City of St Louis Employees Retirement System: Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) Info for Retirees

Employees Retirement System of the City of St. Louis

Monday, October 06, 2008, 12:03:26 PM

Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) Information for Retirees and Beneficiaries

The January 2008 COLA for all eligible retirees and beneficiaries is 2.8%.

How COLAs are Determined

Pensions are adjusted according to the changes in the Consumer Price Index (U.S. city average index) as compiled by the U.S. Department of Labor. Adjustments are made January 1 based upon the CPI change for the previous 12 months ending September 30th.

Increases are limited to 5% each year, with total increases limited to 25%. If the CPI should decrease, pensions may be reduced, but not below what they were at retirement. No increase is made if the CPI increased by less than 1% since the previous adjustment.

Eligibility for COLA's

Retirees are first eligible for a COLA the second January 1 following retirement. Subsequent adjustments will be made as of January 1 of each year thereafter until the 25% cumulative maximum increase is reached. Refer to the chart below for the 2008 COLA:

Retirement Date	COLA	Explanation
Jan. 1996 or earlier	0.0%	Already reached 25% cumulative maximum
Jan. 1997 through Dec. 1997	1.7%	Will reach maximum with 1.7% on 1/1/08
Jan. 1998 through Dec. 2006	2.8%	Eligible for full COLA
Jan. 2007 through Dec. 2007		First eligible 01/01/09

COLA's by Year

Year	COLA	Year	COLA	Year	COLA	Year	COLA
1993	3.0%	1994	2.7%	1995	3.0%	1996	2.5%
1997	3.0%	1998	2.2%	1999	1.5%	2000	2.6%
2001	3.5%	2002	2.6%	2003	1.5%	2004	2.3%
2005	2.5%	2006	4.7%	2007	2.1%	2008	2.8%

Back to Employees Retirement System Home