Actuarial Unfunded Liability
$14.09B
Large unfunded liability · source-reported UAAL
FY2024 source-reconciled actuarial data · Public Plans Database
Massachusetts State Employees' Retirement System
Massachusetts State Employees' Retirement System tracked in full: funded ratio, unfunded liability, membership, and investment returns across 23 years, sourced from the Public Plans Database (Boston College CRR) and verified against actuarial valuations.
By PlainPension · · Massachusetts · General State Plan · Data through FY2024
- Actuarial funded ratio
- 72.5%
- Health grade
- CReported funded ratio below full funding
- Actuarial assets
- $37.07B
- Members
- 161,942
According to the Public Plans Database, compiled by the Boston College Center for Retirement Research, Massachusetts State Employees' Retirement System is one of 197 public pension plans tracked nationwide. The plan card reports source-reconciled actuarial figures through FY2024; the multi-year table includes only years whose reported ratio ties to its actuarial dollars. This site’s database copy was last loaded in July 2026. See our methodology for the full source and update cadence.
Sliding funded-ratio path
Massachusetts State Employees' Retirement System lost 19.3 points from FY2001 (91.8%) to FY2024 (72.5%) on the reconciled series.
Massachusetts State Employees' Retirement System on a sliding funded path
According to the Public Plans Database, Massachusetts State Employees' Retirement System lost 19.3 points on the reconciled series from FY2001 to FY2024, and now reports 72.5% (grade C).
- 72.5%
- Funded · #138 of 192
- C
- Health grade
- $14.09B
- Actuarial unfunded liability
- -19.3pp
- FY2001→FY2024
Total Members
161,942
active + retired + vested
1-Year Return
11.7%
Strong return year · net investment return
1.6pp vs 5-yr avg
5-Year Avg Return
10.1%
Strong return year · annualized, net of fees
D
Composite Health Score
48/100
Massachusetts State Employees' Retirement System
Transparent derived index from public pension-plan filings, not an official rating. A 4-dimension composite (funded ratio, contribution discipline, 5-year investment return, unfunded burden), each scored against this dataset's own percentile distribution across 197 reporting plans. Not the same as the plan's headline funded-ratio grade above. See the exact dimensions, weights, and formula.
Funded Ratio D
72.5%
Actuarial assets as a share of liabilities
Contribution Discipline F
100.0%
Share of the actuarially required contribution actually paid
Investment Returns A+
10.1%
5-year annualized investment return
Unfunded Burden D
27.1%
Unfunded liability as a share of total obligations
How this score is calculated (benchmark table)
| Dimension | P10 | P25 | P50 | P75 | P90 | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Funded ratio (higher = better) | 57.6% | 67.2% | 75.0% | 87.0% | 97.6% | 0.35 |
| Contribution discipline (ARC) (higher = better) | 88.4% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 104.1% | 122.1% | 0.25 |
| 5yr investment return (higher = better) | 6.4% | 7.5% | 8.3% | 9.1% | 9.9% | 0.20 |
| Unfunded burden (lower = better) | 2.0% | 12.7% | 25.0% | 33.1% | 42.4% | 0.20 |
Percentiles computed across all 197 plans in this database with a reported value for that metric (2026-09-09). A dimension a plan does not report drops out of its composite, and that weight redistributes across the dimensions it does report, so thin reporting never silently lowers a score relative to a fully-reported peer.
Participant Composition
Investment Policy Mix
Funded ratio, 2001 to 2024
Assets as a share of the benefits already promised, one point per reported year. Down 19.3 points across the series. This is the multi-year table's series, so its last point can be a later year than the plan card above, which reports the plan's own latest valuation.
What changed, FY2023 to FY2024
1.2 pts funded ratioMassachusetts State Employees' Retirement System's funded ratio rose 1.2 points from FY2023 to FY2024, with assets contributing +4.0 points and the accrued liability contributing -2.9.
Funded ratio
71.3% → 72.5%
Actuarial assets
$35.08B → $37.07B (+5.7%)
Accrued liability
$49.20B → $51.15B (+4.0%)
Where the 1.2-point move came from
- Assets
- +4.0 pts
- Accrued liability
- -2.9 pts
Accrued liability is the source-reported value for benefits already promised. The two contributions are the move the ratio would have made on the prior year’s liability (assets) and the remainder (liability); they sum to the total by construction. Both years shown provide source-reconciled actuarial assets and liability, so neither figure rests on a ratio published on its own. Source: Public Plans Database (Boston College CRR / NASRA), loaded July 2026. See our funding-change board for how this plan’s move compares with the rest of the dataset.
Historical Actuarial Funding
| Year | Actuarial Ratio |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 72.5% |
| 2023 | 71.3% |
| 2022 | 72.9% |
| 2021 | 66.4% |
| 2019 | 63.7% |
| 2018 | 64.9% |
| 2017 | 64.7% |
| 2016 | 63.5% |
| 2015 | 67.5% |
| 2014 | 70.3% |
| 2013 | 69.1% |
| 2012 | 73.8% |
| 2011 | 81.0% |
| 2010 | 76.5% |
| 2009 | 71.6% |
| 2008 | 89.4% |
| 2007 | 85.1% |
| 2006 | 81.5% |
| 2005 | 82.8% |
| 2004 | 83.9% |
What the Data Says About Massachusetts State Employees' Retirement System
Massachusetts State Employees' Retirement System shows a comfortably above-average funding position, 3 points below the 75.5% national average across tracked plans. A 5-year average investment return of 10.1% factors into the plan's overall trajectory.
For Massachusetts taxpayers and plan members, the $14.09B source-reported actuarial unfunded liability is the shortfall this plan must close over time.
Where this data comes from + how funding gaps get resolved
These figures come from the Public Plans Database, a collaboration between the Boston College Center for Retirement Research and NASRA that compiles them from each plan's Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports (CAFRs) and actuarial valuations. The relationship between contribution adequacy and investment performance determines whether an unfunded liability narrows or expands year over year, and the gap itself is typically closed through some combination of higher contributions, investment returns, or benefit modifications. See our methodology for how public-pension funding differs from ERISA-backed private plans, and our disclaimer below before acting on this data.
Membership
87,554
Active Members
69,167
Retirees
161,942
Total Members
Plan Details
- Plan Type
- General State
- State
- Massachusetts
- Market Assets
- $37.90B
Source: Public Plans Database (PPD)
Boston College CRR / NASRA
Boston College CRR / NASRA
Plans With a Similar Funded Ratio
The closest plans nationwide to Massachusetts State Employees' Retirement System's 68.5% funded ratio.
Showing 5 of 191 plans nationwide with a reported funded ratio.
Other Massachusetts Plans
All Massachusetts plans →Read with this plan
Every figure on PlainPension is rendered directly from the Public Plans Database (Boston College Center for Retirement Research), no number is typed in by an editor. Massachusetts State Employees' Retirement System ranks #138 of 192 by funded ratio and #52 of 190 by membership. This information is for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice, consult a qualified professional before acting on it. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the typed corrections pathway, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of July 2026.