The Social Security Administration is expected to announce its cost of living adjustment in just two weeks. The increase is meant to help offset inflation, which can take a chunk out of recipients’ payments.
According to the latest forecast released by the Senior Citizens League, the increase is expected to be about 2.5%, though the official figure will be released on Oct. 10.
“Ensuring that seniors have enough to feed and house themselves with dignity is a major reason why we advocate for a minimum COLA of 3%,” Shannon Benton, TSCL’s executive director, said in a news release. “TSCL research shows that approximately two-thirds of seniors rely on Social Security for more than half of their monthly income, and 28% depend on it entirely.”
The current estimate is based on the current economic conditions, as inflation fell from July to August, going from 2.9% to 2.5%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The increase is also not as much as Social Security recipients received for 2024 when monthly payments got a 3.2% bump.
Inflation data from the Consumer Price Index during July, August, and September is used to calculate the cost of living adjustment.
There has never been a negative adjustment to Social Security payments, though there have been 0% adjustments, most recently in 2016, the administration shares. The largest from this century came in 2023 at 8.7%, as inflation soared.
While the TSCL says that rising costs have far outpaced the cost of living adjustments by “over thirty percent,” some members of Congress are looking to take action.
Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) is backing the Boosting Benefits and COLAs for Seniors Act, which was introduced in March to the Committee on Finance. It would look to increase payments for seniors who rely on the funds to survive.
“A monthly Social Security check is how most seniors make ends meet, we need it to pay our bills and pay for health co-pays and medications,” Gallego said in March.
The bill has not made it to the floor in either chamber for a vote.