KPERS' retirees urge House panel to embrace $185 million cost-of-living adjustment

[TexasTowelie]

Advocates of judicial, law enforcement, firefighter and other government retirees urged Kansas House members Monday to rally behind legislation delivering a $185 million cost-of-living adjustment to people receiving benefits from the Kansas Public Employee Retirement System.

KPERS retirees received their last COLA in 1998 and last received a one-time cash bonus in 2008. The overall cost to government employers of the proposed 1 percent to 3 percent monthly bump could jeopardize the bill assigned to the House Financial Institutions and Pensions Committee.

“There’s a lot of balls up in the air right now,” said Chairman Jim Kelly, a House Republican from Independence. “I wanted this to be available.”

Alan Conroy, executive director of KPERS, said the legislation would apply to 80,100 retirees and beneficiaries. Approximately 300,000 employees, former employees and retirees are part of KPERS.

Read more: https://www.cjonline.com/news/20190211/kpers-retirees-urge-house-panel-to-embrace-185-million-cost-of-living-adjustment

[3Hotdogs]

1. Without a C.O.L.A., retirees will be collecting welfare. My father retured in 1972.

His pension was $12k. If there were no C.O.L.A., he would be below the poverty line today. (Different state, so he got the adjustments.

[ROB-ROX]

2. I retired from the University of California

We have a retirement system which has been so successful with investments. I did not have to pay a monthly payment for over 30 years. I am retired and in 10 years my adjustment was 13%. We are keeping up with inflation.