Mariana Trujillo
Managing Director, Government Finance, Reason Foundation
Mariana Trujillo is managing director of government finance at Reason Foundation, where she leads research on the fiscal health of federal, state, and local governments.
Her work examines government debt, public pension liabilities, state and local budgeting, and the effects of retirement benefits on public-employee recruitment and retention. She leads Reason Foundation’s Government Finance Dashboard, a national database and interactive research platform covering the finances of states, cities, counties, and school districts.
Trujillo’s research has been cited by The Wall Street Journal, the New York Post, The Bond Buyer, and other national publications. Her commentary has appeared in Reason Magazine, Governing, the San Diego Union-Tribune, the Hartford Courant, and the Los Angeles Daily News. She has testified before state legislatures and presented her research to policymakers, public-finance professionals, and researchers across the country.
She holds a B.A. in economics from George Mason University and is an alumna of the Stand Together Koch Associate Program and the Mercatus Center’s Schumpeter Fellowship. Before joining Reason Foundation, she interned at JPMorgan, The Mercatus Center, and The Cato Institute.
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Pension Reform News: How state public pension systems rank on key health metrics
Plus: Crucial pension reforms under fire in California, Oklahoma bill advances retirement goals of government employees, and more.
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How every state’s public pension system ranks
Tennessee, Virginia, and Washington lead the nation with fully funded systems, while Illinois, Kentucky, and New Jersey remain at the bottom with the deepest shortfalls.
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Pension Reform News: Rules on how public pensions should invest in crypto
Plus: Alaska could take on billions in extra costs by rolling back reforms, unfunded public pension liabilities are a debt, and more.
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Frequently asked questions about public pensions investing in Bitcoin and other digital assets
Are public pension systems investing in digital assets effectively gambling with taxpayer-backed retirement assets?
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U.S. public pension and trust fund investment in digital assets
Policy considerations for public sector investment in Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
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How the proposed billionaire tax would backfire and hurt California
While taxing billionaires may feel cathartic to some, it’s neither a smart nor a sustainable solution to California’s debt and deficits.
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Pension Reform News: Public pension reform drives fiscal responsibility, not inequality
Plus: How property tax cuts will impact pensions in Texas, Louisiana's pension crisis threatens taxpayers, and more.
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Public pension reform does not increase inequality
Well-designed pension reform is essential to safeguarding public services, protecting taxpayers, and ensuring sustainable retirement security.
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San Diego’s government needs more competition, not more taxes
San Diego’s rising pension costs and mounting long-term debt are creating significant budget pressures that have city officials turning to tax and fee increases.
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State and local governments are drowning in debt
To address this mountain of debt and restore fiscal stability, state and local governments must sustainably align spending with revenues.
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Connecticut’s pensions shouldn’t make political investment in WNBA team
Keeping the Connecticut Sun in the state may be good politics, but would be an unwise financial move that puts the state's taxpayers at risk.
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Most public pension contributions go toward paying off debt, not funding benefits
Over 50% of the public pension contributions by state and local governments are directed toward paying off pension debt rather than to benefits themselves.
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Report: Cities have $1.4 trillion in debt
San Francisco, Nantucket, New York City, Ocean City, and Miami Beach are the cities with the most per capita debt.
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Report: County governments have $757 billion in debt
In per capita terms, North Slope Borough, Alaska, ranks first, with its total debt representing $46,883 per county resident.
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Pension Reform News: Reason’s annual report finds $1.5 trillion in aggregate pension debt
Plus: Undoing California's pension reforms could cost billions, what government worker reductions mean for pensions, and more.
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Study: Illinois, Connecticut, Alaska, Hawaii, New Jersey and Mississippi have the most per capita pension debt
Illinois, Kentucky, New Jersey, Mississippi, and Connecticut have less than 60% of funding needed to pay for promised pension benefits.
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The public pension plans with the most debt, best and worst investment return rates
The Maryland and Massachusetts teachers' retirement plans saw the largest growth in debt, the Fire Fighters' Relief and Retirement Fund of Austin posted the worst returns and the Miami General Employees and Sanitation Employees Plan had the highest return rate.
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Report: State and local pension plans have $1.48 trillion in debt
State pension systems have $1.29 trillion in unfunded liabilities, and local governments have $187 billion.
