Milliman, Inc., a premier global consulting and actuarial firm, today released a special May edition of its Public Pension Funding Index (PPFI) in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting market volatility. Milliman's PPFI consists of the nation's 100 largest public defined benefit pension plans.

Our latest analysis shows funding for public pensions in May continued to rebound from the first quarter of 2020 with an aggregate investment return of 2.68% for the month, the second month of improvement for these plans after a dismal February and March. In fact, the Milliman PPFI funded ratio has climbed over five percentage points since the end of Q1, increasing from 66% at the end of March to 71.3% as of May 31. We estimate that the aggregate deficit shrank from $1.619 trillion at the end of April 2020 to $1.547 trillion at the end of May 2020, a $72 billion improvement.

"Most sectors of the market continued their recovery in May, providing positive movement for public pensions," said Becky Sielman, author of the Milliman 100 Public Pension Funding Index. "As the economy reopens across the U.S., plan sponsors will continue to monitor asset classes with delayed reporting so as to prepare for any remaining fall-out from Q1's market volatility."

To view the Milliman 100 Public Pension Funding Index, go to http://www.milliman.com/ppfi/. To receive regular updates of Milliman's pension funding analysis, contact us at [email protected].