Frequently Asked Questions

A public pension fund is a retirement benefit plan for government employees — state, county, city, school district, and other public sector workers. Public pensions are defined benefit plans, meaning employees are promised a specific monthly payment in retirement based on years of service and salary, regardless of investment performance. The plan sponsor (the government) is responsible for ensuring enough assets exist to pay those promises.

The funded ratio is a pension plan's actuarial assets divided by its actuarial accrued liabilities (AAL). A 100% funded ratio means the plan has enough assets to cover all promises already accrued. A 75% funded ratio means the plan has 75 cents for every dollar of promised benefits. Ratios are calculated using the plan's own actuarial assumptions, which vary between plans.

Not necessarily a crisis, but it requires attention. Pension plans have long time horizons — a plan that is 80% funded today can close the gap through investment returns, higher contributions, or benefit adjustments over time. However, plans that have been below 70% for many years, where governments are not paying full ARC contributions, face compounding structural deficits.

The Actuarially Required Contribution (ARC) is the annual payment actuaries calculate a government must make to keep a pension plan on track toward full funding. When governments pay less than the ARC — often to balance short-term budgets — the plan's funded ratio tends to deteriorate over time, creating larger future liabilities.

The Public Plans Database is the most comprehensive longitudinal dataset of US public pension plans, maintained by the Boston College Center for Retirement Research in partnership with NASRA. It compiles data from annual financial reports and actuarial valuations filed by 197 major plans, covering funded ratios, liabilities, investment returns, and contribution history back to 2001.

Individual benefit amounts are set by law and plan rules — they are not directly reduced by poor funded ratios in most states. However, severely underfunded plans can face pressure for benefit reductions, changes to cost-of-living adjustments, or increased employee contributions through legislative action. Always consult your plan administrator for information specific to your benefits.

No. PlainPension is an independent data portal and is not affiliated with any pension plan, government agency, NASRA, or the Boston College Center for Retirement Research. We present PPD data to make public pension financial information more accessible to employees, retirees, and taxpayers.