OLYMPIA—Gov. Jay Inslee signed House Bill 1985 (sponsored by Rep. Joe Timmons, D-Bellingham) into law today. It is a huge boon for the state’s seniors who live on fixed incomes.
What this piece of legislation does is offer a 3 percent cost-of-living (COLA) increase, or up to $110 a month, to retirees who dedicated their careers to public service and are on the state’s public employees’ retirement system (PERS1) or teachers’ retirement system (TRS1).
Unlike other state pension plans, PERS1 and TRS1 do not assume an annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA). Between 1995 and 2011, PERS1 and TERS1 retirees were eligible for an annual increase from a benefit known as the Uniform COLA, which included an additional 3 percent increase annually until it was repealed in 2011. Since 2011, there have only been four Plan 1 benefit increases.
“Our seniors deserve to age with the respect they deserve. HB 1985 builds upon a theme I started in my first year in Olympia to help older adults fare better in times of rising costs and high inflation,” said Timmons. “In 2023, I shepherded House Bill 1431 through the legislative process, a piece of legislation that did away with charging sales tax on prepared meals for tenants at senior living communities. HB 1985 builds upon this work by supporting our seniors with a COLA to their retirement money they have come to rely on to live with grace and dignity.”
HB 1985 passed the House unanimously on Feb. 6, and passed the Senate unanimously on Feb. 28.
