The brief’s key findings are:
- Since 2019, financial markets have seen unusual turmoil, most recently a sharp rise in interest rates to curb high inflation.
- Despite volatile asset values, the funded status of state and local pension plans has risen about 2 percentage points since 2023, and 5 points since 2019.
- That is, the strong performance of other asset classes has more than offset the impact of rising interest rates on fixed-income assets.