The upcoming 88th Texas legislative session is poised to be a consequential one for retired teachers. No teacher who retired in the past 19 years has ever received a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) to their TRS annuity. But after all these years, there is finally hope on the horizon for a significant COLA, as many prominent state leaders have already signaled their support.
Ahead of the session, retiree activists across the state are drawing attention to the issue by publishing letters to the editor in their local papers. Late last year, Texas AFT Retiree Plus Board Member Beverly Avila and Texas AFT Retiree Plus President Rita Runnels co-authored a letter to the editor published in the McAllen Monitor.
Just last week, Texas Alliance of Retired Americans (TARA) President Gene Lantz published a letter in the Dallas Morning News calling for a more secure retirement for retired teachers in Texas. Even state lawmakers are joining in to publish letters of their own, with Rep. Terry Canales publishing an opinion piece in the Dallas Morning News and Rep. Rafael Anchia publishing an open letter to Texas House leaders, both calling for a TRS COLA.
How You Can Help
Even though many state leaders have already signaled support for a COLA, the only way we can make progress on this issue is to continually put pressure on the Legislature and spotlight the issue publicly.
Texas AFT retiree members are working hard to seize this important opportunity to pass a COLA. We encourage our members to publish letters calling for a TRS COLA in their own local news publications. Need help getting started? Sign up through our online action, and we will send you our guide to writing strong letters to the editor.