Zachary Christensen
Managing Director, Pension Integrity Project, Reason Foundation
Zachary Christensen is a managing director of Reason Foundation's Pension Integrity Project.
Christensen’s work with Reason's Pension Integrity Project aims to promote solvent, sustainable retirement systems that provide retirement security for government workers while reducing long-term costs for taxpayers and employees. Zachary and his team provide education, reform policy options, and actuarial analysis for policymakers and stakeholders to help them design practical and viable reform proposals.
The Pension Integrity Project has provided technical assistance to several successful pension reform efforts in recent years, including in Michigan, Colorado, Arizona, South Carolina, Texas, and other states tackling persistent pension solvency challenges.
Christensen has contributed to in-depth solvency analysis of the Arizona PSPRS, Arkansas TRS, Louisiana TRSL, Texas ERS, and Texas TRS pension plans.
Christensen's work has been published in the Los Angeles Daily News, Orange County Register, NJ.com, Colorado Politics, and many other publications. He has also been featured in the Carolina Journal and the Michigan Capitol Confidential. His research has been published by the Hoover Institution, The Platte Institute, Texas Public Policy Foundation, and Rio Grande Foundation.
Prior to joining Reason Foundation, Christensen was a pension finance analyst at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, where he worked on widely-cited research on the funding status and accounting methods for public sector retirement systems.
Christensen holds an M.S. in Public Policy from Pepperdine University and a B.S. in Political Science from Brigham Young University.
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Pension Reform News: Flaws in Pennsylvania proposal, voters approve increase in Texas, and more
Plus: Pension obligation bonds in Dallas, Ohio's defined contribution plans, Michigan's model for reducing debt, and more.
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Pension Reform News: $1.3 trillion in state pension debt, shortsighted calls for divesting, and more
Plus: Ohio teacher retirement system vulnerable to market downturn, defined benefit plan unlikely to cure Alaska's woes, and more.
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Ohio’s teacher retirement reforms are working well, but more needed
The Pension Integrity Project finds approximately 75% of STRS’ unfunded liabilities can be attributed to interest on pension debt that has accrued since 2001.
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Examining calls to bring back Alaska’s defined benefit pensions
Bringing back Alaska's defined benefit pensions would be unlikely to improve retention or recruitment but could add $9 billion in unfunded liabilities.
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Pension Reform News: State pension debt forecast, risky public equity investments, and more
Plus: Texas passes another pension reform, authority and control over public retirement plans, and more.
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Pension Reform News: California divestment bill fails, Milwaukee tax increase, and more
Plus: Study finds many state workers lose out on retirement contributions made by employers.
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Florida strengthens retirement plan but also increases taxpayers’ burden and rolls back pension reforms
Gov. Ron DeSantis recently signed Senate Bill 7024, which makes several changes to the Florida Retirement System, the state’s retirement plan for government workers.
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Pension Reform News: Examining Montana and Florida pension changes, teacher compensation, and more
Plus: Analysis projects private equity drag on 2023 public pension returns and more.
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Increases to contribution rate improve the long-term viability of Florida’s defined contribution plan
Florida policymakers should continue to seek reforms that strengthen the Investment Plan and reduce the risks of public pension debt.
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Pension Reform News: Florida increases contributions, recruiting and retaining teachers, and more
Plus: Improving Florida's defined contribution plan, higher education pension blueprint, and more.
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Pension Reform News: ESG divestment lawsuit, fiduciary principles, and more
Plus: North Dakota's landmark pension reform, potential increased costs in Alaska, and more.
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Webinar—Can investing public pension assets to further nonfinancial goals be consistent with fiduciary principles?
The exclusive purpose of investing pension assets must be to provide pension benefits.
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Senate Bill 88 would expose Alaska to potentially higher pension costs
Senate Bill 88 would likely cost Alaska more than $8 billion in the coming decades.
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House Bill 22 and Senate Bill 35 threaten Alaska’s budgets
HB 22 and SB 35 would likely cost Alaska upwards of $800 million in the coming decades.
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Senate Bill 11 would bring public pension risk back to Alaska
SB 11 would likely cost Alaska $9 billion in the coming decades.
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Pension Reform News: Public pension bills in Texas, Alaska, Montana, and more
A move to undo pension reforms in Texas and Alaska, plus how pension costs crowd out other services.
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Comparing Alaska’s defined benefit and defined contribution retirement plans
Most of Alaska’s public employees would be better served in the existing defined contribution plan.
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Pension Reform News: Modeling pension changes and costs, Alaska’s rollback of reform, and more
Plus: A pension bill in Montana, retirement benefits aren't priority for young public workers, SECURE Act 2.0 improvements, and more.
