Ohio retired teachers to get cost of living increase in July pension checks

Roughly 150,000 retired teachers will get a one-time 1% cost of living bump in their pension checks from the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio.

The STRS Ohio board approved the COLA and decided to postpone a change that would've required current teachers to work 35 years for full retirement. Instead, teachers can continue to get their full retirement benefits at 34 years.

The combo of changes is expected to cost the system $825 million.

In 2012, legislators approved a pension reform package that required public employees to work longer for fewer benefits. Starting in 2013, STRS retirees received lower cost-of-living allowances and then in 2017, the cost-of-living allowances stopped.

COLA cuts were made to help shore up the pension fund. A one-time cost-of-living allowance of 3% was restored beginning in July 2022 but it's still not back to what retirees want.

'Where's Wade?'

Audience members booed, trustees threw sharp questions and people posted flyers asking "Where's Wade?" at the meeting Thursday.

It's the first time the 11-member board met since Gov. Mike DeWine revoked the appointment of Wade Steen and replaced him with G. Brent Bishop. The move came May 5, a day before ballots were tallied in an election of another board seat.

The governor's office cited Steen's attendance record − missing three of six meetings − as reason for the change.

Board member Julie Sellers asked STRS Director Bill Neville for details on how DeWine's office obtained the attendance records and when Neville was notified of Steen's replacement.

Board member Rudy Fichtenbaum, an ally of Steen's, said it's shocking that the governor's office checks attendance records of DeWine's appointees to dozens of boards and commissions. "This does not pass the smell test," he said.

Steen, who has hired an attorney, maintains that he is supposed to serve his board term through September 2024, not at the pleasure of the governor. He sent a letter May 17 to board members notifying them that his STRS account had been deactivated.

Infighting on the board has been ongoing for a couple of years and members voted for new trustees in the past two elections. The board oversees roughly $95 billion invested for 500,000 teachers and retirees.

Retirees are angry over the elimination of cost-of-living allowances, a perceived lack of transparency and the payment of bonuses to pension investment staff.