The 2026 cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) announcement has officially been scheduled.

2026 COLA was originally set to be announced on Oct. 15 with the September Consumer Price Index (CPI) report, but the report was delayed after the government shut down on Oct. 1 and hasn’t yet reopened.

Without September's inflation report, the annual COLA can't be calculated. Annual COLA is based on average annual increases in the consumer price index for urban wage earners and clerical workers (CPI-W) from July through September.

However, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said it will publish the CPI report regardless of whether the U.S. government has reopened, allowing the COLA announcement to be issued next week.

Here's what people who receive Social Security benefits in the Carolina

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