How the Ohio PERS COLA works
After 12 months of benefits, OPERS retirees get a cost-of-living increase each year on the anniversary of their retirement date. It is simple, not compounded: always figured on your original benefit. Members who retired before January 7, 2013 receive 3%. Those retiring on or after that date receive an increase based on the Consumer Price Index, capped at 3%, and nothing for a year after the CPI falls.
What to expect in 2027
Your next increase comes on your retirement anniversary. OPERS publishes the CPI-based rate for later retirees each year.
What a COLA is worth over time
On a $3,000 monthly pension, a 2% simple increase adds $60 a month every year, so after 20 years the check is $4,200. A 2% compounded increase reaches about $4,460. A plan with no automatic increase stays at $3,000 unless lawmakers act, and at 3% inflation that check buys about 45% less after 20 years. Our COLA guide compares how other plans handle it.
