Colorado is one of the top states for funding public employee health care retirement benefits, according to a new report released by the Center for State and Local Government Excellence (SLGE) and the National Association of State Retirement Administrators (NASRA). According to the report on states’ funding of what is commonly called Other Post-Employment Benefits, or OPEB, “Nine states (including Colorado) contributed 80 percent of their ARC or greater.” The ARC is the Annual Required Contribution calculated by actuaries that will fully fund the obligation over time. These post-retirement benefits are health care benefits public employees earn while working for a public employer.
The news is even better for PERA apart from other public employers in the state. The figure for Colorado includes other large public employers who have OPEB obligations outside of the two health care trust funds administered by Colorado PERA. Read the issue brief.