Updated October 30, 2026. Quick answer: OPERS announced on July 23, 2026 that cost-of-living adjustments for all eligible members in 2027 will be 3%, regardless of when members began receiving a benefit. The 2026 COLA was 2.6% for the CPI-based group and 3% for those with a benefit effective before January 7, 2013. The adjustment is paid on the anniversary of each member’s benefit effective date.
The 2027 COLA
OPERS says: “Cost-of-living adjustments for all eligible OPERS members in 2027 will be 3%.” “based on the change in the CPI-W from the end of June 2025 to the end of June this year, with a maximum adjustment of 3%”. The retiree newsletter repeats it: “Cost-of-living adjustments for OPERS members in 2027 will be 3%, regardless of when members began receiving a benefit.”
The 2026 COLA
OPERS announced a year earlier: “OPERS’ CPI-based COLA for 2026 will be 2.6%.” Members whose benefit took effect before January 7, 2013 automatically received 3% in 2026, while later members received the CPI-W based figure.
How the COLA is set
Ohio Revised Code section 145.323 splits retirees by when the benefit was granted. Benefits granted not later than the effective date of the amendment (OPERS dates the split at January 7, 2013) get three per cent each year, and benefits granted on or after it get the CPI rule: the section provides for “the percentage increase in the consumer price index, not exceeding three per cent, as determined by the United States bureau of labor statistics”. “If the consumer price index for that period did not increase, no increase shall be made under division (A)(2) of this section.” “The date of the first increase under this section becomes the anniversary date for any future increases.”
OPERS adds: “The adjustment is calculated on recipients’ original monthly benefit and is paid on the anniversary of their benefit effective date.”
Where 2027 stands
The 2027 OPERS COLA is set at 3% for all eligible members, as OPERS announced on July 23, 2026, and this page changes only if OPERS revises it.
Earlier years
OPERS’s announcement archive lists the CPI-based adjustment as 2.9% for 2025 and 2.3% for 2024.
A worked example
As a computed illustration (not a source figure), the 3% COLA for 2027 on an original monthly benefit of $2,000 (invented, for the computation) is $60 (computed) a month, paid on the benefit anniversary.
What this page does not cover
This page covers the Traditional Pension Plan under Ohio Revised Code Chapter 145. The Ohio STRS, SERS, Police and Fire and Highway Patrol systems have their own COLA rules. The OPERS board resolution itself was not read; the announcements report its outcome.
Common mistakes
- Assuming 3% every year. Only benefits effective on or after January 7, 2013 follow the CPI-W, capped at 3% (2.6% for 2026); earlier benefits get a flat 3%.
- Looking for a January 1 date. OPERS pays the COLA on each member’s benefit anniversary.
- Applying this page to the Ohio STRS or SERS, which are separate systems.
Related: Ohio OPERS retirement decisions, how public pension decisions work, and whether Ohio taxes pensions.
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Answer againSources
- OPERS (PERSpective), OPERS announces COLA for 2027: perspective.opers.org
- OPERS, OPERSNEWS Summer/Fall 2026: www.opers.org
- OPERS (PERSpective), OPERS announces COLA for 2026: perspective.opers.org
- Ohio Legislative Service Commission, Ohio Revised Code Section 145.323, Cost of living increase: codes.ohio.gov
- OPERS (PERSpective), PERSpective COLA category archive: perspective.opers.org
- Related official page (not quoted): Ohio Revised Code, Chapter 145 (Public Employees Retirement System): codes.ohio.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.