But cities  and counties can go bankrupt, and that will be PERS's undoing. It's starting to happen in California.

And while we're talking about California, read up on the "California Rule" which was a 1950's court case that ruled pensions, once granted, were "immutable". Just weeks ago, a lower court questioned the rule, and if the California Supreme Court goes along, it could finally unleash real measures to get the Frankenstein that is PERS tied down back in the lab.