At its June meeting, the PERA Board of Trustees released the 2023 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, which contains a detailed account of PERA’s finances, investment performance, and funded status for the 2023 calendar year.
The report provides a wealth of information for anyone who wants to know more about PERA’s financial health, operations, and membership. Below we highlight some key numbers from the report and what they mean for members and retirees.
Financial highlights
As of December 31, 2023, PERA manages an investment portfolio of $61.5 billion for the defined benefit trust funds. The portfolio ended the year with a positive return of 13.4% net-of-fees. Over the past 30 years, the portfolio has earned an annualized return of 8.3%.
In total, PERA paid $5.3 billion in retirement benefits to more than 138,000 retirees and benefit recipients in 2023.
As required by state law, PERA is on a path to full funding by 2048, and as of the end of the year, the combined funded ratio for the defined benefit trust funds was 69.6%.
Want to know more? Explore highlights from the ACFR in an interactive format here.
What the numbers mean
The bottom line is member contributions and retiree benefit increases will remain at their current levels.
The Automatic Adjustment Provision, which went into effect with Senate Bill 200 in 2018, adjusts member and employer contributions and annual benefit increases based on PERA’s funding progress. The calculation is made on an annual basis, to take effect the following year.
Based on 2023’s financial results, adjustments via the provision will not be needed next year. That means member contributions will remain unchanged in 2025. Employer contribution rates also will not change as a result of the provision. Eligible benefit recipients will receive a 1% Annual Increase in July 2024 and another 1% Annual Increase in July 2025.
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