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 Newsletter — April 2019
Analysis of Texas’ proposed pension reform, public employees are living longer than previously assumed, and more.
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Analysis of Texas Senate Bill 12 and Its Impacts on Texas Teacher Pension Solvency
The cost of the pension plan is proving to be more expensive than previously anticipated, and higher annual contributions will be necessary to fully fund the retirement benefits that have been promised to Texas teachers.
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Pension Reform Newsletter — March 2019
Protecting teachers' pensions in Texas, Kansas considers a costly change, and more.
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Texas Cities Take on More Pension Risk than the Rest of the Country
Taking more risks in asset allocation may pay off in some years, but also exposes pension funds to the possibility of major losses.
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Fort Worth Employees Vote for Meaningful Pension Reform
The changes to Fort Worth’s public pension plan focus on adjustments to both contributions and benefits.
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Pension Reform Newsletter — February 2019
Analysis of Georgia’s proposed pension reform, recommendations for saving Pennsylvania’s pensions, and more.
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Pension Reform Newsletter — January 2019
Fort Worth proposes pension reform, examining divestment activism in pension policy, and more.
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Fort Worth Takes Steps Toward Meaningful Pension Reform
The proposed changes could be a major step towards protecting the retirement security of Fort Worth’s police, fire, and other government workers.
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Pension Reform Newsletter — December 2018
California’s rising taxes linked to rising pension costs, pension woes contribute to Vermont credit rating downgrade, and more.
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Unfunded Liabilities Are Forcing Texas TRS Pension Contributions Ever Higher
The Teacher Retirement System (TRS) of Texas’ amortization payments have grown since 2003 and take up an increasing amount of teacher and state contributions.
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Texas TRS: Examining the 7.25 Percent Assumed Rate of Return
Adopting a more realistic projection of investment returns and the estimated value of pension benefits is important to ensuring Texas will uphold promises made to teachers.
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Teacher Retirement System of Texas: Why 80 Percent Funded Is Not Enough
TRS has at least $35.4 billion in pension debt, and billions more if the pension plan’s assumptions are wrong.
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How the Texas Teacher Retirement System’s Unfunded Liability Grew to $35.4 Billion
The key factors driving growth in TRS’ unfunded liability.
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Pension Solvency Overview: Teacher Retirement System (TRS) Of Texas
The Teacher Retirement System of Texas reported an unfunded pension liability of $35.4 billion in 2017.
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Pension Reform Newsletter — November 2018
Michigan looks to bolster retirement security for police, privatization doesn’t orphan public pensions, and more.
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Privatization Doesn’t Orphan Public Pension Systems
Members leaving a pension plan add nothing to a plan’s unfunded liabilities since no additional pension “liability” can accrue for work not undertaken.
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Pension Reform Newsletter — October 2018
Local struggles with growing pension costs, New Jersey pension funding pro-Trump tabloid, and more.
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Pension Reform Newsletter — September 2018
Georgia’s teacher retirement plan facing risk, California pension crisis hits disadvantaged students, and more.
