Retirement System Sustainability
Established in 1932, the California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) is a defined benefit system. Members include employees of state agencies, cities, schools, and other local public agencies. At retirement, an employee who vests in the system, typically five years of service, is entitled to collect a monthly payment for life. Below is an overview of the pension system, as well as related news articles, educational resources, and tools.
CalPERS Overview and Background
- Facts at a Glance (CalPERS)
- Asset Liability Management (CalPERS)
- 2018 League Pension Survey
- Ensuring Long-Term Sustainability
- Pension System Sustainability Principles
- Why Cities are on the Frontline of Pension Reform
Los Angeles Times, CalMatters, and Capital Public Radio's Pension Series
- Reform Initiatives (April 7, 2017)
- Cutting Jobs, Street Repairs, Library Books (Feb. 6, 2017)
- Mayor Reacts (Jan 26, 2017)
- Retirement Pays (Dec. 30, 2016)
- The Change Ahead (Dec. 21, 2016)
- The Squeeze (Nov. 18, 2016)
- The Overhaul (Oct. 28, 2016)
- The Ruling (Oct. 20, 2016)
- Explaining CalPERS (Oct. 7, 2016)
- The Fight (Oct. 7, 2016)
- The Facts (Sept. 18, 2016)
- The Pension Gap (Sept. 18, 2016)
Pension Outlook Tool
CalPERS' Pension Outlook tool can help cities plan and budget pension costs with easy-to-understand results and charts. Using the tool, city officials can view the projected funded status and required employer contributions for pension plans in different potential scenarios for up to 30 years into the future. Specifically, it can answer questions such as:
- When is my plan expected to increase its funded status?
- What happens to my required contributions in a down market?
- How does the discount rate assumption affect my contributions?
- What is the impact of making an additional discretionary payment to my plan?
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Related News Articles
- "Big year for CalPERS means higher pension costs for some public employees" Sacramento Bee, July 22, 2021
- "CalPERS gets candid about ‘critical’ decade ahead" Calpensions, August 26, 2019
- "Valley Voice: With Prudent, Diligent Efforts, CalPERS Can Meet Its Obligations to Retirees" Desert Sun, July 16, 2019
- "How a CalPERS-sponsored bill increased pensions" Capitol Weekly, March 15, 2019
- "Changes at top as CalPERS faces biggest test yet" Cal Pensions, January 28, 2019
- "Borenstein: Is Gov. Newsom serious about taming pension costs?" The Mercury New, January 22, 2019
- "Jerry Brown awaits his day in court on pension reform" EdSource, October 25, 2018
- " Why California Is Losing Teachers and Laying Off Secretaries" The Wall Street Journal, June 29, 2018
- "League Urges CalPERS to Find Ways to Exceed 7% Return Projections" Chief Investment Officer, May 16, 2018
- "'Crunch time' at CalPERS: Pension confidence drops among city managers" Sacramento Bee, May 14, 2018
- "Commentary: How pension costs clobbered one small city" CalMatters, March
- "California’s public pension crisis in a nutshell" The Fresno Bee, Feb. 21, 2018
- "Newport Beach is making progress on pension and other debts but prudence is advised" The Los Angeles Times, Feb 13, 2018
- "PD Editorial: Petaluma may face a tough sell on pension tax" The Press Democrat, Feb. 13, 2018
- "When do CalPERS rates become ‘unsustainable’?" Calpensions, Feb. 12, 2018
- "California Cities' Pension Bills May Rise With Calpers Move" Bloomberg, Feb. 13, 2018
- "Borenstein: Ain’t seen nothing yet; California pension cost rise just starting" The Mercury News, Feb. 8, 2018
- "California Governor Candidates Dodge Pension Cuts That Brown Foresees" Bloomberg, Feb. 7, 2018
- "Santa Cruz County: Local governments face deficits as pension costs expected to double" Santa Cruz Sentinel, Feb. 3, 2018
- "How a growing pension burden will press California city budgets" The Bond Buyer, Feb. 2, 2018
- "Will Brown pension reform lead to more reform?" CalPensions, Dec. 4, 2017
- Editorial: Brown comes to taxpayers' defense on pensions, San Jose Mercury News, Nov. 27, 2017
- "One city’s struggle with mounting CalPERS costs," CalPensions, Nov. 27, 2017
- "California should be able to reduce public employees’ pension benefits, Jerry Brown argues" Sacramento Bee, Nov. 22, 2017
- "CalPERS shelves rate increase opposed by cities," CalPensions, Nov. 20, 2017
- "Cities face seven years of growing CalPERS costs," CalPensions, Oct. 16, 2017
- "Stopping the Runaway Pension Train," by Carolyn Coleman, Western City Magazine, October 2017
- "What is being squeezed out to pay increasing pension costs?" The Press Democrat, Sept. 24, 2017