Most of the financial advisers at firms that I invest with are increasingly consistent in predicting that the likely prospects for the US economy over the next 3-5 years are a slow, flat growth of about 1.5 - 2.5% and real interest rates unlikely to exceed 1%.  The PERS investments would have to be extraordinary to average the predicted returns of 7.75% over the same time period.  It has become increasingly apparent over the last few years that the Oregon Supreme Court in unlikely to back any legislative actions to rein in the near term obligations of the system.  Perhaps the only hope is that the government agencies enrolled in PERS would  at least have the fortitude to quit paying the employees contributions to the system as many of them currently do.  At least this might offer some relief for the tax payers that depend on the services from these parts of local government.