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July 21, 2023

State of Pensions 2023: National Pension Funding Trends

In 2023, U.S. public pension funds remain fragile. According to Equable Institute’s State of Pensions 2023…
April 17, 2023

Financial Literacy Resources for Public Employees

Most state and local workers in the United States receive retirement benefits, usually in the form of a…
December 2, 2022

Pension Vesting Periods by State

In the U.S., public pension vesting periods vary widely by state. There are many reasons why states might…
November 21, 2022

What is a 403b Retirement Plan for Teachers?

A 403b plan is a form supplemental savings available to teachers in the U.S. How much income do you need in…
September 28, 2022

Public Pension COLAs in 2022

A key feature of defined benefit pension plans is that they offer guaranteed income for life. But unless the…
September 28, 2022

How to Calculate Your Pension

Guaranteed lifetime income is one of the best things that come with having a pension plan. But pensions…
September 23, 2022

Teacher Pension COLAs in 2022

A key feature of teacher pension plans is that they offer guaranteed income for life. But unless the…
September 16, 2022

California Pensions: What you need to know

California state and local government agencies offer a range of different defined benefit pension…
September 16, 2022

Teacher Pensions in 2022

Teacher retirement systems in 2022 are Fragile.  There are 63 retirement systems offering benefits to…
September 14, 2022

What is a Defined Benefit Plan?

Defined benefit plans are a common way to provide retirement income. The most typical defined benefit plan is…
July 21, 2022

Are Public Pensions Protected From Inflation?

Retirees with a pension from state or local governments were made a promise: guaranteed income for the rest…
July 20, 2022

State of Pensions 2022: National Pension Funding Trends

In the first half of 2022, U.S. public pension funds have weathered a bear market, geopolitical conflict, and…
June 29, 2022

The Best U.S. States for New Teacher Retirement Benefits

There are lots of factors that new, prospective K–12 teachers have to consider when entering the education…
June 13, 2022

How does the Windfall Elimination Provision work?

The Windfall Elimination Provision, or WEP, reduces but does not eliminate some worker’s Social Security…
June 8, 2022

How Does the Government Pension Offset Work?

Like the Windfall Elimination Provision, the Government Pension Offset reduces Social Security benefits.…
June 8, 2022

Who Is Most Likely to Have Their Social Security Benefits Reduced by the Windfall Elimination Provision?

The largest group affected by the Windfall Elimination Provision, or WEP, is state and local government…
June 6, 2022

New Report: Will You Be Affected by the Windfall Elimination Provision and/or Government Pension Offset?

With the new Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset, public employees, like teachers,…
May 5, 2022

Kentucky House Bill 258: Retirement Security Policy Scores

Kentucky has made changes to retirement plan provisions for its Teachers’ Retirement System (KTRS), as…
May 3, 2022

Alabama House Bill 134: Retirement Security Policy Scores

Alabama has made changes to retirement plan provisions for its Teachers’ Retirement System (ALTRS), as…
March 21, 2022

Florida House Bill 5007: Retirement Security Policy Scores

Florida has made changes to retirement plan provisions for the Florida Retirement System (FRS) Investment…
September 23, 2021

State of Pensions 2021: National Pension Funding Trends

  U.S. public pension funding in 2021 experienced strong investment returns in the most recent fiscal…
September 23, 2021

State of Pensions 2021: National Retirement Benefit Trends

Statewide national Pension benefit trends look different than they did at the beginning of the century, or…
June 22, 2021

What Public Workers Should Know About the Retirement Security Report

When evaluating their individual retirement plan in the Retirement Security Report, public workers should…
May 6, 2021

Milwaukee’s Rising Pension Costs Could Result in 1,300 Layoffs

Milwaukee’s apathy toward the management of its retirement system—specifically regarding its —has…
March 3, 2021

A Primer on Pension Fund Activism—What is It and Should States do it?

Ben & Jerry’s decision not to sell their ice cream in Israeli-occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem…
September 29, 2020

Employee Contributions for State Agency Pension Plans

Every state manages its pension funds for state workers a little differently. States also vary in how much…
August 25, 2020

State of Pensions 2020: National Pension Funding Trends

    U.S statewide pension funds entered the COVID-19 recession profoundly weaker than they were…
August 1, 2020

What is a Guaranteed Return Retirement Plan?

A guaranteed return plan builds retirement income for participants by creating notionally personal accounts…
August 1, 2020

What is a Hybrid Retirement Plan?

In a hybrid retirement plan, your employer provides access to two compatible benefit structures at the same…
August 1, 2020

What is a Defined Contribution Plan?

In a defined contribution plan, also known as a cash balance plan,  you and your employer each contribute a…
April 17, 2020

Equable Institute Warns of COVID-19 Impact on Public Pension Funds for The Hill

Today, The Hill featured an op-ed written by Equable Institute‘s Executive Director Anthony Randazzo on…
April 17, 2020

COVID-19 Hidden Cuts FAQ

The impacts of Covid-19 won’t be known for quite some time, but already we’re seeing the pandemic…
April 17, 2020

Hidden Education Funding Cuts Solutions

There is no silver bullet to solve America’s hidden education funding cuts. State and local leaders in…
April 14, 2020

Coronavirus Causing Massive Public Pension Plan Losses

For years, the country’s public pension plans have faced a yawning gap between what they owe and what they…
February 28, 2020

Hidden Funding Cuts Methodology

Download The Full Report | Hidden Education Funding Cuts: Methodology The Hidden Education Funding Cuts…
February 25, 2020

Redwood City Using Surplus to Reduce Pension Funding Shortfall Faster

Paying $3 million to reduce pension liability is among spending recommendations that follow higher than…
February 20, 2020

Florida Funded Status Methodology

The Florida Retirement System (FRS) offers employees the option of two retirement plans. The Investment Plan…
February 12, 2020

Why Funded Status Matters: Florida

Your pension is your monthly slice of the pie for life – and Funded Status is the recipe for making sure…
February 4, 2020

Gov. Beshear’s Budget Plan Would Mean Tens of Millions Less Than Expected for KY Retirement Systems

Gov. Andy Beshear’s budget plan would result in Kentucky Retirement Systems getting tens of millions of…
January 31, 2020

Groundhog Day: The States That Keep Repeating Their Pension Mistakes

Figuring out how to manage a public pension system is hard, complicated work. Pension board trustees have to…
January 29, 2020

Ohio State Pension System Cuts Healthcare Benefits

The Ohio Public Employees’ Retirement System (OPERS) voted last week to cut health care benefits provided…
December 24, 2019

Why Funded Status Matters: Georgia

Your pension is your monthly slice of the pie for life – and Funded Status is the recipe for making sure…
November 1, 2019

Why the Assumed Rate of Return Matters: Georgia

The “” is the single most important assumption that pension systems make to ensure they have enough…
October 29, 2019

Why the Assumed Rate of Return Matters: Arizona

The “” is the single most important assumption that pension systems make to ensure they have enough…
October 29, 2019

Why Funded Status Matters: Arizona

Your pension is your monthly slice of the pie for life – and Funded Status is the recipe for making sure…
October 28, 2019

Why Funded Status Matters

State and local governments have made promises to people who work for them. These public servants have been…
October 25, 2019

Maryland School Finance Inequity is Worse Because of Pension Debt Payments

Most state pension funds are not at risk of running out of money in the next few decades, which is a good…
October 24, 2019

State Higher Education Pension Plans Often Better Than K-12 Public Schools

Public pension plans often have higher education pensions that are better for employees in public K-12…
September 17, 2019

Higher Teacher Pay Being Thwarted By Admin and Benefit Costs

Not long after Los Angeles’ teachers returned to work after a six-day strike last month, more than 5,000…
September 16, 2019

Improving American Retirement

The American ideal of a happy, secure retirement is under threat as the economy changes and the financial…
September 11, 2019

A Tale of Two Teachers: A Retirement Story

Consider two hypothetical teachers with nearly identical resumes: Ms. Early is 65 years old, and she taught…
September 10, 2019

The Pension Basics Series

Most public workers in America are enrolled in a pension plan. For those who work a full career in education,…
September 9, 2019

How Pension Contributions Work

Have you ever wondered how pension contributions work? If you’re a public employee, you make monthly…
August 29, 2019

Where Are State & Local Workers Allowed to Join Social Security?

Millions of state agency workers, municipal employees, and police and firefighters across the country do not…
August 29, 2019

Where Are Teachers Allowed to Join Social Security?

More than a million teachers across the country do not participate in Social Security. There are 11 states…
August 26, 2019

Ultralow Interest Rates Aren’t All Good

Low interest rate impact on pensions is two fold. While low interest rates help states borrow money to…
August 26, 2019

Assumed Returns for Pension Plans Often Unrealistic

American state and local pensions have less than 73% of the assets they need to fund future obligations to…
August 21, 2019

Why Michigan’s 2017 Pension Reform Helps Teachers

Teaching in Michigan is about to become a lot more attractive. Recently enacted legislation will improve…
August 21, 2019

Paying the Bill: The Need for Adequate TRS Funding

If you only make the minimum payment on your credit card for 13 of the past 15 months, your debt would climb…
August 21, 2019

How Much Do States Spend on Retirement?

Every day, an estimated 10,000 Americans baby boomers retire – and unfortunately many of them will spend…
August 19, 2019

Pension Basics: Funded Status

Funded status measures the dollars a pension fund has received and invested, compared to the pension payments…
August 19, 2019

Why COLAs Matter for Retirement Security

Everyone has their favorite moment of realizing the effects of inflation. Just five cents for a bottle of…
August 19, 2019

Fitch: Arizona Riskiest Pension Investor in Nation

Fitch Ratings released a report last week evaluating the asset allocations of the largest public sector…
August 19, 2019

The Growing Costs of Arizona’s State Retirement System are Crowding Out Teacher Pay and Education Finances

The Arizona State Retirement System (ASRS) provides retirement income for nearly 150,000 former teachers,…
August 19, 2019

Why Equable Institute Cares about Retirement Security

For America’s states and local governments to function properly and thrive — that is, to provide…
August 19, 2019

Pension Myths & Facts: Pensions are Not Funded like Social Security

Myth: More public employees are needed to ensure pension debt gets paid off. Fact: Pension debt is not solved…
August 19, 2019

Pension Myths & Facts: Pension Benefit Value Calculation Is Not Affected by the Assumed Rate of Return

Myth: The assumed rate of return determines the value of your benefits. Fact: The calculation of your pension…
August 19, 2019

Pension Basics: Pension Governance

Public pension plan management is often referred to as pension governance. How states manage – or…
August 19, 2019

Pension Basics: Paying the Pension Bill

It is important that state and local governments pay at least 100% of their (ADC) each year. The ADC is based…
August 19, 2019

Pension Basics: Actuarially Determined Contributions

It is important that public sector pension funds receive adequate contributions each year in order to…
August 19, 2019

Pension Basics: Unfunded Liabilities (aka Pension Debt)

What are Unfunded Liabilities for Pension Plans? Pension plans are designed to collect contributions from…
August 15, 2019

Pension Basics: Normal Cost

Normal cost is the contribution necessary, when added to investment income, to pay for benefits earned each…
August 15, 2019

Pension Basics: Assumed Rate of Return

Assumed rate of return is the single most important assumption that pension systems make to ensure they have…
August 15, 2019

Pension Basics: The Pension Funding Formula

How does a state, or the fund administering pension benefits, make sure it will be able to pay promised…
August 15, 2019

Pension Basics: Vesting

If you’re like most public workers, you probably have to work five to seven years before you can qualify…
August 15, 2019

Pension Basics: How Pension Benefits Are Calculated

Pension benefits are typically a fixed monthly payment in retirement that is guaranteed for life. Some…
Equable Highlight

What is the assumed rate of return?

The assumed rate of return is the single most important assumption that pension systems make to ensure they have enough funding to pay promised benefits.

Learn about the status of your state

Want to know how your state is managing its pension and retirement promises? Or how much employees have to contribute toward their pension and retirement benefits? Select a state to see a snapshot of your state's retirement system.

How much is your pension worth?

Whether you are nearing the end of a teaching career or a relatively new educator, it is important to understand how your retirement benefits work and whether you’re on a path to retirement income security.

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