Teacher pension systems concentrate retirements within a narrow range of the career cycle by penalizing individuals who separate too soon or remain employed too long. The penalties result in the retention of some teachers who would otherwise choose to leave, and the premature exit of some teachers who would otherwise choose to stay. We examine the…

This article examines the pattern of incentives for work versus retirement in six state teacher pension systems. We do this by examining the annual accrual of pension wealth from an additional year of work over a teacher's career. Accrual of wealth is highly nonlinear and heavily loaded at arbitrary years that would normally be considered…

Teacher benefits, once a sleepy question primarily of interest to actuaries, have become a flash point in the education debate. With individual states on the hook for tens or hundreds of millions in unfunded pension and health insurance obligations, state leaders are trying to determine the severity of the situation and the appropriate response.…

Although benefits can be a sizable part of an educator's total compensation, there has been little scholarly inquiry into the state pension plans for educators. Despite the fact that all defined benefit plans rely on the same basic formula for calculating annual pensions, they vary across states in the multiplier used, the method for calculating…

The purpose of this policy analysis was to examine the Missouri Public School Retirement System (PSRS). The team investigated the under-funding of PSRS, relating to sustainability and the feasibility of the system's use of one lever, contribution rate, to stabilize the retirement system, and to meet actuary needs and governmental requirements. The…

Pensions are an important but comparatively unexamined component of human resource policies in education. In an increasingly competitive world where employees are more mobile than ever, pension policies that were designed in the last century may be out of step with the needs of both individuals and schools. This background paper aims to foster…

Discusses various employee fringe benefit programs and suggests possible ways to ensure that such programs operate in the most efficient and least costly manner. (JG)

This report presents basic data collected from 68 retirement systems on major legal provisions of state and local retirement systems to which teachers belong. The overview contains information on: (1) membership in state and local systems; (2) creditable service eligibility from prior service, military service, in-state nonteaching service, and…

The extent, causes, and possible consequences of underfunded teacher pensions are examined. The analysis is divided into two separate studies. Essay I, "Appraising the Funding Status of Teacher Pensions: An Econometric Approach," examines the funding status of teacher pension plans for the 50 states and for selected localities for the…

This report presents the results of a 50-state survey of the laws defining the reporting, disclosure and investment standards that govern public employee retirement systems. In addition to reviewing these laws, the report describes the legislative and executive oversight of public retirement systems mandated by state law. The data for the report…

The Committee on Retirement of the American Association of University Professors initiated its first retirement policies survey in 2000 to address a lack of reliable and systematically collected information on retirement policies and practices across U.S. institutions of higher education. At the end of the 1990s, there was a sense that…

The annual Financial Report of the Teachers' Retirement System of Louisiana is divided into six main sections. The Introductory Section includes the letter of transmittal, names of the Board of Trustees, staff, and consultants; the organization chart; copy of certificate of achievement for excellence in financial reporting for 1995 financial…

The American Association of University Professors' Committee A on Academic Freedom and Tenure reports on possible results on faculty salary structure, the tenure system, and retirement options of legislation uncapping the mandatory retirement age of college faculty. Considerations for institutions to make in adjusting personnel policies are…

Findings of a national survey that examined retirement and retiree health benefits provisions are presented in this document. A 1990-91 survey mailed to all state and local retirement plans in which education employees participate elicited responses from 53 state-sponsored and 5 local-sponsored plans (representing a total active membership of 6.4…

Results of the University Benefits Survey of pensions plans in Ontario universities are presented according to type of plan, eligibility, contributions, and benefits. There are nine defined benefit plans, seven money purchase plans with minimum guarantees, and one money purchase plan with no guarantees. All plans are eligible to full-time academic…