Massachusetts Teachers Retirement System
public plan · State of Massachusetts · Boston, MA
Massachusetts Teachers Retirement System is severely underfunded at 55%, with $18.7B in unfunded liability. Plans in this bracket face significant solvency risk and are typically on regulatory funding-improvement plans, with active intervention from PBGC for private plans or state pension boards for public ones.
Massachusetts Teachers Retirement System is a government pension plan administered by State of Massachusetts. Unlike private corporate plans, the benefit guarantee flows from the sponsoring government's ongoing tax authority and contribution obligations rather than from federal insurance. The plan remains active — accruing new benefits for current employees and accepting new participants. Among private-sector single-employer plans, the active status is increasingly rare as employers freeze accruals while continuing to fund existing obligations; public-sector plans are more often still actively accruing.
Massachusetts Teachers Retirement System is among the larger U.S. pension plans by asset base ($23.0B). The participant pool of 102,000 divides into 48,000 actives and 54,000 retirees, a mix that shapes both cash-flow profile and investment-horizon choices. Active and retired participants are roughly balanced (48,000 active, 54,000 retired). The plan is in a steady-state cash-flow phase where new accruals offset benefit payments. Annual cash flows: $2.4B in sponsor contributions versus $2.6B in benefit payments. Investment performance over the most recent year ran 5.2%, against the plan's assumed long-term return of 7.0%.
PBGC risk classification: high. The plan is on enhanced monitoring and may face funding-improvement or rehabilitation-plan requirements depending on multi-year trajectory. Public plans like Massachusetts Teachers Retirement System are not PBGC-insured. The benefit guarantee rests on the sponsoring government's ability and willingness to make required contributions, which interacts with state and local tax-base dynamics.
Source: DOL EFAST2 Form 5500 filings and Boston College CRR Public Plans Database.
Funding History
What This Means for You
Massachusetts Teachers Retirement System is 55% funded, which is below the 80% threshold that actuaries consider healthy. The plan has $18.7B in unfunded liabilities that must be addressed through increased contributions, investment returns, or benefit adjustments. Current participants should monitor this plan and consider supplemental retirement savings.
Year-by-Year Funding
| Year | Assets | Liabilities | Funding Ratio | Contributions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | $23.0B | $41.7B | 55.2% | $2.4B |
| 2022 | $22.3B | $41.3B | 54.0% | $2.3B |
| 2021 | $21.6B | $37.9B | 57.0% | $2.3B |
| 2020 | $20.9B | $41.0B | 51.0% | $2.2B |
| 2019 | $20.2B | $38.2B | 53.0% | $2.1B |
Frequently Asked Questions
Massachusetts Teachers Retirement System is 55% funded, meaning it has 55 cents in assets for every dollar in future benefit obligations. This is significantly underfunded and participants should monitor the situation closely.
Massachusetts Teachers Retirement System has 102,000 total participants, including 48,000 active employees and 54,000 retirees currently receiving benefits.
Massachusetts Teachers Retirement System is not covered by the PBGC. Benefits depend entirely on the plan's assets and the sponsor's ability to fund it.
The Pension Health Score (0-100, A-F) measures a pension plan's financial strength based on funding ratio (50%), funding trend over 3 years (30%), and PBGC risk level (20%). Higher scores indicate more secure retirement benefits.
Pension Health Score is calculated from funding ratio, 3-year funding trend, and PBGC risk classification.