❗Let's close the gap: We still need your help to raise $40,000 by April 1. Donate now

Buzzword: COLA

Marketplace Staff Oct 19, 2007
HTML EMBED:
COPY

Buzzword: COLA

Marketplace Staff Oct 19, 2007
HTML EMBED:
COPY

A federal program that’s gone flat brings us this week’s Marketplace Money buzzword: COLA.

COLA stands for Cost of Living Adjustment — the pay bump you get as things get more expensive. Over 50 million Americans got a jolt of reality this week when the Social Security Administration announced next year’s COLA increase: 2.3 percent. The smallest in four years.

Experts say that energy and consumer goods are getting cheaper, thus Social Security recipients get a smaller sip of COLA. Not much of a consolation for cash-strapped seniors, who found the announcement less than bubbly.

There’s a lot happening in the world.  Through it all, Marketplace is here for you. 

You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible. 

Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.