Your cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) is coming mid-year. Your COLA will go into effect July 1 and will be included in your August 1 benefit payment.

The percentage you will receive can depend on a few factors, including your membership type, when you earned service or retirement credit, and your retirement date. 

To learn what percentage of COLA you will receive and how COLAs are determined, read our cost-of-living adjustments webpage. The page is updated each year when new Consumer Price Index information becomes available, which is typically around March.

Do you still need to file your 2024 state and federal income taxes?

If you do, check out whether you are eligible to file electronically for free through IRS Direct File and Direct File Oregon.* Direct File can now accept 1099-R forms, so you may be eligible this year even if you weren’t in 2024. If you live outside of Oregon, check with your state's taxing agency to see if they offer a direct-file option.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) offers a tool you can use to check your eligibility.

Read more about the IRS' and Oregon's direct-filing options on the Oregon Department of Revenue’s (Revenue) website. For more information, contact Revenue or the IRS.

*The Oregon Department of Revenue continues to assess federal changes and any impacts on Oregon. As of Perspectives' deadline, Direct File was open, and Oregonians were successfully using IRS Direct File and Direct File Oregon to file their 2024 taxes. Revenue advises Oregonians to use the IRS eligibility tool linked to above to check whether they can directly file.

Do you like details? Have you ever wanted to dive into the nitty-gritty of your pension system?

Well, PERS has some reports for you.

Each year, PERS, the agency, publishes several documents about the finances and operations of the PERS system. They are:

• PERS by The Numbers — This annual report highlights financial, administrative, and demographic information from the past year. It’s published each December.
• Annual Comprehensive Financial Report — As the name indicates, this report provides a complete look at all financial, actuarial, and statistical aspects of the PERS system for the fiscal year ending each June. It’s published each December.
• Popular Annual Financial Report — This report is a summary of the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report written for a more general audience. It was launched in 2024 and will be published each December.
• Economic Impact Study — This short report tells the tale of how benefits paid to PERS retirees affect Oregon’s economy. It’s published each summer.

Besides these reports, PERS publishes one more document you can explore to learn how the pension system started and evolved into what it is today: PERS History. This document is now in its third edition, having been last updated in 2021.

If you plan to work for a PERS-participating employer after retirement, check out the applicable rules on our Senate Bill (SB) 1049 webpage.

SB 1049 (2019) simplified some previous work-after-retirement rules as of January 1, 2020. House Bill (HB) 2296 (2023) extended the rules set by SB 1049 through 2034. These rules, however, do not apply to some early retirees and disability retirees.

PERS is not involved in hiring decisions between retirees and employers. Whether a PERS-participating employer hires you or places limits on you as a PERS retiree is between you and your employer.

The PERS annual Member Satisfaction Survey is coming next month. Share your feedback and help PERS, the agency, improve our member services.

Starting May 1, you can complete the survey online. PERS will send a reminder about the survey once it's available.

You will have until May 31 to complete this online-only survey.

If you are about to become Medicare-eligible and are seeking health-care options, the PERS Health Insurance Program (PHIP) can help.

Eligibility, enrollment, and plan information is available in a series of videos.

More information can be found on the PHIP website.

PERS will not call you and ask for money, donations, your account login, or your financial information.

However, PERS may call you in response to a request you made, a form you submitted, or another action you took.

Other examples of when PERS may call you include:

• You are a retiree living internationally or are age 80 or older. We do this to confirm that we are still correctly paying members their benefits and to check for unreported deaths.
• You must take a required minimum distribution (RMD), and we need you to submit RMD-related documents.
• We found that you should be receiving additional funds in your retirement benefits or as part of a previous withdrawal.

If you are unsure whether someone contacting you is from PERS, call Member Services directly at 1-888-320-7377 to check.

Read more on our Protect yourself from fraud webpage.

By Dr. Elizabeth Steiner
Oregon State Treasurer

I’m honored to serve as Oregon’s new state treasurer. As a physician, mom, and legislator, I bring a wide range of experiences to my job. Yet in all these roles, I’ve seen how financial stability and well-being are important to a secure and fulfilling life.

A financially secure Oregon is a healthy Oregon.

Protecting your retirement — and the retirements of all Oregon’s public employees — is the most important part of Oregon State Treasury’s mission.

I’ve traveled to communities in every corner of the state. I know the many ways in which public employees protect public safety; keep us healthy; educate our children; care for the elderly, disabled, and vulnerable; build and maintain our roads; conserve our natural resources; and otherwise support their communities.

I’ve seen the dedication you’ve displayed in your public service career — whether it’s responding to an emergency call in the dead of night or connecting a family struggling to put food on the table to the nutrition benefits they need. I appreciate everything you do to keep Oregon safe, healthy, and thriving.

As treasurer, I’m focused on:

• Growing the Oregon Public Employees’ Retirement Fund (OPERF) and other investments while moving away from carbon-intensive investments that create long-term return risks.
• Strengthening the financial well-being of all Oregonians — especially families — by expanding the number of children with college savings accounts, ensuring that every eligible Oregonian is enrolled in OregonSaves and saving as much as possible, and exploring the creation of savings accounts for children.
• Expanding financial empowerment programs so every Oregonian has the knowledge to take charge of their financial future.

At this time of change and uncertainty, I will be vigilant in calling for national and state priorities that support the financial well-being of Oregonians — or challenging efforts that could undermine the financial stability of state residents, OPERF, or state services.

As treasurer, I will keep you informed about how we are managing OPERF and keeping your retirement security at the forefront of everything we do. I’m looking forward to continuing to visit communities across the state. I hope to meet many of you.

Thank you again for all you do for Oregon.

If you are caring for a PERS benefit recipient, you will need to contact PERS — and possibly the PERS Health Insurance Program (PHIP) — if you need to manage the member’s account and/or make health insurance or financial decisions on their behalf. You may need to submit the following forms or information:

• Authorization to Release Account Information* — This form will allow you, as caregiver, to access a PERS member’s account information.
• Special Power of Attorney for PERS* — This form will allow you, as caregiver, to handle the affairs of a PERS member if they are unable to act on their own behalf.
• Letters of conservatorship or guardianship — A “conservatorship or guardianship” is a court-appointed person or entity (such as a nursing home) that is legally responsible for another person and their property.
• Notification of a member’s death — A family member, beneficiary, or caregiver must notify PERS (and PHIP, if applicable) as soon as possible after the death of a retired member to stop benefit payments and prevent overpayment. Joint account holders or the member's estate may be responsible for repaying PERS for any overpayments that occur. Read more on the When a PERS member dies webpage. 

*Note that the account information release and special power of attorney forms are only valid while the member is alive.

Don’t be a stranger! Keep your information with PERS up to date, and mail or fax your forms to us in a timely manner. Find the forms you need online.

Address, direct deposit, tax, and residency changes

If you're moving or otherwise need to change your address, direct deposit information, tax withholding, or residency status (Tier One retirees only), you can find details about how to make changes on our Moving webpage.

Divorce

If you're getting a divorce, contact Member Services about divorce and your PERS benefits.

Account access

If you become ill or incapacitated, do you want someone else to manage your PERS accounts on your behalf? If so, you will need to complete one or both of these forms, depending on the level of account access you want them to have:

• An Authorization to Release Account Information form allows you to authorize a third party to obtain information regarding your PERS account or benefits.
• A Special Power of Attorney for PERS form gives the person(s) you designate the power to make decisions for PERS-related matters on your behalf.

Reporting a death

After a PERS member dies, a representative should contact Member Services as soon as possible. Failure to report a death in a timely manner may result in having to pay back retirement payments. PERS will require the date of death, city and state where the death occurred, a photocopy of the death certificate, and a spouse or personal representative contact information.