From the editor:
The annual Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) received by Members of Congress is higher than the one received by Social Security beneficiaries. The Congressional COLA is not indexed to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) like the Social Security COLA, but rather to the Employment Cost Index (ECI) that measures changes in wages and salaries in the private sector. Since wages are more likely to increase faster than the consumer prices, the Congressional COLA is often higher than the Social Security COLA.

And because their COLA is not indexed to the CPI, Members of Congress will not be affected by the CPI changes that will effectively cut COLAs (see article "New Round of CPI Changes Would Cut COLAs" at http://www.tscl.org/NewContent/101383.asp).

In January, Members of Congress have received their third pay increase in four years. Their pay jumped $4,900 a year to $150,000. Under a system approved in 1989, Congressional pay raises are automatic unless Congress acts to block them. Senator Russell Feingold (D-WI) pushed for a vote to block the pay raise from taking effect, but was thwarted 65-33.

Your idea to tie senior COLAs to the same index as Members of Congress warrants attention. In fact, it recently received attention in a December 2001 report on the CPI by the National Academy of Sciences. The report mentioned it, saying, "Adjusting Social Security benefits for retirees with a wage index would be an alternative to CPI indexation."

Certainly if Congressional COLAs were tied to the CPI like Social Security COLAs, we would hope that Members of Congress might be more alert to proposals that overhaul CPI calculations or cut COLAs since they would be forced to feel your pain. 

Sources: "Congress Quietly Allows their Third Raise in 4 Years," Associated Press, December 25, 2001. "At What Price? Conceptualizing and Measuring Cost-of-Living and Price Indexes," National Academy of Sciences, December 2001.

March 2002