COLA

Chained CPI: 4 Opinions From the Press

Posted on 04/22/2013 by | Washington Watch | Comments

Bulletin Today | PoliticsIt’s not only politicians who have mixed reactions to a different way of calculating cost-of-living adjustments to Social Security benefits. Newspaper editorial writers and columnists are conflicted, too. The chained consumer price index, included in President Obama’s budget proposal, would mean that seniors’ checks would go up a little slower each year. The chained CPI assumes that as prices go up, consumers buy cheaper substitute goods to make up for it. Here’s how it’s playing among the mainstream press’s opinion …

9 Things to Look for in the President’s Budget

Posted on 04/9/2013 by | Washington Watch | Comments

PoliticsThe GOP-controlled House of Representatives approved a budget proposal first. Then came a very different document from the Democratic-controlled Senate. Now thousands more pages of numbers will land with a thud on Capitol Hill on April 10. It’s the president’s annual budget proposal. Unless you’re an underemployed CPA or an incurable policy wonk, you probably won’t want to wade through all that. So here’s a short checklist of what you should watch for in the budget: A chained CPI. This twist on …

COLA Change: How Much Would You Lose?

Posted on 02/13/2013 by | News | Comments

Bulletin Today | Money & Savings | PoliticsThe chained CPI — a proposal to change the way the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) is calculated for Social Security and veterans benefits — can be as confusing as its name. And with it comes a number of daunting statistics: Retirees and veterans would lose $129 billion in benefits over the next 10 years. If you’re 62 and take early retirement this year, by age 92 you’d be losing the equivalent of a full month of income every year. Poverty rates …

5 Reasons Chained CPI Is Bad For Social Security

Posted on 02/11/2013 by | AARP Blog Author | Comments

Your LifeDavid Certner is the Legislative Counsel and Director of Legislative Policy for Government Affairs at AARP. Congress and the Administration are considering, as a means of deficit reduction, a legislative change to the consumer price index – the so-called “chained CPI.” This change would have a particularly negative impact on Social Security benefits – here’s why: 1. Chained CPI compounds over time.  As a result of a chained CPI, there will be a 0.3% annual cut in Social Security cost …

Obama Rallies Democrats, Scorns GOP Fiscal Plans

Posted on 02/8/2013 by | General News | Comments

Bulletin Today | PoliticsBy Jim Kuhnhenn of The Associated Press LEESBURG, Va. (AP) — Assertive even as he preached humility, President Barack Obama vowed to confront Republicans on the budget deficit and urged Democrats on Thursday to stick with him on guns and immigration. He scorned a GOP plan to avoid imminent across-the-board spending cuts, declaring flatly “we’re on the right side of this argument.” In an address meant to motivate House Democrats during their annual retreat, Obama cast his overarching agenda as …

Hammering an Idea for Stingier COLAs

Posted on 02/7/2013 by | Washington Watch | Comments

Bulletin Today | PoliticsThis video might leave you with the impression that nobody wants a proposed change for calculating cost-of-living adjustments (COLA). Not older Americans. Not veterans. Not women. Not labor. And certainly not independent U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont. That the so-called chained Consumer Price Index has no support isn’t the case, of course, or these people wouldn’t have met at the U.S. Capitol to take turns bashing the proposal. Though the formula would slow increases in Social Security, veterans and …

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