Retiree COLA to increase 2.3% in 2008
Staff report
Posted : Wednesday Oct 17, 2007 12:00:38 EDT

The annual cost-of-living adjustment for military retirees will be 2.3 percent effective Dec. 1.

That will match the increase in Social Security benefits announced Wednesday.

The new COLA, which will first show up in January retirement paychecks, means that military retirees will receive an extra $23 for every $1,000 in retired pay.

The annual COLA is calculated by averaging the inflation rate for the final three months of each fiscal year, July through September. The 2.3 percent increase is one percentage point less than last year’s adjustment, and the smallest in four years, mainly because inflation has remained low this year.

The increase applies not only to military retired pay but also to disability retired pay and military survivor annuities.

Ellie