Official Summaries

Equal COLA Act

This bill applies a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for annuities paid under the Federal Employees Retirement System that is equal to the increase in inflation, regardless of the amount of the increase.

Specifically, for any year in which the Consumer Price Index (CPI) has increased over the previous year, the COLA amount shall be increased by the change in the CPI from the previous year. 

Current law applies an adjustment equal to the change in CPI only if the change is 2% or less. If the change is between 2% and 3%, the adjustment is limited to 2%. If the change is more than 3%, the adjustment is limited to 1% less than the change.

Current Full Text

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 491 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 491

  To amend title 5, United States Code, to achieve parity between the 
cost-of-living adjustment with respect to an annuity under the Federal 
  Employees Retirement System and an annuity under the Civil Service 
               Retirement System, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 16, 2025

  Mr. Connolly (for himself, Mr. Mullin, Ms. Tlaib, Ms. Brownley, Mr. 
 Boyle of Pennsylvania, Mr. Cleaver, Mr. Davis of North Carolina, Mrs. 
  McBath, Ms. DelBene, Mr. Frost, Mr. Cohen, Ms. Leger Fernandez, Mr. 
 Mrvan, Mr. Thanedar, Ms. Titus, Mrs. Cherfilus-McCormick, Mr. Raskin, 
Ms. McClellan, Mr. Casar, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, Mr. 
 Garamendi, Ms. Salinas, Mr. Lynch, Mr. Goldman of New York, Ms. Hoyle 
 of Oregon, Mr. Takano, and Mr. Mfume) introduced the following bill; 
 which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title 5, United States Code, to achieve parity between the 
cost-of-living adjustment with respect to an annuity under the Federal 
  Employees Retirement System and an annuity under the Civil Service 
               Retirement System, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Equal COLA Act''.

SEC. 2. INCREASE IN COLA FOR FERS ANNUITIES.

    (a) In General.--Paragraph (1) of subsection (b) of section 8462 of 
title 5, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
    ``(1) Except as provided in subsection (c), effective December 1 of 
each year, each annuity payable from the Fund having a commencing date 
not later than such December 1 shall be increased by the percent change 
in the price index for the base quarter of such year over the price 
index for the base quarter of the preceding year in which an adjustment 
under this subsection was made, adjusted to the nearest \1/10\ of 1 
percent.''.
    (b) Application.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall apply 
to--
            (1) any cost-of-living adjustment under section 8462 of 
        title 5, United States Code, made after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act; and
            (2) any annuity covered by such section commencing before, 
        on, or after such date.
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