Equal COLA Act

Source of recordUS Congress · congress.govLast synced Sep 11, 2026

Chamber

House

Progress

Where this bill stands in the legislative process.

Introduced
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became Law

Overview

The Equal COLA Act aims to ensure that retirees receiving federal annuity payments through the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) receive a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) that accurately reflects the rising cost of goods and services. Currently, the COLA for FERS annuities is limited based on the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). This bill would eliminate those limitations, providing a COLA equal to the full CPI increase, regardless of the amount.

Key provisions

Eliminates the percentage limits on COLA adjustments for FERS annuities.
The COLA will be calculated based on the percentage change in the CPI from the previous year.
Effective December 1st of each year, adjustments will be made.
The changes apply to COLA adjustments made after the bill’s enactment and to existing annuities.
The bill amends title 5, United States Code, specifically section 8462.

Who is affected

Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) annuity recipients
Federal Employees
Retirees

Notable changes

Current limitations on COLA adjustments for FERS annuities will be removed.
The COLA will now more closely align with the COLA provided to Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) retirees.

Bill text

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Jan 16, 2025XMLView source

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Legislative history

3 recorded actions

Jan 16, 2025House

Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

Jan 16, 2025

Introduced in House

Sep 16, 2025House

ASSUMING FIRST SPONSORSHIP - Mr. Walkinshaw asked unanimous consent that he may hereafter be considered as the first sponsor of H.R. 491, a bill originally introduced by Representative Connolly, for the purpose of adding cosponsors and requesting reprintings pursuant to clause 7 of rule XII. Agreed to without objection.

Votes

Recorded roll calls and chamber actions on this bill.

Passage without roll call

The official record shows passage by unanimous consent or voice vote where no roll call was taken. No member-level tally is available for these steps, and the district map does not apply.

9/16/2025HouseUnanimous consent
ASSUMING FIRST SPONSORSHIP - Mr. Walkinshaw asked unanimous consent that he may hereafter be considered as the first sponsor of H.R. 491, a bill originally introduced by Representative Connolly, for the purpose of adding cosponsors and requesting reprintings pursuant to clause 7 of rule XII. Agreed to without objection.
No roll-call vote on record for this action.

Floor votes and chamber actions

Recorded roll calls list how each member voted. Unanimous consent or voice vote appears in the official action history without a roll call; no member-level tally is available for those steps.

Passage without roll call

Sep 16, 2025HouseUnanimous consent
ASSUMING FIRST SPONSORSHIP - Mr. Walkinshaw asked unanimous consent that he may hereafter be considered as the first sponsor of H.R. 491, a bill originally introduced by Representative Connolly, for the purpose of adding cosponsors and requesting reprintings pursuant to clause 7 of rule XII. Agreed to without objection.
No roll-call vote on record for this action.

Geography

Recorded positions across the country.

No public positions recorded for this legislation.

Arguments

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Equal COLA Act

Progress