COLA Increase for 2026

At its January 27, 2026 meeting, the Board of Retirement approved a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for retirees and beneficiaries who retire on or before April 1, 2026.  The approved COLA will begin with the April 30, 2026 benefit payment and the amount of the COLA will depend on the applicable plan as shown on the chart below:

Retiree or Beneficiary’s Plan Type	Date of Retirement	2026 COLA %	COLA BANK %
Plan 1 – General and Safety Members	On or before 4/1/2026	2.0%	n/a
Plan 1 – Probation Members	On or before 4/1/2023 4/2/2023 to 4/1/2024 4/2/2024 to 4/1/2026	3.0% 2.5% 2.0%	2.0% n/a n/a
Plan 2 – All Members	On or before 4/1/2026	2.0%	n/a
Plan 3	n/a	n/a	n/a
Plan 4, 5, 6, 7 – All Members	On or before 4/1/2026	2.0%	n/a

This COLA applies to eligible retirees and beneficiaries who retire on or before April 1, 2026, and the amount of the COLA will vary depending on the retirement plan. 

The COLA for all General and Safety Plan 1 members who retire on or before 4/1/2026 is 2.0%. 

The COLA for Probation Plan 1 members varies depending on the date of retirement. For those who retired on or before 4/1/2023, the COLA will be 3.0% with a 2.0% COLA bank balance remaining. Those who retired between 4/2/2023 – 4/1/2024 will receive a 2.5% COLA. Those who retire(d) between 4/2/2024 – 4/1/2026 will receive a 2.0% COLA. There is no remaining COLA bank balance for Probation Plan 1 members who retire(d) on or after 4/2/2023.

All Plan 2, 4, 5, 6, and 7 members who retire on or before 4/1/2026 will receive a 2.0% COLA. 

Plan 3 members do not receive a cost-of-living adjustment.

All COLAs will be paid beginning with the April 30, 2026 benefit payment.

Current employees considering retirement: If you want to take advantage of this year’s COLA, you must retire on or before April 1, 2026. If you’re thinking about retirement, contact SamCERA as soon as possible so your paperwork can be processed in time for you to retire on or before April 1, 2026, and receive your first retirement benefit payment on or before April 30.