By: Russ Kamp, CEO, Ryan ALM, Inc.

Like clockwork, Milliman has released its monthly Milliman 100 Pension Funding Index (PFI), that analyzes the 100 largest U.S. corporate pension plans, and for the first time in 11-months, the collective funded ratio for this cohort failed to advance.

Investment returns for the constituents in this index fell -3.33% causing assets for PFI members to collectively fall to $1.3 trillion. Unfortunately, a 32-basis-point increasein the discount rate was not enough to offset asset depreciation. The discount rate at 5.65% caused the present value of liabilities to fall to $1.2 trillion. As a result, the funded ratio marginally declined from 109.3% as of February 28, to 108.9%, as of March 31, 2026.

Despite the recent setback, the index showed a 0.7% improvement in the funded ratio which began 2026 at 108.2%. The 0.7% improvement resulted in a $6 billion funding improvement for the first quarter, as a 19-basis-point rise in the discount rate offset quarterly returns for the index constituents of -0.21%.

“March was the first month of funding level declines in almost a year,” said Zorast Wadia, PFI author. “While funding levels improved overall during the first quarter, it is uncertain how long these gains will last, given current volatility. Surplus management strategies focused on both sides of the balance sheet continue to be prudent.” We, at Ryan ALM, Inc., couldn’t agree more. A cash flow matching (CFM) strategy, designed to carefully match asset cash flows (bond interest and principal) with liability cash flows (benefits and expenses) would bring an element of certainty to the management of defined benefit plans. CFM provides all the liquidity to meet ongoing monthly obligations, while extending the investing horizon for the non-bonds. It also eliminates interest rate risk for that portion of the portfolio using CFM.

View this month’s complete Pension Funding Index.

By: Russ Kamp, CEO, Ryan ALM, Inc.

Good morning. We hope that you had a good holiday weekend.

ARPA is now more than 5-years old (March 11, 2021), and the PBGC continues to plug along implementing this critical pension legislation. We are still waiting to hear how the 80 multiemployer plans on the waitlist that were terminated by Mass Withdrawal before 2020 Plan Year will be treated.

As far as those that are currently going through the process, this week saw one plan added to the waitlist, one plan receive approval for their revised application, and three funds that withdrew initial applications.

Pension Plan of the Automotive Machinists Pension Trust, a non-Priority Group member, is seeking $139 million in SFA through a revised application for their nearly 7,500 plan participants. While the Machinists wait for an answer on their application, the members of the UFCW – Northern California Employers Joint Pension Plan are celebrating the announcement that its revised application has been approved. They will receive nearly $2.6 billion in SFA and interest for their >138k members.

Lastly, Bricklayers and Stonemasons Local Union #2 Pension Plan, Communications Workers Local 1109 Pension Plan, and Local 1430 I.B.E.W. Pension Plan have each withdrawn an initial application seeking SFA. Collectively they are trying to secure $50.2 million for 1,690 pensioners.

Since the PBGC began implementing the ARPA pension legislation in July 2021, more than 18% of the roughly 11 million participants in multiemployer plans have had their promised pension benefits secured. Of the nearly 1,350 multiemployer plans, more than 20% have or will go through the application process to help fund those pension promises. It has been an extraordinary legislative effort.