This Year's COLA, and Next Year's COLA

Hello again, MLEA members.

This post to the blog may be a little wonky, but it also has a direct impact on your paycheck.

First, at the end of September you'll be seeing the beginning of an all-time pay increase as teacher salaries go up 5.1% 3.9% of that is because of the I-728 COLA; .7% is because of the COLA suspension from 2003 and 2004; and .5% is "equalization" to bring the state salary schedule in line with what some of the larger districts are able to pay.

That's the good news. The thing to keep an eye on will be what happens in the legislature regarding next year's COLA. To wit:

1) Forbes Magazine says that Seattle has the highest inflation in the country, and that's the number our COLA is based off of. From the article:

If you live in Seattle, it might be time to ask for a cost of living increase. The city has the highest inflation rate in the country.

"Seattle household income is fairly high, and that helps to maintain a high rate of inflation since higher income areas can afford price increases," says Steve Cochrane, an economist with Moody's Economy.com. "Some of it is fuel, but housing prices have also been more stable than anywhere else on the West Coast, which adds to inflation."

Normally, Seattle's 3.7% unemployment rate, well under the national average of 5.5%, would be a good thing. But a growing economy with low unemployment drives up wages and costs. The Emerald City's consumer prices are up 5.8% from this time last year, which ties for the highest inflation rate in the country with Dallas, where high energy costs for home cooling and driving are eating up incomes.

2) Similarly, Olympia Business Watch has the numbers on the national inflation statistics, which are equally high.

It will be an interesting process to watch when the Legislature goes back in January.