Illinois Teachers Retirement System (TRS) vs Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS)
Side-by-side pension health comparison from DOL and public plan data
Illinois Teachers Retirement System (TRS) and Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS) are meaningfully apart on the LakeQuality pension-health rubric: Illinois Teachers Retirement System (TRS) grades D while Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS) grades A. Funding ratios: 45% vs 92%.
Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS) comes out ahead on the composite rubric. For a participant in either plan, the spread is informative but not directly actionable — pension participation is not portable, so the relevant question is what each plan's funded-status trajectory means for that participant's benefit security.
Verdict
Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS) has a stronger Pension Health Score of 83/100 (A) compared to Illinois Teachers Retirement System (TRS) at 44/100 (D). Funding ratios differ by 47.4 percentage points (92.1% vs 44.7%). Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS) covers 378,000 participants.
| Metric | Illinois Teachers Retirement System (TRS) | Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS) |
|---|---|---|
| Health Score Composite of funding ratio, trend, and PBGC risk | 44/100 (D) | 83/100 (A)* |
| Funding Ratio Assets as % of liabilities (100%+ is fully funded) | 44.7% | 92.1%* |
| Total Assets | $62.8B | $57.0B |
| Total Liabilities | $140.5B | $61.9B* |
| Unfunded Liability | $77.7B | $4.9B* |
| Participants | 424,000 | 378,000 |
| 1-Year Investment Return | 4.8% | 6.8%* |
| Plan Type | public | public |
| PBGC Risk Level | critical | low |
| Sponsor | State of Illinois | State of Tennessee |
Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS) has a stronger Pension Health Score of 83/100 (A) compared to Illinois Teachers Retirement System (TRS) at 44/100 (D). Funding ratios differ by 47.4 percentage points (92.1% vs 44.7%). Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System (TCRS) covers 378,000 participants.