State and Local Retirement Plans in the United States

摘要

State and local government pension plans cover over 27 million current and former public employees in the U.S. While the U.S. private sector has gradually moved towards defined contribution retirement plans, the vast majority of public sector plans still promise defined benefits. The financial condition of these plans has become one of the most important public finance challenges for state and local governments. In this crisis as in any other, one of the most important questions is: how did we get here?