Updated October 30, 2026. Quick answer: The City of St. Louis Employees’ Retirement System adjusts pensions each January 1 by the CPI change for the 12 months ending September 30, limited to 5% each year and 25% in total, with no increase if the CPI rose less than 1% since the previous adjustment. Retirees are first eligible on the second January 1 after retirement. For January 2026, the December 1, 2025 memorandum says retirees from 2017 through 2024 will receive 3.0% and retirees from 2016 will receive 1.3%. The 2027 COLA is not published.
The rule on the ERS page
The ERS COLA page says: “Adjustments are made January 1 based upon the CPI change for the previous 12 months ending September 30th.” “Increases are limited to 5% each year, with total increases limited to 25%. If the CPI should decrease, pensions may be reduced, but not below what they were at retirement.” “No increase is made if the CPI increased by less than 1% since the previous adjustment.” On eligibility: “Retirees are first eligible for a COLA the second January 1 following retirement.”
The January 2026 COLA
The ERS memorandum of December 1, 2025 states: “Retirees from 2017 through 2024 will receive a 3.0% COLA on their January 2026 pension check which will be paid on January 30, 2026.” “Retirees from 2016 will receive a 1.3% COLA. This will be the final COLA for retirees from 2016.” “All retirees with retirement dates of and prior to 2015 have received their twenty five percent (25%) maximum COLA.”
What the memo says about 2027
The same memorandum states: “Persons retiring in 2025 will receive a COLA in January 2027.” It prints no 2027 percentage.
What the documents do not say
The memorandum does not print the CPI figure or an ordinance citation, and board minutes for the vote are not archived. The COLA hub page lists the 2025 update under a summary line that reads Cost of Living Adjustment for Retirees 2021, so use the memorandum for the latest figure.
Where 2027 stands
The 2027 St. Louis ERS COLA is not published: it uses the CPI for the 12 months ending in September 2026, and the 2027 memorandum is not on the retirement page yet.
Common mistakes
- Applying 3.0% to every retiree. The memorandum lists 3.0% for 2017 through 2024 retirees and 1.3% for 2016 retirees.
- Expecting more COLAs after the 25% total cap. Retirees from 2015 and earlier have reached it.
- Expecting a COLA in the first January after retiring. The first is the second January 1.
Related: St. Louis Employees’ Retirement System retirement decisions, how public pension decisions work, and whether Missouri taxes pensions.
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Answer againSources
- City of St. Louis Employees Retirement System, Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) web page: www.stlouis-mo.gov
- City of St. Louis Employees Retirement System, Memorandum: Pension Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA): www.stlouis-mo.gov
- 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.