Steven Gassenberger
Policy Analyst, Pension Integrity Project, Reason Foundation
Steven Gassenberger is a Policy Analyst with Reason Foundation's Pension Integrity Project.
Prior to joining Reason, Gassenberger worked as a consumer advocacy manager for Xerox Corporation specializing in financial consumer regulation and compliance. He also worked as a senior associate for Stateside Associates, where he developed state-level management strategies for a variety of policy areas. Prior to that, held positions at the National Breast Cancer Coalition and the International Fund for Agricultural Development.
At Reason, Gassenberger has contributed to in-depth analysis of the Arkansas TRS, Florida FRS, Louisiana LASERS, Louisiana TRSL, Mississippi PERS, Montana MPERS, Montana TRS, New Mexico ERB, New Mexico PERA, North Dakota PERS, Texas ERS, and Texas TRS pension systems.
Gassenberger has also presented testimony in Montana, Nebraska, and Texas during state pension reform efforts.
His work has been published in The Wall Street Journal and Business Observer.
Gassenberger recently shared the stage at the Pelican Institute’s Solutions Summit 2.0 with Louisiana State Senator Barrow Peacock, Michigan State Senator Phil Pavlov, and Jonathan Williams, Chief Economist at The American Legislative Exchange Council in discussing “Fostering a Sustainable System for Louisiana.”
Gassenberger graduated from the University of New Orleans with a BA in international relations and received a MA in public policy from Tel Aviv University.
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Comments on Montana House Bill 226 (2023)
The changes offered in HB226 would address how PERS is only optimal to a fraction of public employees at an ever-rising cost, and turn the system towards best practices in public retirement benefit design.
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Testimony: Montana House Bill 228 (2023)
Montana House Bill 228 would help improve governance and give stakeholders even more confidence in their system for future generations.
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Testimony: Michigan Senate Bill 1192 would depoliticize pension investments and protect taxpayers
Michigan Senate Bill 1192 would help ensure the goals of public pension managers and trust fiduciaries align with reality.
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Is Texas’ definition of an actuarially sound public pension system outdated?
With this year's high inflation rates hitting retirees living on fixed incomes the hardest, it is not surprising that retiree groups and their allies are advocating for a cost-of-living adjustment.
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Examining the Teachers Retirement System of Texas after the pension reforms of 2019
Senate Bill 12 of 2019 made reforms, but TRS contributions will likely be insufficient because the pension plan is using outdated economic assumptions.
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Testimony: Teacher Retirement System of Texas can improve funding policies to benefit taxpayers, employees
The pension plan's outdated actuarial assumptions, funding policies, and benefit offerings hurt teachers' retirement security.
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Evaluating the potential impacts of Louisiana Senate Bill 438
The proposed hybrid plan is more expensive than the current pension under all scenarios.
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Paying down PSPRS debt faster is a win for taxpayers
Unfunded PSPRS and ASRS liabilities make those pension systems more costly, pressuring government budgets. Paying down pension debt as fast as possible avoids interest costs and saves taxpayers money.
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Louisiana legislature considers several bills that would change public pensions and impact taxpayers
These bills come with costs and trade-offs that put millions of taxpayer dollars on the line.
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House Bill 2486 threatens Oklahoma’s pension progress
Public pension changes of the magnitude being proposed should receive rigorous actuarial and risk analyses that ensure future generations’ interests are protected.
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Testimony: Louisiana Senate Bill 10 is likely to increase pension debt and weaken retirement system
SB10 is likely to shortchange members and weaken TRSL, which has $9.3 billion in unfunded liabilities.
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Senate Bill 10 undermines the Teacher Retirement System of Louisiana
SB10 is likely to weaken the Teachers’ Retirement System, which is already burdened with $9.3 billion in unfunded liabilities.
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Testimony: Senate Bill 7 could weaken Louisiana State Police Retirement System
Skimming excess returns drastically alters the way a plan funds its benefits.
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Testimony: Louisiana Senate Bill 6 relies on a structurally flawed funding mechanism
The funding mechanism that SB6 would rely on is structurally flawed, financially questionable, and a national outlier in terms of providing inflation protection in a pension system.
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Testimony: Louisiana Senate Bill 5’s bonus payment unlikely to be a one-time cost
The funding mechanism used to pay for the bonus leverages the entire balance of the system’s experience account.
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Report finds ‘oversights’ and ‘lack of transparency’ led to Pennsylvania pension system error
The Pennsylvania Public School Employees’ Retirement System (PSERS) is increasingly dependent on highly specialized and expensive consultants to meet its fiduciary responsibilities.
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Keeping politics out of public pension investing
Policies directing public pension systems to make politically-motivated investments can undermine fund governance and increase financial risk to future generations.
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Testimony: Florida House Bill 971 would allow more investment in alternative assets
Florida House Bill 917 would allow the State Board of Administration to expand investment in the alternative asset market.
