[11][12] In an effort to reduce this shortfall, at the end of 2016 the board lowered their expected annual rate of return on investments from 7.5% to 7.0%, increasing the costs California cities must pay toward their workers' pensions.

[16] In 1939, the state Legislature passed a bill that allowed local public agencies (such as cities, counties, and school districts) to participate in SERS.

[16] The "first major new benefit for SERS members," health insurance, began in 1962 with the passage of a law that was later amended to become the "Public Employees' Medical and Hospital Care Act".

[20] Wilson further sought to give the governor's office control of the PERS’ actuarial projections and the appointment of a majority of its board of directors.

[19] In 1999, the CalPERS board proposed a benefits expansion that would allow public employees to retire at age 55 and collect more than half their highest salary for life.

[19] CalPERS predicted the benefits would require no increase in the State's contributions by projecting an average annual return of 8.25% over the next decade.

[19] The benefits expansion bill, SB 400, passed with unanimous backing by California State Assembly Democrats and was signed into law by Governor Gray Davis.

[19] CalPERS then produced a video promoting the legislation with Chairman Crist promising greater benefits "without imposing any additional cost on the taxpayers" and the California State Employees Association president praising it as "the biggest thing since sliced bread".

[19] In 2001–2002, CalPERS provided technical assistance for the Sarbanes-Oxley Act because it had sustained financial losses from the Enron and WorldCom bankruptcies.

[19] Chairman Crist retired from the board and it was later revealed he had accepted more than $800,000 from a firm to ensure hundreds of millions of investment from CalPERS.

[22][23] The architecture of the buildings, which received praise, includes an entry tower 90 feet (27 m) high in a shape reminiscent of a tree which is made of steel covered with glass.

[24] In 2012, Governor Jerry Brown signed legislation that reduced benefits for all new state employees and sought to combat pension spiking.

[25] Legislators rejected Governor Brown's proposals to include a 401(k) type defined contribution plan and to require CalPERS Board members to be independent, not themselves pensioners.

[25] Governor Brown promoted the reform as the "biggest rollback to public pension benefits in the history of California", but it only resulted in a 1% to 5% reduction in contribution increases.

[26] Blackstone Group LP announced in November 2015 that it would acquire 43 international and domestic real estate funds from CalPERS for $3 billion.

[28][29] The bill was passed and, effective June 1, 2017, CalPERS was prohibited from maintaining holdings in companies that receive at least half of their revenue from thermal coal.

[39][40][41] The legal authority for the activities of CalPERS can be found in the constitution, laws, and regulations of the state of California, including: CalPERS is overseen by a 13-member Board of Administration whose members are elected, appointed, or ex officio:[46] Notable past Board members have included Caspar Weinberger (1967–1969), Jesse Unruh (1983–1987), Gray Davis (1986–1994), Matt Fong (1995–1998), Kathleen Connell (1995–2003), Phil Angelides (1999–2006), Willie Brown (2000–2005), and Steve Westly (2003–2006).

[16] As of 2017, the current Board members are Rob Feckner (President), Priya Sara Mathur, Michael Bilbrey, John Chiang, Richard Costigan, Richard Gillihan, JJ Jelincic, Henry Jones (Vice President), Ron Lind, Betty Yee, Bill Slaton, Teresa Taylor and Dana Hollinger.

[65] Beginning in the 1980s,[67] and especially in the early 1990s under the pioneering leadership of CEO Dale Hanson,[68] CalPERS has used its influence as one of the largest shareholders in the world to change the way certain things[which?]

[127] The studies and their use by CalPERS were criticized as follows: Among other "offerings to ensure [its] workers are happy as well as healthy," CalPERS has an onsite Montessori method child care facility,[129] conducts employee surveys every two years, offers a training and wellness program, and administers a nationally known employee recognition program.

Member contribution rates are set by statute and can vary by membership category (miscellaneous or safety) and by benefit formula.

[136] With the passage of Assembly Bill 340 (AB 340), the pension reform legislation by the California Legislature, CalPERS members hired after January 1, 2013, are expected to pay 50 percent of the Total Normal Cost of the benefit plan in which they participate.

[141] However, if an employer seeks to leave CalPERS, it will be required to immediately payoff the undisclosed current market value of the unfunded liabilities, which only assumes 2.56% growth.

[141] At a 2011 legislative hearing, Governor Jerry Brown called CalPERS asserted reliance on bringing in new members "a Ponzi scheme".

First, in the mid-1990s and again in the mid-2000s there were concerns about inappropriate industrial disability retirement for public safety personnel, including:[156][157] Second, "a 1980 state law that tied public safety officers' disability benefits to the age at which they were hired" caused an age discrimination complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in 1992 which eventually led to a 1995 class action lawsuit against CalPERS and other state and local agencies.

[165][166][167] Meanwhile, the number of participating plans dropped to seven as of 2003,[166] and "more than two dozen cities, counties and school districts" (representing 4% of membership) left CalPERS as of 2004 because of high medical insurance rates.

[171] In 2019, CalPERS provided more than $9.2 billion in health benefits for 1.5 million active and retired state, public agency, and school workers and their dependents.

[6] Therefore, it was the nation's second largest public purchaser of health benefits,[6] behind the FEHBP which covered "about 8 million federal employees, retirees, and their dependents".

[6] Enrollees can join three types of plans:[172] California's "Public Employees' Long-Term Care Act," as passed in 1990 and amended in 1996, led to CalPERS' administering a Long-Term Care Program for "California public employees and retirees, as well as their spouses, parents, parents-in-law, adult children and adult siblings between the ages of 18 and 79.

[3] A summary of plan types and a five-year historical participant count are available online in the CalPERS Comprehensive Annual Financial Report.