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PensionRisk

California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) vs San Francisco Employees Retirement System

Side-by-side pension health comparison from DOL and public plan data

California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) (B) and San Francisco Employees Retirement System (A) are close on the LakeQuality rubric. Funding ratios sit at 73% and 87% respectively — within a few points of each other.

With grades this close, the comparison turns on plan-specific factors: status (active vs frozen), participant maturity, sponsor financial health, and multi-year trajectory rather than the headline composite.

Verdict

San Francisco Employees Retirement System has a stronger Pension Health Score of 82/100 (A) compared to California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) at 73/100 (B). Funding ratios differ by 14.4 percentage points (87.3% vs 72.9%). San Francisco Employees Retirement System covers 68,000 participants.

MetricCalifornia State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS)San Francisco Employees Retirement System
Health Score
Composite of funding ratio, trend, and PBGC risk
73/100 (B)82/100 (A)*
Funding Ratio
Assets as % of liabilities (100%+ is fully funded)
72.9%87.3%*
Total Assets$318.0B$33.8B
Total Liabilities$436.0B$38.7B*
Unfunded Liability$118.0B$4.9B*
Participants985,00068,000
1-Year Investment Return6.2%6.4%*
Plan Typepublicpublic
PBGC Risk Levelmoderatelow
SponsorState of CaliforniaCity and County of San Francisco

San Francisco Employees Retirement System has a stronger Pension Health Score of 82/100 (A) compared to California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) at 73/100 (B). Funding ratios differ by 14.4 percentage points (87.3% vs 72.9%). San Francisco Employees Retirement System covers 68,000 participants.

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