Senate Bill 3078 to provide temporary economic recovery payments to recipients of Social Security

The "Social Security Emergency Inflation Relief Act" is a proposed bill by Senators Elizabeth Warren, Chuck Schumer and Alex Padilla introduced to expand Social Security and Veterans Affairs benefits. Senate Democrats believe that it would provide an additional $200 in monthly benefits to eligible recipients for a six-month period (January through July 2026). This is separate from the annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) and aims to provide targeted relief for Social Security, SSI, railroad retirement, and certain veterans' benefits recipients to help with rising inflation. The bill has not yet been voted on and passed into law.

The Social Security Emergency Inflation Relief Act would provide critical relief to Americans living on a fixed income by:

• Providing a $200 per month emergency increase to Social Security checks until July 2026.
• Support all Title II Social Security beneficiaries, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiaries, Railroad Retirement beneficiaries, veteran disability compensation, and veteran pension benefit annuitants.

Just last week, the Trump administration announced that the 2026 cost of living adjustment will be 2.8% equivalent to just $56 extra a month on average. Meanwhile, thanks to Donald Trump's chaotic tariffs and the Republicans' giant health care cuts, prices particularly for food and health care are rising quickly, leaving families struggling to afford basic necessities. This new bill would provide relief to seniors, veterans, and Americans with disabilities who live on a fixed income and are being flattened by Trump's economy.

The faltering economy hits American seniors and people with disabilities especially hard. Half of all American seniors rely on Social Security for half of their income, while Social Security is the sole source of income for one in every four seniors. Due to stringent eligibility requirements, SSI and Social Security Disability Insurance benefits are even more likely to be the sole source of income for their beneficiaries. Over half of seniors' monthly spending is on housing, food, and transportation all basic necessities that are only becoming less affordable.

Full text of S. 3078 https://www.congress.gov/119/bills/s3078/BILLS-119s3078is.pdf