Committee advances bill to add tiered COLAs for state retirees amid actuarial dispute

The House Banking, Financial Services and Pensions Committee on an afternoon session passed House Bill 21 93, which would provide tiered cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) for state retirement systems while capping the maximum benefit increase at $60,000 for recipients and placing a $90,000 cap on future salary bases for eligible retirement benefits.

Representative Wolffley, who presented the bill, said the measure is modeled after a previous COLA schedule and is intended to direct limited resources toward lower-paid retirees. "The $60,000 cap really is just to make it more affordable and more likely to pass, to help the people who need it the most," Wolffley said.

Proponents argue the tiered structure and caps will make the package more affordable and target relief to lower-income retirees. Committee discussion focused on the fiscal cost: the committee’s actuary estimated an aggregate increase in unfunded liabilities across pension funds of about $109,000,000, while a representative for the Teachers Retirement System (TRS) provided a different, larger estimate for TRS alone. Representative Wolffley acknowledged the discrepancy and said the differences are "workable" but require follow-up with actuaries and the oversight committee.

Opponents raised concerns about the long-term funding impact and the need for clearer agreement among pension actuaries. "We need to work this out and see exactly what it is and how much we can afford to do," a committee member said during debate. Lawmakers said oversight committee review and further actuarial reconciliation will follow before final floor action.

On a roll-call, the committee approved HB 21 93 by a 5-2 vote and referred the bill for further consideration. The record shows the committee asked for additional analysis of the differing actuarial estimates and flagged TRS’s separate calculations for follow-up.

The next procedural step is oversight committee review and any subsequent hearings on reconciling actuarial differences; the committee did not finalize funding mechanisms at this meeting.