True Vet Value

California’s expanded veteran property tax exemption is not law yet

Ryan Shepherd — Sat, 01 Aug 2026 17:21:29 +0000

The Facts

SB 296 proposes a significantly expanded property tax exemption for disabled veterans in California. As of this writing it remains in the Assembly Appropriations suspense file — a holding stage where bills wait on fiscal review. Bills in suspense frequently stall for a full session or die there.

What It Means For You

Nothing changes today. County assessors are still applying the existing exemption amounts, and filing as if the new bill passed can delay or invalidate your claim. Our California exemption page tracks the current rules and will be updated the day the law changes.

2026 VA disability COLA set at 2.8%. The new monthly math

Ryan Shepherd — Fri, 17 Jul 2026 11:53:35 +0000

The Facts

The 2026 cost-of-living adjustment for VA disability compensation is 2.8%, matching the Social Security COLA as required by law. The increase applies to payments effective December 1, with the first adjusted deposit arriving at the start of January.

What It Means For You

Every rating band moves up 2.8%. At 100% with no dependents, that is roughly $107 more per month. Dependents, SMC, and other add-ons scale by the same percentage. The adjustment is automatic — there is no form, no application, and no phone call required.

What The Brief is and the rules we write by

Ryan Shepherd — Tue, 07 Jul 2026 14:34:01 +0000

The Facts

Everything evergreen lives in our Benefit Registry and guides. The Brief covers what changes: rates and numbers, policy in motion, deadlines and windows, and accountability reporting on the system itself.

The Standing Rules

BLUF first. Every brief opens with the bottom line. What happened, who it affects, what to do. Sourced or it doesn’t ship. Claims trace to primary documents: statute, VA.gov, OIG and GAO reports. No politics. We critique processes, never parties. A confusing form gets called confusing; a party never gets named. Headlines contain the fact. No bait. Corrections are public. When we update or supersede a brief, the banner says so.