A plan to boost monthly pension checks for retired state employees, public school workers and teachers is headed to the governor's desk

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana — A plan to boost monthly pension checks for retired state employees, public school workers and teachers is headed to the governor's desk.

The cost-of-living increase is part of a package of bills by Shreveport Sen. Barrow Peacock, chairman of the Senate Retirement Committee.

The pension hike is tied to adjustments in how the retirement systems pay for raises and administrative costs, aimed at lessening long-term debts.

All three bills won final legislative passage this week.

Nearly 125,000 retirees over the age of 60 will see increases, ranging from 1.5 percent for retired state workers and teachers to as much as 4 percent for retired state troopers. The average monthly increase will be about $30.

The increases are estimated to cost $383 million.

Senate Bills 2, 5 and 18: http://www.legis.la.gov