Sponsors (3)
The bill increases and indexes benefits to restore purchasing power and provide more secure payments for disabled coal miners and survivors, but doing so raises federal costs and could force budget trade-offs or generate implementation disputes without clear offsets.
Totally disabled coal miners and survivors (people with black lung) will receive a higher, fixed 2026 monthly benefit replacing the prior GS-2 fraction, increasing immediate cash and healthcare security.
Benefits for 2027 and later will be indexed upward when the statutory formula ratio exceeds 1, helping protect future benefit value from stagnation and preserving recipients' economic security over time.
The bill documents the 1969 benefit's 2026 dollar equivalent and the roughly 40% real decline in benefit value, providing an evidentiary basis to justify restorations or formula changes that improve purchasing power for beneficiaries.
Taxpayers and the Treasury will likely face higher program costs beginning in 2026 and in later years if the 2026 increase and subsequent indexing raise monthly payments above current law.
Higher program costs could create budgetary trade-offs, potentially crowding out other federal spending priorities unless offsets or revenues are identified.
If the indexing formula or statutory text is ambiguous or incomplete, it could trigger legal or administrative disputes that delay payments or create compliance costs for the agency and uncertainty for beneficiaries.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Raises the Black Lung monthly benefit to an annual $15,030 in 2026 and creates an annual indexing formula for increases in 2027 and later.
Official title: To amend the Black Lung Benefits Act to provide adequate benefits for miners suffering from black lung disease, and for other purposes.
Introduced June 30, 2026 by Summer Lee · Last progress June 30, 2026
Raises the monthly payment rate for totally disabled coal miners under the Black Lung Benefits Act by setting a specific higher annual amount for 2026 and creating a formula to index future years to inflation or a minimum threshold. It replaces the prior statutory tie to a fraction of a federal GS pay step for 2026 and later years, so benefits grow automatically each year rather than remaining fixed in real terms. The change takes effect for benefits payable after enactment in 2026 and establishes an annually adjusted rate for 2027 and beyond based on the prior year’s rate and an indexing ratio, intended to preserve benefit value over time.