The across the board is for inflation and the step increases are for increased experience or proficiency as an officer. An officer going from 9 to 10 years gets a 1.8% increase as a step increase and a 2% raise for inflation, or 3.8%. If there is 8% inflation on the things you are buying, then you will lose money regardless of whether the official inflation rate is lower. The guy in the video posted earlier says they keep the official inflation number well below what it really is for most people.