No Cost-of-Living Adjustment for 2016
Reading Time: 1 MinuteLast Updated: March 17, 2021
Social Security’s annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) is an increase in the benefit amount people receive each month. By law, the monthly Social Security and SSI federal benefit rate increases when there is a rise in the cost of living. The government measures changes in the cost of living through the Department of Labor’s Consumer Price Index (CPI-W).
The CPI has not risen since the last cost-of-living adjustment in 2015. As a result, your SSI benefit rate and, for most people, your Social Security benefit amount will stay the same in 2016.
This news isn’t necessarily bad. When inflation stays at the same rate, your cost of living also stays the same. Prices for goods and services, on average, haven’t increased enough to affect the COLA.
Other changes that would normally take effect based on changes in the national average wage index also won’t begin in January 2016. Since there is no COLA, the statute also prohibits a change in the maximum amount of earnings subject to the Social Security tax, as well as the retirement earnings test exempt amounts. These amounts will remain unchanged in 2016. The new fact sheet provides more information on 2016 Social Security and SSI changes.
For additional information about the 2016 COLA, go to www.socialsecurity.gov/cola.
For additional information about changes in the national average wage index, go to www.socialsecurity.gov/OACT/COLA/AWI.html.
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Tags: Cost of living adjustment, Disability, Medicare, SSA, SSI
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Jim Borland, Assistant Deputy Commissioner, Communications
Jim Borland, Assistant Deputy Commissioner, Communications
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Dorothy N.
Whew! This news is a load off of my mind! I was afraid we were going to leave this earth wealthy!
Theresa
I agree with all the comments made by other social security receiptants. Another thing that I see happening all the time is increases in local tax and local insurance on homes. My escrow increase and my house payments go up. You don’t realize the increase like those and others until you realize that you don’t have enough to buy food…
Caro
As a retiree the cost of gasoline doesn’t impact my budget nearly as much as the cost of my medical premiums, my medicines, real estate taxes, heat, water, and food. Also, something’s wrong when we use the same bench-mark for determining whether Soc. Sec. recipients will receive a COLA as we use for determining the maximum amt. of earnings subject to Soc. Sec. Taxes. It’s only the high wage earners who are impacted by this earnings determination – all earnings should be subject to Soc. Sec. w’h – perhaps the w/h rate could be lower above a specific earnings amt. but all earnings s/b subject to Soc Sec w/h. There’s no max. earnings subject to Federal or State Taxes, why a max. earnings subject to Soc. Sec. Taxes?
Marcy
To all who accuse The President about this, you’re dead wrong, first of all this sounds like your party the goofy greedy Republican’s , did you know they run both houses, do you know that they are ones who make laws and the president can only sign the bills or veto them, did you know your dumb greedy party has been after our social security forever trying to privatize it to pay their friends and families land to gamble it, do you know there’s no shortage and that there’s over 2 trillion in there, you can have your opinions , Google and see the facts, that your party the one you think you are a part of NOT doesn’t give a rats ass about you dummies on here Bush borrowed billions of our social security for his war and some other BS that never worked out he never paid it back, if it were t for the democrats party and Obama you and I would not be getting what we worked for cause your party wants it to gamble with like the housing crisis your party put us in. One more thing I know it’s true that we’re giving our money to illegals, but I worked over 35 years for these programs and can tell you these illegals are not just Mexicans , they are Germans, ukrains, Italians, Polish ,Chinese and especially those from India coming g in in droves of 16 in a family getting food stamps and whatever else and allowed to have US tax dollars sent to them in their four up to 6 months off more spending our hard earned money in another country. There’s a lot of unfairness going on to us but your party and some of my party would have you believe it’s a black face getting freebies ,no it’s you more White’s receive welfare that’s not fiction it’s fact!
Ben
So tell me, when was the last cost of living expenses recorded? Yesterday? Because I’m happy to say inflation is not yet so bad that it increases daily. But surely you must see an increase from one year to the next unless you don’t buy your own food, pay utilities, need medical attention, etc..etc.. in other words unless you live on a fixed income you don’t realize the cost of staving off hunger and sickness every day. Then all you care about is the car you drive, the latest iphone, the largest plasma TV you watch and those things have truly not increased in cost and some have even decreased.
Please, for heaven’s sake, come down to earth, look and see what it takes to keep alive for those who are barely able to do so now! Look at what FOOD costs, the necessity for life, not the gadgets of excesses.
N. A.
This is such total baloney!!!! The idiots who come up with this excuse that the cost of living has remained the same should all have to live on what the majority of elderly have to live on in this country as the prices of medical care, (yes, President Obama…MEDICAL care) food and many more necessities have increased. We did what we were supposed to do to so we didn’t have to worry about a secure retirement only to have so much taken from us because the government screwed up royally so many times leaving many of us without retirement funds we worked for to say nothing of losing our homes to the greedy and unscrupulous men and women with the power they misused to the detriment of so many.
Everyone knows that these statistics used to make this decision can be manipulated to “prove” whatever they want or whatever they are PAID to “prove”. The whole lot who “lead” this country need to be fired! Can’t we find at least a few honest people who aren’t in the political arena only for their own self interest. I wouldn’t trust one politician as far as I can throw him/her!!!
This decision is an insult!!!
Dana
What do they mean cost of living hasn`t gone up? It goes up every year. My rent use to go up $25 every year but as of this year it started going up $50, electricity has gone way up, natural gas has gone up, food cost has gone up, co pay on meds keep going up and most of us have to pay to wash our clothes. Hell the price of milk in VT is almost $5 a gallon.I haven`t even been able to buy clothes in 15yrs b/c they cost too much and after paying rent, utilities and buying food for the month I have no money left. I even only eat once a day b/c that`s all I can afford to eat and I buy generic food. 3lbs of hamburg is almost $20. Public transportation to even do grocery shopping has gone up. Then even if we do get a raise our rent goes up but yet our foodstamps go down. Many in Chittenden county VT have to go out collecting bottles and cans if physically able just to make it from month to month and those who can`t have to go without. Going to a food shelf/soup kitchen doesn`t help b/c we have so many asians here that they take all the food even though they don`t need it b/c they get more handed to them than americans do and no one in these places watches what`s going on to put a stop to it. Those of us who aren`t able to collect bottles and cans or even get to a food shelf/soup kitchen have to go without. So can someone in the government please explain to me how nothing has gone up. Isn`t bad enough that the stimulus was taken away from americans who recieve SSI. I live in a cold rundown apartment b/c I can`t afford anything else and that`s even with local housing assistance.
Andrew
Why can’t you instead of giving it to the government the government would put it into a physical individual account that you can see but can’t touch till your 65. It just makes more sense instead of spreading it out for everyone who doesn’t work it would be like a pension for those who do.
JJ
Thanks for not increasing our miserable deficit by not giving to the elderly who spent their lives working and paying into this program so the government could steal from it. Oh and by the way, never bothered to return the money they stole from us.
Dave
Borland sure doesn’t have to worry about living on a fixed income, a tight budget and cost of living increase sitting in his high and mighty position making six figures. These government big shots are TOTALLY way out of touch with the low and middle classes, I’d really like to see some of these officials walk a mile in our shoes for a year. Then I’m sure reality would slap them square in the face period.