The funded status of U.S. public retirement systems has continued improving as of Sept. 30, thanks both to strong financial market performance and record-high contribution rates from state and local governments, according to Equable’s latest State of Pensions 2025 research brief.
In fact, the growth from 74.9 percent in 2022 to an estimated 83.1 percent in 2025 represents more than three-quarters of the total improvement in funded status since 2015. Still, there is still more than $1.2 trillion in unfunded pension liabilities, even with financial markets around the globe collectively at record highs.
To put this in context, consider that after investment returns of nearly 25 percent in 2021, the national average funded ratio had improved to 83.9 percent. If public plans had been able to steadily grow from there, it’s possible the national funded ratio could be above 90 percent today. Instead, public plans whipsawed from sharp losses in 2022 to strong gains
