Funding the Pension Fund

The big news around New Jersey's fiscal status lately has been the lack of funds in the state's pension plan for its public employees. The pension system is now underfunded by $46 billion, up from $34 billion a year earlier. The state has been missing its contributions for years, but the largest problem remains the weak economy.

Consider that in 2008, more than half the state's pension fund was invested in common stocks, but by 2009, the percentage had dipped to 44 percent. The change in asset allocation apparently resulted not from a conscious decision but from the dismal year the equity market had in 2008. (This is one more reminder that your asset allocation can get seriously out of whack now and then through no fault of your own, and should be revisited regularly.)

The pension fund's stock portfolio lost about ten percent of its value in 2008, even though the top investments were all blue chips, headed by Exxon Mobil, Microsoft, Apple, Proctor & Gamble, and Citigroup. Obviously, the best thing for this pension fund, in addition to the state paying money into it, would be for the economy to get roaring again. Not only would this expand the tax base, but a strong bull market - the fund holds around $50 billion in equities - would go a long way toward alleviating the shortfall.