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Staff outlines three Plan 1 COLA options; committee puts ad hoc COLA bill on September agenda and delays final decision to October
Summary
Amanda Cecil, Senate Ways and Means staff, presented a memo outlining three options for Plan 1 COLA treatment — a permanent statutory COLA (with suspension authority), a one-time statutory COLA requiring budget funding (ad hoc approach), and tying COLA activation to Plan 1 funding — and the committee agreed to place an ad hoc COLA bill on the September agenda while delaying a final decision to October to confer with advocates.
Amanda Cecil, staff for the Senate Ways and Means Committee, walked the executive committee through a memo offering three possible approaches to a Plan 1 cost‑of‑living adjustment. "There are 3 options in that memo," Cecil said, describing (1) a permanent COLA placed into statute but subject to suspension in budget, (2) a one‑time statutory COLA that would require future budget funding (an ad hoc-style approach without yearly bills), and (3) tying any COLA activation to the arrival of Plan 1 funds. She cautioned that each option carries different budgetary and statutory consequences, including whether the COLA becomes part of the base budget.
Committee members debated the tradeoffs between pursuing a permanent COLA and taking a more pragmatic approach so retirees do not "miss out" if a permanent option stalls in the legislature. Chair Conway asked staff to prepare a two‑year fiscal cost estimate for the ad hoc COLA and suggested bringing a bill forward with a cap as a starting point. The committee agreed to add the Plan 1 ad hoc COLA bill and fiscal briefing to the September agenda and to delay final action until October to allow advocates and members time to weigh the options.
