EDUCATION
2022 EDUCATION EDITION
WilCo retired teachers working toward new cost-of-living raise
ADJUSTING FOR INFLATION The Williamson County Retired Teachers Association is working ahead of the 88th legislative session to get retired teachers of Texas a cost-of-living adjustment. The association cites studies showing that due to in ation and other factors, the U.S. dollar in 2022 buys 60% of what it did in 2004.
2004 Last time Texas retired teachers received a cost-of-living adjustment.
2021 Texas retired teachers received one additional check as a one-time adjustment to the cost-of-living increase.
BY SUMAIYA MALIK
This wing prepares a document each legislative session that speaks to all 150 members of the state House and the 31 state senators showing them what retired teachers have prioritized as needs for the coming session. The representatives then receive the document through members of the Texas Retired Teachers Association. According to Yawn, teachers who have retired in the last four or ve years are not as in need of an adjustment as the people who retired 20 years ago. In 2021, during the 87th legislative session, House Bill 3214, also called the COLA bill by state Rep. Giovanni Capriglione, R Southlake, had momentum with 97 sponsors and bipartisan support in the House of Representatives. The bill asked for a cost-of-living adjustment of 6% for
The Williamson County Retired Teachers Association, a local a liate of the Texas Retired Teachers Asso- ciation, is working ahead of the 88th legislative session to prepare a docu- ment explaining how retired teachers need a cost of living adjustment, or COLA, added to their monthly bene ts from the Teacher Retirement System of Texas pension fund. “We are going to impress on all of the legislators the fact that it has been [nearly] 20 years since any cost- of-living adjustment has been made to the retirement system,” said Larry Yawn, the legislative chair of the WCRTA and a member for 20 years. The WCTRA, a nonpartisan orga- nization in its 50th year of operation, is run by an elected president, two vice presidents and a treasurer. It has a legislative wing that protects the bene ts of retired teachers.
$1.00 $.60 $.80
$.20 $.40
$0
2004
2010
2016
2022
2023 Next legislative session
SOURCE: CTI INFLATION CALCULATOR COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
retired teachers. “It passed out of the Pensions [Investments and Financial Services] Committee, was stalled in the Calen- dars Committee and never came to a vote on the House oor,” Yawn said. Eventually, retired teachers received a “13th check” as a one-time payment after Gov. Greg Abbott called a special session. The check amount varied depend- ing on the level of pay, but it was not
the same as a cost-of-living adjust- ment. The new document is expected to ask for 6% COLA for all retired teachers of Texas. There are 340 members in the WCRTA from Round Rock, Cedar Park, Hutto, Liberty Hill, Granger, Leander, P ugerville, and Taylor. The Texas Retired Teachers Association has just under 100,000 members. For more information about the WCRTA, visit www.wcrta.org.
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