Equal COLA Act

Key Points

• This bill, called the Equal COLA Act, would change how annual inflation raises are calculated for retired federal employees. It aims to make sure all federal retirees get the same percentage increase regardless of which retirement plan they are in.
• Currently, federal workers in the newer retirement system often receive smaller cost-of-living adjustments than those in the older system. When inflation is above 2%, the newer system's raise is often reduced, which means these retirees' checks don't go as far over time as prices for goods and services rise.
• The policy would fix this by ensuring that retirement checks increase by the full amount of inflation every year. This helps retirees keep up with the rising costs of everyday items like food, gas, and medicine without losing their buying power.
• These changes would apply to all future cost-of-living adjustments once the bill is signed into law. It would help millions of current and future federal retirees maintain their standard of living throughout their retirement years.