Mariana Trujillo
Managing Director, Government Finance, Reason Foundation
Mariana Trujillo is managing director of government finance at Reason Foundation.
She holds a B.A. in economics from George Mason University. Before joining Reason Foundation, she interned at JP Morgan, The Mercatus Center, and The Cato Institute.
Trujillo’s research focuses on the fiscal health of federal, state, and local governments, particularly the impact of pension liabilities on fiscal condition and the effect of retirement benefits on public-employee recruitment and retention. Her work has appeared in outlets such as Reason magazine, the San Diego Tribune, Hartford Courant, Los Angeles Daily News, CQ Researcher, and more. She has also testified on these issues before the Oklahoma House of Representatives and the Connecticut General Assembly.
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Connecticut’s fiscal guardrails are a solution, not the problem
Public pension contributions made through the fiscal guardrails have freed up approximately $738 million in Connecticut's yearly budget.
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Pension fund size doesn’t matter: Large public pension systems don’t have better investment returns
Asset size is not meaningfully related to investment performance.
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How a public pension fund’s fiscal year-end month impacts investment returns
Changes in fiscal year dates significantly influence a public pension fund's reported investment performance.
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California’s state and local government debt is over $500 billion
The state of California has over $270 billion in debt and local entities have over $230 billion in debt.
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Webinar: Best practices in optional defined contribution plans for public workers
For those looking to implement or improve an optional defined contribution plan to go alongside an existing pension, several key policy decisions are important.
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Why defined benefit plans fail the majority of public workers
A review of 12 pension systems finds only 38% of public workers are expected to stay in their jobs long enough to meet the pension system’s vesting requirements.
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Most public employees leave jobs before they vest in pension systems
An examination of 12 public pension plans finds 62% of public workers leave before vesting in their pensions.
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Webinar: How pensions impact the recruitment and retention of public employees
In this webinar, pension experts discuss the modern challenges of recruiting and retaining talent in the public sector, focusing on the role public pensions.
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How the US Treasury shaped a new era of Swiss monetary policy
The United States Department of the Treasury classified Switzerland as a currency manipulator during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Mississippi’s low pension contributions cause S&P Global to downgrade its credit outlook
With unfunded pension liabilities doubling and pension contributions failing to keep up with public employee benefit increases, S&P lowers Mississippi's state credit rating outlook.
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Public pension reforms aren’t impacting public employee turnover rates
Turnover rates seem to have little to do with retirement plan structure and more to do with employee compensation and the changing reality of American labor markets.
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West Virginia improved teacher retirement funding through increased spending, not better plan design
West Virginia simply started dedicating enough money to pay for the public pension promises it was making.
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How high interest rates impact public pension systems
Higher interest rates and pension systems' investment strategies risks burdening workers and taxpayers with even larger unfunded liabilities.
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Dallas should not bet on pension obligation bonds to save pension system
The Dallas Police and Fire Pension System has $3 billion in unfunded liabilities. But pension obligation bonds do not refinance pension debt, they leverage it.
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The way Michigan’s pension reform tackles public pension debt is a model for other states
Rather than simply paying off public pension debt, Michigan created a mechanism to push local pension systems toward solvency.
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Why public pension systems invest in private equity, even when they shouldn’t
Public pension funds are under pressure to reduce the accumulating debt as much as possible and present an actual rate of return that matches estimates.