Big changes are underway for the Fresno County (Calif.) Employees Retirement Association. The $2.7 billion pension plan has reportedly approved new allocations to hedge funds and private equity funds in hopes of boosting its portfolio’s returns.

According to published reports, the plan’s board allocated 8.7% to hedge funds and boosted its p.e. commitment to 7.1% from 6%. The new allocations are based on an asset-liability study from consultant Wurts & Associates.

“Recent hedge fund performance illustrates correlations to equities has been rising,” according to the study. “Hedge funds performance is lagging a T-Bills +5% benchmark. Given trends in the hedge fund industry, we conclude that 3.5% spread over cash is a reasonable conservative estimation of returns for hedge fund of funds, resulting in forecasted return of 7.5%.”

The study also forecasts a return of 10.7% for private equity over the next 10 years stating, “We expect private equity returns to revert to their historical average of approximately 2.5% over public markets.”