To: President Donald Trump, The United States House of Representatives, and The United States Senate
No "Chained" COLA, add food & energy back in to CPI
We the People vehemently object to the Administration and Congress' plan to "Chain" the CPI for calculating the annual COLA for Social Security and other pension recipients. To assume that seniors can simply buy a different item when the cost of their necessities increase is dishonest and illogical. Seniors can NOT buy a discretionary item that's price has dropped as a substitute for a vital item that's price has risen. Medicine prices have risen, while PC prices have dropped, so this scheme assumes we will skip our medication and buy a new computer!
In addition, we demand that the cost of food and energy be returned to the CPI index for purposes of the COLA calculation. To exempt them assumes that old people need not eat, heat or cool their homes, or travel. They are excluded because of their volatility. I can think of no better reason to INCLUDE them! Since most of the increase in cost of food and energy is a result of action in Washington, the members of the political class are in a unique position to relieve the pressures on these costs.
In addition, we demand that the cost of food and energy be returned to the CPI index for purposes of the COLA calculation. To exempt them assumes that old people need not eat, heat or cool their homes, or travel. They are excluded because of their volatility. I can think of no better reason to INCLUDE them! Since most of the increase in cost of food and energy is a result of action in Washington, the members of the political class are in a unique position to relieve the pressures on these costs.
Why is this important?
The administration and Congress are promoting a plan to "Chain" the consumer price index used to calculate the annual Cost of Loving Allowance for Social Security recipients. This "Chaining" would assume that as the price of an item increases, consumers would buy a different item. This is blatantly unfair to those who contributed to Social Security in good faith their whole lives.