Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay Adjustments Since 1969

Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay Adjustments Since 1969

Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay
Adjustments Since 1969
Katelin P. Isaacs
Analyst in Income Security
December 7, 2010
Congressional Research Service
7-5700
www.crs.gov
94-971
CRS Report for Congress
P
repared for Members and Committees of Congress

Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay Adjustments Since 1969

Summary
Cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) for retired federal employees and pay adjustments for
current federal employees often differ because they are based on changes in different economic
variables.
Federal retirement and disability benefits are indexed to price increases as measured by the
Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), whereas pay
adjustments for civilian federal workers are indexed to wage and salary increases in the private
sector, as measured by the Employment Cost Index (ECI). Both the CPI-W and the ECI are
calculated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor.
Federal law requires Social Security benefits and pensions paid to retired federal employees to be
adjusted for inflation each year. The COLAs for both Social Security and civil service pensions
are based on inflation as measured by the CPI-W. Congress has linked COLAs for Social Security
and federal retirement benefits to the rate of increase in the prices of goods and services to protect
retirement income from losing purchasing power through the effects of inflation.
Congress has linked adjustments in federal pay to the ECI so that wages for federal employees
will remain competitive with wages paid by firms in the private sector. Under the terms of the
Federal Employees’ Pay Comparability Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-509), pay for civilian federal
employees is adjusted each year to keep the salaries of federal workers competitive with
comparable occupations in the private sector. These annual adjustments in federal employee
pay—which are distinct from any pay raises associated with within-grade step increases or
promotions to a higher pay grade—are based on changes in the cash compensation paid to
workers in the private sector, as measured by the ECI. Under certain circumstances, the President
may limit the annual increase in federal pay by executive order.
In general, wage increases reflect both improvements in the productivity of labor and increases in
the general level of prices in the economy. Consequently, when measured over long periods of
time, wages tend to rise faster than prices. Because COLAs for retirees do not reflect increases in
the productivity of people who are still in the work force, COLAs do not make retirees financially
better off. COLAs merely protect retirees from becoming financially worse-off as prices rise over
time. In 2011, there will be no automatic COLA for recipients of Social Security benefits or
federal civil service pensions because the price level as measured by the CPI-W did not increase
over the comparison period.
Increases in retirement benefits for retired federal employees were first linked to the CPI-W by
law in 1962. Increases in Social Security benefits have been linked by law to changes in the
CPI-W since 1973. Before then, Congress periodically adjusted Social Security benefits through
legislation. Congress chose to tie increases in these benefits to the CPI-W to make the process
less subject to political influences. At year-end 2009, the overall price level as measured by the
CPI-W was 477% higher than it was in 1969, which is the index base year chosen for this report’s
analysis. As of January 2010, Social Security benefits have risen by 626% since 1969, and federal
civil service retirement benefits have risen by 496%. Average wages among all workers in the
economy have risen by 632% since 1969. Salaries for civilian federal employees have grown by
428% since 1969, and the salaries of members of Congress have increased by 309%.
This report is updated annually.
Congressional Research Service

Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay Adjustments Since 1969

Contents
COLAs Versus Pay Adjustments ................................................................................................. 1
How to Use the Benefit and Pay Adjustment Table ...................................................................... 2
Procedures for Determining Adjustments .................................................................................... 2
Social Security and Civil Service Retirement......................................................................... 2
Federal Civil Service Pay ...................................................................................................... 3
Uniform Nationwide Pay Adjustment .............................................................................. 4
Locality Pay Adjustments................................................................................................ 4
Federal Pay Raises for Within-Grade Step Increases and Promotions..................................... 5
Pay for Members of Congress ............................................................................................... 5
Average Annual Wages and Salaries ...................................................................................... 6
Price Increases ...................................................................................................................... 6

Tables
Table 1. Annual Adjustments to Social Security Benefits, Federal Civilian Pensions,
Federal Pay, Congressional Pay, National Average Wages, and Consumer Prices, 1969
to 2010..................................................................................................................................... 7

Contacts
Author Contact Information ...................................................................................................... 10
Acknowledgments .................................................................................................................... 10

Congressional Research Service

Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay Adjustments Since 1969

ederal law requires Social Security benefits and the pensions paid to retired federal
employees to be adjusted annually for inflation. The cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs)
F both for Social Security and civil service pensions are based on inflation as measured by
the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). Under the
terms of the Federal Employees’ Pay Comparability Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-509), pay for civilian
federal employees is adjusted each year to keep the salaries of federal workers competitive with
comparable occupations in the private sector. The annual adjustments in federal employee pay are
based on changes in the cash compensation paid to workers in the private sector, as measured by
the Employment Cost Index (ECI). Under certain circumstances, the President may limit the
annual adjustment in federal pay by executive order. This adjustment is separate from any pay
increases resulting from within-grade step pay increases or promotions to a higher pay grade.
Table 1 shows the adjustments since 1969—the index base year chosen for this analysis—in pay
for federal employees and members of Congress and in the COLAs applied to Social Security
benefits and federal civil service pensions.1
Two national economic indexes are also displayed in Table 1 to provide a basis for comparison
with benefits and pay. These indexes show the average annual change in the wages of all workers
in the United States, as computed by the Social Security Administration, and the CPI-W, a price
index computed by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
COLAs Versus Pay Adjustments
COLAs for retired federal workers and pay adjustments for current federal workers often differ
because they are based on changes in different economic variables. Social Security benefits and
federal retirement annuities are indexed to increases in the CPI-W, which measures changes in the
price of a market basket of consumer goods and services. Congress has linked COLAs for Social
Security and federal employee pensions to the rate of increase in the general level of prices to
protect retirement income from losing purchasing power through the effects of price inflation.
COLAs ensure that a retiree’s income will purchase the same amount of goods and services after
years of retirement that it purchased at the start of retirement. COLAs do not reflect increases in
the productivity of people who are still in the work force, and thus they do not increase the real
purchasing power of retirement income. COLAs do not make retirees better off financially; they
merely protect them from becoming financially worse-off over time as prices rise.
Pay adjustments for federal workers are based on changes in private-sector wages and salaries.2
The objective of federal pay policy is to keep pay in the federal government competitive with pay
in the private sector. Adjustments in pay for federal civil service workers therefore are indexed to
increases in the wages and salaries of private-sector employees. Over time, wage increases reflect
increases in the nation’s output of goods and services as well as price increases. Because wage
increases in the private sector reflect growth in the productivity of labor, wages tend to increase
faster than prices when measured over long periods of time.

1 The income-tested programs of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and veterans’ pensions use the cost-of-living
adjustment (COLA) formula of Social Security. Each year since 1983 these benefits have been increased at the same
time and by the same percentage as Social Security benefits.
2 For additional details on pay adjustments for federal workers, see CRS Report RL34463, Federal White-Collar Pay:
FY2009 and FY2010 Salary Adjustments, by Barbara L. Schwemle.
Congressional Research Service
1

Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay Adjustments Since 1969

How to Use the Benefit and Pay Adjustment Table
Table 1 shows the percentage change in federal pay and retirement benefits for each year since
1969, and an index relative to the base year of 1969. The index shows the cumulative adjustment
in pay or benefits, compounded annually, with a base of 100.0 in 1969. For example, Congress
increased Social Security benefits by 15.0% in 1970, making benefits 115.0% of what they were
in 1969. Another Social Security benefit increase of 10.0% was granted in 1971, making benefits
126.5% of what they had been in 1969. (1.15 X 1.10 = 1.265) Federal civilian retirees received a
5.6% increase in their annuities in 1970, raising those benefits to 105.6% of the 1969 level. The
next increase in federal civilian retirement benefits was a 4.5% adjustment in 1971, bringing the
average federal pension to 110.4% of its 1969 amount. (1.056 X 1.045 = 1.104)
The bottom row of the index column shows how much federal pay and retirement benefits have
grown since the index base year of 1969. (The “Federal Civil Service Pay Adjustments” column
includes annual pay adjustments for comparability with private sector pay as well as locality-
based pay adjustments, but does not contain pay raises resulting from within-grade step increases
or promotions.) For example, with the COLA that was paid in Social Security checks issued in
January 2009, these benefits had increased to 726% of their 1969 level, an increase of 626%.3
This means that a benefit initially paid in 1969 would be 7.26 times as large in 2009 if it were still
being paid in that year. Benefit increases can be compared across programs by looking at the
index column for any given year. For example, as of 1985, federal civilian pay had increased by
134% over what it had been in 1969, and congressional pay had increased by 77%. In
comparison, average wages and salaries for all workers in the U.S. economy in 1985 were 185%
greater than they had been in 1969. The column displaying the CPI-W shows that by 1985 the
price level had increased by 190% since 1969.
Procedures for Determining Adjustments
Social Security and Civil Service Retirement
Social Security and civil service retirement benefits are adjusted to offset the effect of inflation in
the cost of living as measured by a price index.4 Cost-of-living adjustments enable retirees to
maintain the purchasing power of their retirement income. Automatic adjustments to offset
erosion in the value of retirement benefits caused by inflation were first applied to civil service
retirement benefits by P.L. 87-783, enacted in 1962. In 1972, P.L. 92-336, provided for automatic
inflation-related increases in Social Security benefits.5 Benefit increases in Social Security

3 An index of 726 means that the number is 726% of the base, which is an increase of 626%, just as 200 is 200% of 100
and represents an increase of 100% from a base of 100.
4 The two retirement systems for federal civil service workers use different adjustment systems. The Civil Service
Retirement System (CSRS), which applies to workers first hired into federal service before 1984, provides a full COLA
for all retirees and survivors. The Federal Employees’ Retirement System (FERS) covers workers hired on or after
January 1, 1984, and others who voluntarily switched from CSRS to FERS. To constrain retirement costs, Congress
placed restrictions on COLAs to FERS retirees. FERS provides COLAs to retirees under the age of 62 only if they are
disabled or are survivor annuitants. FERS retirees aged 62 or older receive a full COLA only if the CPI increases by
2.0% or less. FERS retirees receive a 2.0% COLA if the CPI increase is between 2.0% and 3.0%. If the CPI increases
by 3.0% or more, the FERS COLA is 1 percentage point less than the CPI.
5 This law was amended in 1973 by P.L. 93-66 and P.L. 93-233 before the 1972 law went into effect.
Congressional Research Service
2

Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay Adjustments Since 1969

preceding 1975 were not automatic COLAs linked to inflation, but were special adjustments
legislated by Congress. For example, Congress granted the 1970, 1971, and 1972 Social Security
increases of 15%, 10%, and 20%, respectively, in part because of concern about the number of
elderly Americans living in poverty. These increases were intended not just to offset inflation in
those years, but to raise the real level of benefits. The 8.0% Social Security increase effective in
June 1975 was the first automatic inflation-related COLA.
The large increases in Social Security benefits that Congress provided periodically before the
program was indexed to inflation have had a substantial effect on the cumulative index for Social
Security shown in Table 1 because the table uses 1969 as the base year for the index. This may
create a somewhat misleading impression if Social Security benefit increases are compared with
the civil service retirement program, which was indexed to inflation in the early 1960s. For
example, if 1975 were used as the base year for the index instead of 1969, the cumulative Social
Security increase through January 2009 would be 299%. This is almost the same as the 284%
cumulative increase in civil service retirement benefits during that period.6
The benefit adjustments in these programs are made by computing the average monthly CPI-W
for the third quarter of the current calendar year (July, August, and September) and comparing it
with the average CPI-W for the third quarter of the last year a COLA was determined. For
example, the 5.8% Social Security COLA paid in January 2009 represents the increase in the
average monthly CPI for July, August, and September of 2008 over the average monthly CPI for
July, August, and September of 2007. The benefit increases are first included in checks issued in
the month of January and take place automatically unless legislation is enacted to change them. In
FY1986, the Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Act canceled civil service retiree COLAs. In 1994, 1995,
and 1996, P.L. 103-66 (the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993) delayed civil service
nondisability retiree COLAs until April in order to achieve budget savings.
If consumer prices as measured by the CPI-W do not increase from the third quarter of the last
year a COLA was paid to the third quarter of the current year, there is no COLA for annuities paid
under CSRS or FERS. From the third quarter of 2008 to the third quarter of 2009, the CPI-W fell
by 2.1%. Therefore, there was no COLA under either CSRS or FERS in January 2010. Because
the price level fell between the third quarter of 2008 and the third quarter of 2009, the average
monthly CPI for the third quarter of 2008 remained the basis on which the COLA was determined
for 2011.7 From the third quarter of 2008 to the third quarter of 2010, the CPI-W fell by 0.6%.
Therefore, there will be no COLA applied to Social Security and civil service pensions in January
2011.
Federal Civil Service Pay8
The Federal Employees’ Pay Comparability Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-509) established a two-step
system for setting and adjusting federal pay. Step one is an annual adjustment that applies
uniformly to all “white collar” federal civil service employees covered by the general schedule
(GS) pay system, the foreign service pay system, and certain pay systems for employees of the

6 From 1969 through 1976, the adjustment for civil service retirement was 1 percentage point more than the rate of
inflation.
7 See 5 U.S.C. § 8340 and 5 U.S.C. § 8462.
8 For more information on federal pay, see CRS Report RL34463, Federal White-Collar Pay: FY2009 and FY2010
Salary Adjustments, by Barbara L. Schwemle.
Congressional Research Service
3

Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay Adjustments Since 1969

Department of Veterans Affairs. The second step comprises locality-based salary adjustments that
vary by geographic area. Neither of these adjustments constitute merit-based pay raises (i.e.,
within-grade step increases or promotions to a higher pay grade).
Uniform Nationwide Pay Adjustment
The uniform nationwide annual adjustment to the general schedule pay scale is based on the
average pay raise received by workers in the private sector from year to year. The Pay
Comparability Act specifies that the nationwide pay adjustments for federal white-collar GS
workers are to be one-half percentage point less than private sector wage increases, as measured
by the ECI.9 The increase is computed by comparing the ECI for the third quarter of the previous
calendar year to the ECI in the third quarter of the calendar year before that. Thus, there is a 15-
month lag between the measurement period and the effective date of the pay raise. On the basis of
the 2.9% increase in the ECI from the third quarter of 2007 to the third quarter of 2008, the base
pay adjustment for federal employees in January 2010 as determined under the Pay
Comparability Act would have been 2.4%. Although P.L. 101-509 specifies that the annual
national increase in basic GS pay rates will be equal to the percentage change in the ECI minus
0.5 percentage point, the law gives the President authority to limit pay adjustments through
executive order in the event of serious economic conditions or a national emergency affecting the
general welfare.10
Locality Pay Adjustments
P.L. 101-509 authorized locality-based pay adjustments for civilian federal employees in
specified occupations and geographic locations to reflect the salary levels of private-sector
workers in similar occupations in those areas. The original objective of the civil service locality
pay program was to bring federal salaries to within 5% of private sector salaries over a nine-year
period (1994 through 2002). Once pay parity is achieved, locality pay adjustments are no longer
to be made unless the gap subsequently widens to more than 5%. Although Congress suspended
the uniform nationwide civil service pay adjustment for 1994, it agreed to pay locality
adjustments to civil service workers. Since 1994, Congress has set aside P.L. 101-509 and
specified in appropriations bills the amounts available for distribution each year as locality pay
adjustments.
On November 30, 2009, President Obama sent to Congress a legislative proposal for a 2.0% pay
adjustment in 2010 for federal employees, but with no locality adjustments. On December 16,
2009, the President signed the FY2010 omnibus appropriations bill (P.L. 111-117), which
included a 1.5% across-the-board pay adjustment along with locality payment averaging 0.5%.
On December 23, 2009, the President issued an executive order that set the locality adjustment.11

9 The Bureau of Labor Statistics updates the ECI quarterly to measure changes in wages and salaries in private-sector,
non-farm employment.
10 Pay adjustments for members of the Senior Executive Service are not prescribed by law. They are established by the
President through an executive order. Thus, they may be the same as or different from other civil service pay
adjustments.
11 The complete 2010 general schedule salary tables are online at http://www.opm.gov/oca/10tables/index.asp.
Congressional Research Service
4

Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay Adjustments Since 1969

Federal Pay Raises for Within-Grade Step Increases
and Promotions
The data in the column labeled “Federal Civil Service Pay Adjustments” in Table 1 reflect post-
1969 uniform nationwide pay adjustments and locality pay adjustments applicable to the
government’s overall pay scales for workers in GS positions, from GS-1, step 1, through the
highest grade of GS-15, step 10. As noted above, the government adjusts the federal GS pay scale
periodically (usually once a year) to be competitive with wages and salaries paid by other
employers. The pay adjustments in Table 1 do not portray the total pay increases that any
individual or group of individuals might have received. As federal employees move through their
careers, they receive pay raises when they are granted a within-grade step increase or when they
receive a promotion to a higher pay grade. Both step increases and promotions to higher grades
are merit increases that are based on an individual’s performance in his or her job. If a worker
were to receive all within-grade step increases at the first point of eligibility without being
promoted to a higher pay grade, it would take 18 years to move from step 1 of a pay grade to step
10. The pay increases between steps range from 2.5% to 3.3%. Thus, although Table 1 indicates
that GS pay scales increased by 265% between 1975 and 2010, the pay in 2010 of an individual
who had been continuously employed in a federal GS job between 1975 and 2010 would have
risen by more than 265% due to the combined effects of increases in the overall pay scales,
within-grade step increases, and promotions to higher grades. Some workers receive step
increases but few promotions; others receive steady, periodic promotions; and still others receive
rapid promotions and spend many years at high pay grades. Thus, it is not possible to characterize
in general terms how the actual pay of long-term federal workers increases over time.
Consequently, Table 1 should not be construed as characterizing the salary history of a typical
federal employee.
Pay for Members of Congress
The procedures for adjusting the pay of civilian federal employees were applied to members of
Congress and other high-level federal officials by P.L. 94-82, enacted on August 9, 1975. In the
Government Ethics Reform Act of 1989 (P.L. 101-194), Congress approved different pay
increases for the House and the Senate for 1990 and 1991. Subsequent legislation passed by
Congress once again made Senators’ pay equal to that of Representatives, effective in August
1991. P.L. 101-194 also established a new procedure for setting members’ pay. Beginning in
1991, members’ annual pay raises were based on changes in the ECI reduced by 0.5 percentage
point and capped at 5.0%. On several occasions, Congress has voted to cancel the pay raises it
was authorized to receive under P.L. 101-194. Congress declined the pay raises that it otherwise
would have received in 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2007, and 2010.12
The annual pay adjustment for members of Congress is computed by comparing the ECI for the
fourth quarter of the previous calendar year with the ECI in the fourth quarter of the preceding
year. Thus, there is a 12-month lag between the measuring period and implementation of the pay
raise. Based on the increase in the ECI from December 2007 to December 2008, members were
scheduled to receive a pay adjustment in January 2010 of 2.1%. A provision in the FY2009

12 For more information, see CRS Report 97-1011, Salaries of Members of Congress: Recent Actions and Historical
Tables, by Ida A. Brudnick.
Congressional Research Service
5

Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay Adjustments Since 1969

Omnibus Appropriations Act (P.L. 111-8, March 11, 2009), however, prevented the pay
adjustment for 2010. Representatives and Senators received no pay increase in 2010.
Average Annual Wages and Salaries
The column labeled “Average Annual Wages/Salaries” displays the average annual increases in
wages and salaries earned by all workers in the United States as reported by the Social Security
Administration Board of Trustees. Like the data on civil service pay, this column does not reflect
the pay raises an individual worker might receive from year to year, because as workers gain
skills and experience they usually receive both pay raises and promotions. The data in Table 1
reflect average wage growth for the entire workforce, which is influenced by the retirement of
older, higher-paid workers and the entrance of younger, lower-paid workers. It also reflects shifts
in the structure of wages caused by declining employment in certain sectors of the economy and
increasing employment in other sectors. Because of the combined effects of pay raises and
promotions, a typical worker with a permanent attachment to the labor force would have
experienced wage growth greater than that shown in Table 1.
Price Increases
The final column of Table 1 shows the annual percentage change in consumer prices as measured
by the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners (CPI-W). The CPI-W represents the
average change nationwide in a typical “market basket” of goods and services purchased by urban
consumers who earn more than half of their income from clerical or wage occupations and who
were also employed at least 37 weeks in the previous year. The CPI-W population makes up
about 32% of the total population.13
Using the price level of 1969 as the base for the index, the CPI-W had risen to 569 by 2009,
meaning that consumer prices had risen by 469% over a 40-year period. This represents an
average annual increase in consumer prices of 4.4% over the period from 1969 to 2009. Over the
same period, wages and salaries rose at an average annual rate of 5.1%, or 0.7% faster than
prices. The 2009 index for Social Security benefits was higher than the price index (726
compared to 569), but this largely reflects the ad hoc increases granted by Congress in the early
1970s. Between 1975 and 2009, the Social Security index rose by 299% and the CPI-W rose by
288%.14 Federal civilian retirement benefits grew at nearly the same rate as consumer prices from
1969 to 2009, with the differences accounted for mainly by the lag-time between price
measurement and the implementation date of the COLAs for these benefits. Adjustments in pay
for civilian federal employees grew more slowly than consumer prices over the period shown in
Table 1, standing at an index value of 518 in 2009, compared to a CPI-W of 569.

13 Prior to 1978, the CPI-W was the only CPI measured published by the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor
Statistics (BLS). Beginning in 1978, BLS introduced the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) so
that a broader share of the population would be represented in estimates of changes in the price level. The CPI-U is
based on the expenditure patterns of all urban consumers and covers about 87% of the population. The CPI-U is usually
the more publicized of the two price indexes. For additional information on these two CPI measures, see CRS Report
RS21245, The Chained Consumer Price Index: A Brief Explanation, by Brian W. Cashell.
14 Social Security and civil service retirement are indexed to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners
(CPI-W).
Congressional Research Service
6

Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay Adjustments Since 1969

Table 1. Annual Adjustments to Social Security Benefits, Federal Civilian Pensions, Federal Pay, Congressional Pay, National
Average Wages, and Consumer Prices, 1969 to 2010
Civilian (CSRS)
Federal Civil
Congressional
Average Annual
Consumer

Social Security Benefits
Retirementa
Service Pay Adjustmentsb
Pay Adjustmentsc
Wages/Salariesd
Prices (CPI-W)e
Year
Percentage
Percentage
Percentage
Percentage
Percentage
Percentage
Change
Index
Change
Index
Change
Index
Change
Index
Change
Index
Change
Index
1969 100.0 100.0
100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
1970 15.0 115.0 5.6 105.6 6.0
106.0
5.0 105.0 5.7 105.7
1971 10.0 126.5 4.5 110.4 6.0
112.4
5.0 110.3 4.4 110.4
1972 20.0 151.8 4.8 115.6 10.9
124.6
9.8 121.1 3.4 114.1
1973

6.1 122.7 4.8
130.6
6.3 128.7 6.2 121.2
1974 11.0 168.5 12.2 137.6 5.5
137.7

5.9 136.3 11.0 134.5
1975 8.0 182.0 12.8 155.2 5.0
144.6 4.9 104.9 7.5 146.5 9.1 146.7
1976 6.4 193.6 5.4 163.6 4.8
151.6
6.9 156.6 5.7 155.1
1977 5.9 205.0 9.3 178.8 7.0
162.2 28.9 135.2 6.0 166.0 6.5 165.2
1978 6.5 218.4 7.4 192.0 5.5
171.1
7.9 179.1 7.7 177.9
1979 9.9
240.0 11.1 213.3 7.0
183.1 5.5 142.7 8.7 194.7 11.4 198.2
1980 14.3 274.3 14.2 243.5 9.1
199.7

9.0 212.2 13.4 224.8
1981 11.2 305.0 4.4 254.2 4.8
209.3

10.1 233.7 10.3 247.9
1982 7.4 327.6 8.7 276.3 4.0
217.7 15.1 164.2 5.5 246.5 6.0 262.2
1983

3.9 287.1

4.9 258.6 3.0 270.7
1984 3.5 339.1 4.0 226.4 4.0
170.8
5.9
273.8
3.5
280.1
1985 3.5 350.9 3.5 297.2 3.5
234.3 3.4 176.6 4.3 285.6 3.5 289.9
1986 3.1 361.8

3.0
294.2
1.6
294.6
1987 1.3 366.5 1.3 301.0 3.0
241.4 19.2 210.5 6.4 313.0 3.6 305.2
1988 4.2 381.9 4.2 313.7 2.0
246.2
4.9 328.3 4.0 317.4
1989 4.0 397.2 4.0 326.2 4.1
256.3
4.0 341.5 4.8 332.6
1990 4.7 415.9 4.7 341.6 3.6
265.5 7.9 227.1 4.6 357.2 5.2 349.9
CRS-7

Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay Adjustments Since 1969

Civilian (CSRS)
Federal Civil
Congressional
Average Annual
Consumer

Social Security Benefits
Retirementa
Service Pay Adjustmentsb
Pay Adjustmentsc
Wages/Salariesd
Prices (CPI-W)e
Year
Percentage
Percentage
Percentage
Percentage
Percentage
Percentage
Change
Index
Change
Index
Change
Index
Change
Index
Change
Index
Change
Index
1991 5.4 438.3 5.4 360.0 4.1
276.4 29.5 294.1 3.7 370.4 4.0 364.0
1992 3.7 454.5 3.7 373.3 4.2
288.0 3.5 304.4 5.2 389.7 2.9 374.6
1993 3.0 468.2 3.0 384.5 3.7
298.7 3.2 314.1 0.9 393.2 2.8 385.2
1994 2.6 480.3 2.6 394.5 4.0
310.6
2.7 403.8 2.5 394.9
1995 2.8 493.8 2.8 405.6 2.6
318.7
4.0 419.9 2.8 406.1
1996 2.6 506.6 2.6 416.1 2.4
326.3
4.9 440.5 2.9 418.0
1997 2.9 521.3 2.9 428.2 3.0
336.1
5.8 466.1 2.2 427.2
1998 2.1 532.2 2.1 437.2 2.9
345.9 2.3 321.4 5.2 490.3 1.3 432.9
1999 1.3 539.2 1.3 442.9 3.6
358.3
5.6 517.8 2.2 442.6
2000 2.4 552.1 2.4 453.5 4.8
375.5 3.4 332.3 5.5 546.2 3.5 458.0
2001 3.5 571.5 3.5 469.4 3.7
389.4 2.7 341.3 2.4 559.3 2.7 470.5
2002 2.6 586.3 2.6 481.6 4.6
407.3 3.4 352.9 1.0 564.9 1.4 476.9
2003 1.4 594.5 1.4 488.3 4.1
424.0 3.1 363.8 2.4 578.5 2.2 487.6
2004 2.1 607.0 2.1 498.6 4.1
441.4 2.2 371.8 4.6 605.1 2.6 500.3
2005 2.7 623.4 2.7 512.0 3.5
456.9 2.5 381.2 3.7 627.5 3.5 517.9
2006 4.1 649.0 4.1 533.0 3.1
471.0 1.9 388.4 4.6 656.4 3.2 534.6
2007 3.3 670.4 3.3 550.6 2.2
481.4
4.5 686.1 2.9 549.8
2008 2.3 685.8 2.3 563.3 3.5
498.2 2.5 398.0 2.3 701.9 4.1 572.3
2009 5.8 725.6 5.8 595.9 3.9
517.7 2.8 409.2 0.9 708.2 -0.7 568.5
2010 0.0 725.6 0.0 595.9 2.0
528.0 0.0 409.2 3.4 732.3 1.5 577.0
Source: Congressional Research Service.
Notes: Changes are shown for the calendar year in which the increase appeared in the checks issued. For years in which payments were increased more than once, the
compounded effects are shown.
a. The COLAs in this column are those paid to CSRS annuitants. The COLAs paid under FERS (which are lower than CSRS COLAs in any year that inflation exceeds
2.0%), are not shown. See CRS Report 94-834, Cost-of-Living Adjustments for Federal Civil Service Annuities for FERS COLAs each year since 1988.
CRS-8

Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay Adjustments Since 1969

b. The federal civilian pay adjustments in this column include annual pay adjustments for comparability with private sector pay as well as locality-based pay adjustments.
This column does not contain pay raises resulting from within-grade step increases or promotions. For more information on pay adjustments for federal employees,
see CRS Report RL34463, Federal White-Col ar Pay: FY2009 and FY2010 Salary Adjustments, by Barbara L. Schwemle.
c. The changes in each year are those for members of the House of Representatives. In 1969, Representatives and Senators were each paid $42,500. In 2009,
Representatives and Senators were each paid $174,000 per year. There was no pay raise for Senators in Representatives in calendar year 2010.
d. Computed by the Social Security Administration, based on wage data reported by employers to the Internal Revenue Service. Average wages for 2009 and 2010 are
estimates of the Office of the Actuary of the Social Security Administration.
e. The CPI-W for 2010 is the August 2009 estimate of the Congressional Budget Office.

CRS-9

Federal Employees: Pension COLAs and Pay Adjustments Since 1969

Author Contact Information

Katelin P. Isaacs

Analyst in Income Security
kisaacs@crs.loc.gov, 7-7355

Acknowledgments
This report was originally prepared by former CRS Specialist Patrick Purcell. Please direct any inquiries to
the listed author.

Congressional Research Service
10