SENATE GENERAL FUND COMMITTEE APPROVES ARSEA/APEAL COLA LEGISLATION AND SENDS IT FOR CONSIDERATION
The Senate Finance and Taxation General Fund Committee (F&TGF) unanimously awarded a favorable report on Wednesday to ARSEA/APEAL’s bill that allows the Legislature to once again award cost-of-living adjustments without adversely affecting the finances of the Retirement Systems of Alabama.
Unlike previous COLAs, House Bill 158 by State Rep. Steve Clouse (R - Ozark) treats them as a pay-as-you-go budget item and can be temporarily paused by the Legislature during years in which state finances lack adequate funding.
A video of the committee meeting may be viewed here — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5aGKXvpTbM&t=1666s — and our legislation is considered at the 24:05 mark.
F&TGF Chairman Greg Albritton (R - Range) attached a friendly amendment to our bill that states only one increase may be awarded during each quadrennium — or four-year period — in which the Legislature meets and moves the effective date of the legislation to October 1, 2026. That means that the bill must go back to the House for concurrence. With only five legislative days remaining in the session, time is not on our side.
We need the Senate to consider our bill on the floor as soon as possible, so please reach out to your Senator using the contact information below and urge them to support HB158.
Facts about HB 158:
- The legislation sets up the process for authorizing COLA-style payments, and a separate bill will have to be filed and passed before payments can be awarded.
- Our legislation is designed so the cost of the COLA decreases every year, and it eventually reaches zero. It specifically prohibits unfunded COLAs from being awarded, so RSA remains protected. RSA does not oppose this legislation.
- A provision in our bill allows city and county governments to award identical COLAs to their retirees, as well, if they choose.
Retirees have not received an increase since 2006 while inflation has skyrocketed in the interim, so the value and buying power of a monthly benefit for someone who retired in 2006 is now less than half what it was when they left state service.
If there was ever a time for you to act and make a legislative contact, that time is NOW.
Let your voice be heard and help us make regular COLAs a reality for public retirees across Alabama once again. Your action now could decide if state and local government retirees will once again receive the COLAs you deserve.
