Here is the latest statement from PASR from their website. They are constantly working for us!
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Spring 2025 COLA UPDATE from PASR
Efforts to promote lawmakers to adopt a COLA for pre-Act 9 beneficiaries continue in Harrisburg. House members Rep. Steven Malagari and Rep. Dan Deasy have again introduced legislation to support retired school employees. The bill – House Bill 411 –is now in the House State Government Committee awaiting consideration. The legislation mirrors the proposal led by these two lawmakers last session, which passed the state House twice with significant bipartisan support. As we all know, no action was taken in the state Senate. PASR and its lobbying team at Triad Strategies are continuing to work with lawmakers to advance this bill. These efforts are also being supported by groups like PSEA and AFSCME. All parties continue to stress the imperative nature of the COLA. With inflation continuing to rise, pre-Act 9 PSERS beneficiaries are seeing the values of their pensions decline with each passing day. PASR and Triad are actively working on a new “fact sheet” for advocacy distribution to lawmakers to help encourage their support. That material will be made available in the near future. Outreach efforts on the COLA are continuing in the state Senate, especially with members who have outwardly expressed their support of the concept. Sen. Katie Muth and Sen. John Kane have again issued legislative co-sponsor memos with plans to introduce COLA bills similar to those they sponsored last session. It will remain imperative for PASR members and retirees to reach out to their local elected officials and advocate for advancement of the COLA plan(s). Two decades are far too long to wait for this support. If there are any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact the PASR team. We are here to help and continue the momentum we generated on this matter last session.
Sincerely,
Kristen Holjes, PASR Executive Director
Update 7/11/24:
The PA General Assembly seems to have reached a budget deal, and the deal does not include a COLA. PASR is disappointed, to say the least, but the fight is not yet over!
After receiving bipartisan support in the PA House, PASR was hopeful at the prospect of a COLA being included in the budget, especially since many in the Senate expressed support and stated that they recognize the need for a COLA. In the end, the Senate refused to include a COLA in the budget deal because of concerns about the cost of a COLA. PASR believes that this concern is not worthy of depriving annuitants of a long overdue COLA because the cost of the COLA would have added less than one half of one percent to the unfunded liability present in the PSERS system–a negligible amount, especially in comparison to the positive impact this COLA would have had on many annuitants’ dire financial status.
PASR continues to believe that if a COLA could receive a vote on the full floor of the Senate, the COLA bill would pass. Consequently, we will continue to fight for a COLA. We believe that there will be opportunities to get a COLA passed this fall. We will need our members to contact their legislators. Please stay tuned for more details and please, please, please prepare to let your legislators know that you are displeased with their refusal to pass a COLA. PASR will be contacting you with a message that you can send to your legislators as the process continues to unfold; again, the fight isn’t over and an opportunity will exist this fall to get a COLA passed.
As you vote this November, please keep in mind how your legislators voted on this issue; we need more legislators that are supportive of a COLA to be elected if we are going to be able to secure a COLA for everyone and a COLA that is significant enough provide financial security for annuitants. PASR will send an email in the future asking you to take such action, so please check your email and be ready to express your opinion to your legislators.
“Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up”- Thomas A. Edison
The PA House votes on HB 1416. Please consult this list to see if your Representative voted in favor of a COLA: those in green voted for a COLA, and those in red voted against a COLA.
The PA Senate never voted on HB 1416, as the Senate leadership decided not to put it on the floor alone or as part of the budget.
THANK YOU for all of your efforts thus far and for your continued willingness to act to secure a COLA!!
Update 6/6/24:
PASR is continuing to have discussions with PA legislators about a Cost Of Living Adjustment (COLA) for PSERS and SERS annuitants in 2024, and a growing number of legislators are expressing support for HB 1416 thanks to your communications with your legislators!
We, and our coalition partners, are making progress in talks with the PA Senate leadership and legislators that are crucial to the budget process. It is our goal to get a COLA enacted as part of the budget process or the legislation that is passed after the budget to enact the budget (called code bills). The budget is supposed to be completed by the end of June, so we need to ensure that a COLA is top of mind for each and every legislator and the leaders of the budget process! We continue to be cautiously optimistic that a COLA, in the form of HB 1416, will be enacted this year. PASR NEEDS YOUR HELP TO MAKE THIS GOAL A REALITY!!
Please send your PA Senator, PA Representative, and other Legislative leaders a message (link to a message is below) urging them to not forget about retirees that have been ravaged by inflation yet have not received an increase in their pensions in over two decades!
Your message will be sent to: Your state Senator & your state Representative (based upon your address); Joe Pittman (Republican Majority Leader of the Senate); Scott Martin (Republican Senator and Chair of the Appropriations Committee); Kim Ward (Republican Senator and President Pro Tempore); Vincent Hughes (Democratic Senator and Minority Chair of the Appropriations Committee); Jay Costa (Democratic Senator and Minority Leader); and Cris Dush (Republican Senator and Chair of the State Government Committee)
You can edit the body of the message below to include any personal information about your need for a COLA or to otherwise make the message more personalized. You will not, however, be able to edit the salutation, as that will be automatically filled in when you submit your letter and it will automatically be sent to your Senator and key leaders in the PA budget process.
Please use this link to send a message: https://www.pasr.org/legislative-form/?id=4
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Update 2/23/24:
PASR continues to push for a Cost Of Living Adjustment (COLA) for PSERS annuitants, but we definitely need your help to get it done this year!
The PA House passed HB 1416, but the Senate State Government Committee, under the chairmanship of Senator Cris Dush, has refused to bring the bill up for a vote. As such we are working to get a COLA to be part of the budget process this spring and summer, but we need you, as constituents, to keep the pressure on your Senators and Representatives. A COLA will not come to fruition if legislators don’t hear from their constituents that a COLA is a priority.
You can support this effort by sending them a message here: https://www.pasr.org/legislative-form/?id=3 (You don’t need to fill in your member number, especially if you are not a PASR member)
This message will ask them to support HB 1416 and SB 864. SB 864 provides a COLA to everyone every three years that is based on the inflation rate. HB 1416 provides a COLA to those who retired prior to July 1, 2001 and did not recieve the 25% increase in their pension that Act 9 provided to those retiring after this date. Both bills provide a COLA to PSERS and SERS annuitants.
In the message is a list of talking points that you can use if you would like to call or visit your elected representative as well, and we hope that you would consider taking such actions in addition to sending this message.
The message will go to the following legislators that will play a crucial role in the budgeting process:
Senator Joe Pittman (Majority Leader), Sen. Kim Ward (President Pro Tem), Sen. Cris Dush (Chair of the State Government Committee), Sen. Scott Martin (Chair of the Appropriations Committee), Sen. Jay Costa (Minority Leader), Sen. Vince Hughes (Minority Chair of Appropriations Committee), Sen. Amanda Cappelletti (Minority Chair of State Government Committee), and to your own state Senator.
The House passed HB 1416 with every Democrat and 38 Republicans voting in favor of it, so there is bipartisan support!! Senate Republicans are, however, more reluctant to support COLA legislation, so we really need to ensure that they hear from us! Likewise, we want to ensure that COLA legislation remains a priority for Democrats in both chambers as they haggle over items in the budget. Consequently, it is of the utmost importance they they hear from you throughout the spring, so please contact your elected officials and urge anyone you know that supports this effort to also contact their elected officials.
Thank you for all that you have already done and thank you in advance for acting to communicate with the members of the General Assembly this spring!
COLA Update 1/11/24
A Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for retired educators and state workers has not been granted by the PA General Assembly in over 20 years! The PA House did pass HB 1416 which would provide a COLA of between 15 and 25% to those who retired prior to July 1, 2001, but the PA Senate has failed to act on this bill! HB 1416 is currently sitting in the Senate State Government Committee, which is chaired by Senator Dush. Consequently, PASR is asking that you take a moment to send Senator Dush, and your own PA Senator, a brief message asking him/them to put HB 1416 to a vote in his Committee so that the entire Senate may vote to approve it as well so that these annuitants can receive some relief from financial distress. The population effected is, on average, over 80 years old and receives less than $18,000 per year. If you are willing to send a message to Senator Dush urging him to act to move this COLA legislation, please click the link below. The link will ask for your basic information and will automatically send an email to Senator Dush and your own Senator. You can edit the content of the message if you would like to do so.
Thank you for your support!!
Please click here: https://www.pasr.org/legislative-form/?id=2
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COLA Update 6/28/23:
A small victory has been obtained in seeking a long overdue Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for PSERS annuitants! The House State Government Committee passed two pieces of COLA legislation today (HB 1415 and HB 1416)!! These bills were introduced by Representatives Deasy and Malagari, who deserve our gratitude. Rep. Deasy also appeared during the Committee hearing to advocate for passage of these bills.
The next step is for these bills is to be scheduled for a vote by the full PA House of Representatives. We will be asking you to contact your state representative once these bills have been scheduled for a full House vote, so please keep your eyes peeled for that request in the near future.
There is still along way to go to get either of these bills passed into law, as this process will need to be repeated in the PA Senate and signed by the Governor if they make it out of the House, but after more than twenty years with no COLA, we need to stop and celebrate these small victories!!
These bills provide pre Act 9 annuitants a smaller COLA than they deserve, and, as such, are not what PASR had hoped to achieve, but something is better than nothing and PASR continues to advocate for a larger COLA for Pre Act 9 annuitants and an automatic COLA for every PSERS annuitant. There is a chance that such a proposal could come forward in the Senate, and, if not, PASR will keep pushing until this goal is achieved. With that said HB 1416 could provide as much as a 25% increase some PSERS annuitants!
The vote today was along party lines, with 12 Democrats voting in favor of the bills and 9 Republicans voting against the bills. These legislators are listed below. If your representative voted in favor of the bill, please, please, please send them a note, call them, etc. to offer your gratitude for their work on our behalf!! PASR owes you a debt of gratitude as well for communicating with your state elected officials to urge them to adopt a COLA, so, THANK YOU, and please keep it up as these bills will not become law without your continued support and advocacy efforts!!
Those voting in favor of these two bills:
Conklin, Scott; Madden, Maureen E.; Howard, Kristine C.; Kenyatta, Malcolm; Madden, Maureen E.; Sanchez, Benjamin V.; Webster, Joe; Brennan, Tim; Guenst, Nancy; Probst, Tarah; Shusterman, Melissa L.; Siegel, Joshua; Young, Regina G.
Those voting against these bills:
Roae, Brad; Davanzo, Eric; Barton, Jamie; Keefer, Dawn W.; Miller, Brett R.; Schmitt, Louis C., Jr.; Staats, Craig T.; Banta, Jacob D.; Fink, Wendy
Thank you if you are a member of PASR, and, if you are not a member of PASR, please consider joining and helping us in this effort. More information can be found at www.pasr.org.
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A Message from the PASR Executive Director and Board of Directors
Update 4/2/23:
BREAKING NEWS!!!
PASR has spearheaded the charge to secure a Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for PSERS retirees!
PASR was the leading author of proposed COLA legislation being considered by the PA General As- sembly.
Senators Muth & Kane and Representatives Malagari and Deasy led a joint Policy Committee hear- ing regarding a COLA yesterday and PASR was central to its deliberations. PASR submitted written testimony to the Committee that strongly advocated for retirees receiving a COLA. Additionally, two PASR members, Deb Rucki and S. Thomas Curry, submitted written testimony of their own, and Mr. Curry provided in person testimony to the Committee. He made a strong case for the necessity of a COLA for PSERS retirees.
PASR in its written testimony: highlighted the economic necessity for a COLA after not receiving one for 20 years; proposed a one time COLA for pre Act 9 retirees and an automatic COLA every three years for all PSERS annuitants so that no one has to beg the legislature anymore for the next COLA; emphasized that educators deserve the respect of the General Assembly that should be shown through the granting of a COLA that allows their years of service to be recognized via a dignified retirement; documented the economic benefit to the state that a COLA would provide; noted that 75% of states provide for an automatic COLA, making PA an outlier; and directed the legislators' attention to the fact that the state has the funds available to pay for a COLA (a projected $8 billion surplus this year and a $5 billion 'rainy day fund'), so IF NOT NOW, WHEN?
If you would like to watch the hearing, here is a link:
https://www.senatormuth.com/joint-policy-committee-hearing-protecting-seniors-cost-of-living-adjust- ment-for-public-retirees/
If you are interested in the news coverage that the hearing garnered, please check out these articles:
https://www.thecentersquare.com/pennsylvania/article_00bdc3d4-c815-11ed-9eaf-fbf7f25718b8.html https://local21news.com/news/local/pa-democrats-push-support-for-cola-increase-for-retirees https://www.abc27.com/local-news/democratic-lawmakers-speak-on-cost-of-living-adjustment/
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LEGISLATIVE NEWS
By Bob Marko
PASR Region 12Director and L/PEC Chairman
As we start the 2023 Pennsylvania legislative year, many retired public school employees are faced with the reality that pensions earned during their decades of public school service are barely enough to make ends meet.
Pennsylvania is now in the best position to support our retired public school employees because we have a member of the State House of Representatives, Honorable Dan Deasy, from Allegheny County and a member of the Senate, Honorable Katie Muth, from Philadelphia who are each drafting Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) bills to help our retired public school retirees earn a well deserved cost of living raise.
We need your help to contact Democratic and Republican Senators and Representatives to support the House and Senate COLA legislation. Even if you are registered as a Republican and your legislator is a Democrat, be sure to contact him or her. The same contact is requested if you are registered as a Democrat and your legislator is a Republican.
The PASR L/PEC team is asking all of our members to write letters, send emails, make phone calls and schedule meetings with your state Senators and Representatives about this request for a COLA. Be sure to include the fact that public school retirees have not had a COLA since the passage of Act 9 in 2001. Our pensions have lost 50% of their value since 2001. We want to create a constant stream of phone calls and contacts to each Legislator’s office requesting that every public school retiree gets a well-deserved cost of living raise.
You can use the link below to find and contact your legislator:
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/findyourlegislator/
The site also includes the steps to send your legislator an email.
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