House to Vote on Richard Star Act Nov. 11

The House will hold a floor vote on a bill that would let combat-wounded veterans collect both military retirement pay and VA disability compensation.

Updated on Nov. 10, 2026 in Military

Bold flat-color editorial illustration of brass service medals beside a small brass balance scale on a dark slate surface, evoking the balance of military retirement pay and disability compensation. — The House will vote Veterans' Day, November 11, on the Richard Star Act, which would let combat-wounded veterans collect both military retirement pay and VA disability compensation. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Should combat-wounded veterans be allowed to receive both their full retirement pay and disability benefits?

The House is scheduled to vote Veterans' Day, November 11, 2026, on the Richard Star Act (HR 2102), which would eliminate the wounded veteran tax. The vote follows a discharge petition led by Rep. Mark Takano that reached the 218 signatures needed to force floor action.

Why it matters

Under current law, combat-wounded veterans with fewer than 20 years of service lose $1 of military retirement pay for every $1 of VA disability compensation they receive. The bill would remove that offset for this group, affecting a large population of medically retired veterans nationwide.

The discharge petition reached 218 signatures, including 213 Democrats and five Republicans, to force a floor vote. The Congressional Budget Office estimates $13 billion in added direct spending from 2027 to 2036, and the Senate's response remains unknown.

The players

Mark Takano

Takano is a Democratic congressman from California who serves as the ranking member of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee and filed the discharge petition for the bill.

Congressional Budget Office

The Congressional Budget Office is the nonpartisan federal agency that provides cost estimates for pending legislation.

The details

The Richard Star Act would allow combat-wounded veterans with fewer than 20 years of service to receive both military retirement pay and VA disability compensation, which current law bars without an offset. Rep. Mark Takano, the ranking Democrat on the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, filed the discharge petition that brings the bill to a floor vote.

November 11, 2026: House scheduled to vote on the Richard Star Act on Veterans' Day.
2027 to 2036: Period over which the CBO estimates a $13 billion increase in direct spending.
January 2027: The 119th Congress adjourns, and any bill not passed by both chambers must be reintroduced.

Political Context

The bill targets the federal offset rule that has long reduced military retirement pay for disabled veterans with shorter careers. Its path depends on whether the Senate will accept the cost of roughly $13 billion over ten years.

Medically retired combat veterans with fewer than 20 years of service could keep their full retirement pension alongside VA disability pay if the bill becomes law. The change would apply only to this group and would not take effect until both chambers pass it.

The takeaway

The bill's outcome will show whether Congress is willing to spend about $13 billion over a decade to end the offset for disabled veterans. Readers tracking veterans' benefits should watch both the House vote and any Senate action.

What happens next

The House is scheduled to vote on the Richard Star Act on November 11, 2026. If it passes, the Senate would still need to act before the 119th Congress adjourns in January 2027.