to burn pits,

Agent Orange, and other toxic substances.

Expansion of Presumptive
Conditions and Eligibility

The updates introduced substantial
changes that directly affect

eligibility for disability compensation:

New Presumptive Conditions: The list of
presumptive conditions was dramatically

expanded, with the VA adding 23 new
conditions that automatically qualify

for benefits without requiring the
veteran to prove service connection.

These conditions include several
respiratory illnesses, such as chronic

obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
related to particulate matter exposure;

various cancers previously difficult to
link to service; neurological conditions;

and certain autoimmune disorders.

Reduced Burden of Proof: Eligibility
requirements were significantly broadened.

Veterans who served in specific,
previously unrecognized locations

(including additional bases in Thailand
and Guam) are now presumed to have

been exposed to toxic substances.

Furthermore, the VA now accepts
a broader range of documentation,

such as buddy statements and unit
records, when official military

records are incomplete, streamlining
the evidence requirements for claims.

Retroactive Payments: The 2025 updates
confirmed that veterans are now eligible

for retroactive payments for certain
conditions, potentially resulting in

substantial lump sum compensation dating
back to the onset of the illness, which

may precede the initial claim filing date.

Family and Caregiver Support

The PACT Act expansion also provided
critical relief for families and

caregivers of disabled veterans:

Extended Caregiver Support: Paid
respite care for family caregivers

was doubled from 30 to 60 days
annually, and the program expanded

eligibility to include caregivers of
veterans with severe mental health

conditions related to toxic exposure.

Educational Benefits: New educational
opportunities were introduced, including

the expansion of the Fry Scholarship to
include grandchildren of veterans who died

from toxic exposure-related conditions.

Additionally, specialized
mental health services and early

intervention screening programs were
established for spouses and children.

Capacity Building: To handle the immense
workload generated by these expansions,

the VA is committed to substantial
staffing increases, planning to hire

over 2,000 new healthcare providers
specifically for PACT Act cases.

Administrative Reporting Shift

Beginning in October 2025, which marks
the start of Fiscal Year 2026, the VA

adjusted its external reporting schedule.

The public PACT Act dashboard, which
tracks benefit enrollment and claim

processing metrics, transitioned
from a monthly publication

schedule to a quarterly schedule.

This shift in reporting cadence
indicates a strategic change toward

focusing on broader, longer-term
outcomes of the PACT Act implementation

rather than short-term, month-to-month
claims processing performance.

This administrative decision, however,
places a greater onus on veteran

advocacy groups to monitor operational
efficiency, particularly concerning

potential backlogs, during this
period of dramatic benefit scaling.

Legislative Protection for Disabled
Veterans: The PLUS Act (H.R.

1656)

Addressing the increasing
commercialization of claims

assistance—particularly the risk of "claim
shark" exploitation targeting veterans

newly eligible for substantial retroactive
PACT Act payments—Congress advanced

legislation to regulate the industry.

Bill: H.R.

1656 – PLUS for Veterans Act of 2025
(Preserving Lawful Utilization of

Services for Veterans Act of 2025)

Status: Introduced in
House (February 27, 2025).

Effects on Disabled Veterans: The PLUS
Act fundamentally reforms VA claims

representation by permitting veterans to
enter into fee agreements with agents or

attorneys for help with initial claims
for benefits, a service historically

restricted to the appeals stage.

This legalization of compensated
initial claims is paired with

robust protective measures:

Fee Caps and Contingency: The bill
establishes federal standards, including

a maximum fee limit of $12,500 or
five times the monthly increase in

benefits awarded, whichever is less.

Crucially, fees must be contingent upon
a favorable outcome for the veteran.

Anti-Fraud Enforcement: To
deter unscrupulous actors, H.R.

1656 reinstates and strengthens penalties
for charging unauthorized fees, including

the potential for fines and imprisonment.

Furthermore, the VA must ensure
veterans are informed, via a standard

form, that free claims assistance
remains available from recognized

Veterans Service Organizations.

This legislative action formally
acknowledges the complexity of

modern VA claims, particularly under
the PACT Act, which necessitates

professional representation.

By simultaneously legalizing compensated
initial claims and imposing strict

fee caps and criminal penalties,
Congress is implementing a necessary

regulatory defense to protect
disabled veterans from predatory

commercial practices while ensuring
they can access expert assistance.

2025 VA Disability Compensation Rates

Disabled veterans’ financial
benefits already reflect the Cost

of Living Adjustment implemented
for the 2025 fiscal year.

Based on inflation data, the VA disability
compensation and Dependency and Indemnity

Compensation (DIC) received a 2.5

percent COLA increase, which was reflected
in payments effective January 2025.

This adjustment meant, for example, that
a veteran with a 100 percent disability

rating and no dependents received a
monthly increase of approximately $93.45.

And that's your Weekly Briefing.

Staying on top of these changes
is key to navigating your career,

your retirement, and your benefits.

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We’ll be back next week with another
roundup of the news that matters most

to the military and veteran community.