COLA Count at 1 Percent

Three-fourths of the way through the measuring period to determine the January 2003 retiree cost-of-living adjustment, the COLA count remains at 1 percent. The inflation index used to set the COLA increased 0.1 percent in June but because of the way the COLA is calculated, the indicated adjustment remained at the same level indicated in the previous two months. Unless inflation picks up significantly in the three months remaining in the count, retirees appear headed for the smallest adjustment since the 1999 COLA, which was 1.3 percent.