State & Local Pensions
In recent decades, public pension plans in the United States have changed how they take on risk. At the turn of the century, their risky investments were primarily in public equities, whereas alternative assets – like private equity, real estate, and hedge funds – accounted for just 14 percent of all risky investments…
State and local government workers have traditionally had defined benefit (DB) pensions that insulate them from the stock market and ensure that they do not outlive their savings. Funding these plans, however, has become burdensome for many governments, with costs rising dramatically in the immediate wake of the 2008 financial crisis and continuing to grow…
