Updated October 30, 2026. Quick answer: Oregon PERS applies a cost-of-living adjustment every year effective July 1, included in the August 1 benefit payment. It is based on the West Region CPI, which PERS says was adjusted to 2.67% for 2026, but COLAs are limited to a maximum of 2% each year. Its page gives members who retired before October 1, 2013 the 2% maximum; for service on both sides of that date it describes 2% on service up to it (with an exception for some OPSRP members) and 1.25% after, plus 0.15% on the part of a benefit above $60,000. No 2027 COLA is published.
More on public pension retirement ages and eligibility: the Oregon PERS retirement age and eligibility rules for Tier One, Tier Two and OPSRP.
When and how the COLA applies
PERS says: “Your COLA will go into effect July 1 and will be included in your August 1 benefit payment. PERS bases cost-of-living adjustments on a regional Consumer Price Index (CPI)”. “PERS uses the West Region CPI, which was adjusted to 2.67% for 2026. However, COLAs are limited to a maximum of 2% each year.”
How the rate splits
The PERS page says: “If you retired before October 1, 2013, you will receive the maximum COLA of 2%.” For service on both sides of that date: “2% on service credit earned up to October 1, 2013, except for some OPSRP members * . 1.25% on service credit earned after that date.” “if your annual benefit is more than $60,000, you will receive 0.15% COLA on benefits exceeding that amount.” It notes: “The CPI carryover does not apply to OPSRP members.”
The statute text read for this page states the rule for allowances of $60,000 or less as a single 1.25% increase. ORS 238.360 reads: “allowance is $60,000 or less, the allowance shall be increased by 1.25 percent.” Read both and confirm with PERS which applies to your service dates.
Which CPI
The statute names the index: “the board shall use the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, West Region (All Items), as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics”.
Recent CPI figures
The PERS page lists these West Region CPI figures:
| Year | West Region CPI as PERS prints it |
|---|---|
| 2026 | 2.67% |
| 2025 | 2.81% |
| 2024 | 4.29% |
| 2023 | 8.01% |
| 2022 | 4.52% |
Where 2027 stands
No 2027 Oregon PERS COLA is published: PERS says it bases each COLA on the West Region CPI for the prior year and applies it each July 1, and this page updates when PERS posts it.
Common mistakes
- Reading the CPI as the COLA. The COLA is limited to a maximum of 2% each year.
- Applying one rate to all service. For members with service on both sides of October 1, 2013 the PERS page splits the rate there; those who retired before it get the 2% maximum.
- Ignoring the carryover rule. The PERS page says the CPI carryover does not apply to OPSRP members.
Related: Oregon PERS retirement decisions, how public pension decisions work, and whether Oregon taxes pensions.
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Answer againSources
- Oregon PERS, Cost-of-living increases paid in August: www.oregon.gov
- Oregon Legislature, ORS chapter 238: www.oregonlegislature.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.