Updated October 30, 2026. Quick answer: Colorado PERA pays its annual increase (AI) each July. The AI paid with the July 31, 2026 benefit was 1.0%, and PERA’s June 2026 automatic adjustment fact sheet says the AI paid in July 2027 for most eligible benefit recipients will be 1.0%. PERA benefit structure members who joined on or after January 1, 2007 receive the lesser of the AI cap or the prior calendar year’s average CPI-W, so their 2027 figure is announced in late June or early July 2027.
More on public pension retirement ages and eligibility: the Colorado PERA retirement age and eligibility rules for members hired in 2020 or later.
Estimate a Colorado PERA full-service pension from service credit and highest average salary: Colorado PERA retirement calculator.
How the annual increase works
PERA’s annual benefit increases page says: “All AIs are paid in July and subject to change with the automatic adjustment provision.” The fact sheet explains the rule for newer members: “The AI for PERA benefit structure members beginning membership on or after January 1, 2007, is the lesser of the AI cap or the average of the monthly CPI-W for the previous calendar year, and cannot exceed 10% of the divisional AI reserve.”
For retirement dates on or after January 1, 2011, a waiting period applies: “You must receive a benefit for 36 months before you receive your first AI in retirement.” The fact sheet also requires benefits for a set time before July, which differs by group, and says all DPS benefit structure members receive the same 1.0% AI for 2026 as PERA members who joined before 2007.
The automatic adjustment provision
PERA’s automatic adjustment provision can move the AI by up to 0.25% in one year, with a ceiling of 2.0%. On the downside, the fact sheet says: “the AI percentage paid to eligible benefit recipients can be decreased by up to 0.25% in one year, not to be reduced below a floor of 0.5%.”
The July 2026 increase
PERA states: “The AI will be paid with the July 31, 2026, benefit.” The AI paid in July 2026 was 1.0%.
Where 2027 stands
The July 2027 annual increase is set at 1.0% for most eligible benefit recipients, per the June 2026 PERA fact sheet; for PERA benefit structure members who joined on or after January 1, 2007 it is the lesser of 1.0% or the 2026 average CPI-W, which PERA announces in late June or early July 2027.
The June 2026 fact sheet says: “The AI will not be affected by the automatic adjustment provision in July 2027. The AI paid to eligible benefit recipients in July 2026 will be 1.0%. The AI paid in July 2027 for most eligible benefit recipients will be 1.0%.” For members who joined on or after January 1, 2007, the annual increase page gives the formula: “The lesser of 1.0% or the average of the monthly CPI-W* for 2026 (to be announced in late June/early July 2027), and cannot exceed 10% of the divisional AI reserve.”
A worked example
As a computed illustration (not a source figure), a retiree with a monthly benefit of $2,000 (invented, for the computation) receiving a 1.0% increase would see $20 (computed) a month.
Common mistakes
- Assuming every group gets the same 2027 figure. PERA benefit structure members who joined on or after January 1, 2007 get the lesser of the cap or the average CPI-W.
- Expecting an AI in the first three years of retirement. For retirement dates on or after January 1, 2011, the fact sheet requires 36 months of benefit before the first AI.
- Treating 1.0% as permanent. The automatic adjustment provision can change the AI between a floor of 0.5% and a cap of 2.0%.
Related: Colorado PERA retirement decisions, how public pension decisions work, and whether Colorado taxes pensions.
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Answer againSources
- Colorado PERA, Annual Benefit Increases: www.copera.org
- Colorado PERA, Annual Increases for Benefit Recipients (fact sheet): content.copera.org
- Colorado PERA, Automatic Adjustment Provision (fact sheet): content.copera.org
- Related official page (not quoted): IRS Tax Topic 410, Pensions and annuities: www.irs.gov
- Related official page (not quoted): IRS Tax Topic 411, Pensions: the General Rule and the Simplified Method: www.irs.gov
Read from the primary documents linked above on October 30, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a preparer or the IRS itself is the right place to confirm anything consequential.