COLA Count at 1 Percent

Through seven months of the 12-month counting period toward the January 2003 federal retiree cost-of-living adjustment, retirees have banked 1 percentage point. The count rose to that level after the inflation measure used to set the adjustment rose 0.6 percentage points in April, the second straight month it posted that size increase. The count now has risen four straight months after falling in the first three months of the measuring period. CSRS retirees get the full COLA. FERS retirees, assuming they meet certain eligibility requirements, get the full COLA up to 2 percentage points, a 2 percent COLA if the measure falls between 2 and 3 percent, and a percentage point less than the measure if the count is above 3 percent.