are intended for use over a 10-year horizon and may not be useful in setting the long-term rate of return for funding pension plans which covers a longer timeframe. The assumption is intended to be a long-term assumption and is not expected to change absent a significant change in the asset allocation, a change in the inflation assumption, or a fundamental change in the market that alters expected returns in future years.
The target asset allocation and best estimates of arithmetic nominal rates of return for each major asset class are summarized in the following table:
| Asset Class | Target Allocation | Long-Term Nominal Rate of Return |
|---|---|---|
| Domestic Equity | 30% | 8.45% |
| International Equity | 22% | 8.85% |
| Emerging Market Equity | 5% | 10.5% |
| Private Equity | 7% | 11.25% |
| Real Estate | 5% | 7% |
| Core U.S. Fixed Income | 10% | 5.25% |
| High Yield U.S. Fixed Income | 5% | 7.25% |
| U.S. Fixed Non Income | 5% | 5.5% |
| Commodities | 5% | 7.75% |
| TIPS | 5% | 5% |
| Cash | 1% | 3.25% |
| Total | 100% |
The discount rate used to measure the total pension liability was 7.75%. The projection of cash flows used to determine the discount rate assumed that contributions from plan members and employers will be made at statutory contribution rates. Based on those assumptions, the pension plan's fiduciary net position was projected to be available to make all projected future benefit payment of current active and inactive employees. Therefore, the long-term expected rate of return on pension plan investments was applied to all periods of projected benefit payments to determine the total pension liability.