The Public Fund Survey is an online compendium of key characteristics of most of the nation’s largest public retirement systems. The Survey is sponsored by the National Association of State Retirement Administrators.

Beginning with fiscal year 2001, the Survey contains data on public retirement systems that provide pension and other benefits for 12.6 million active (working) members and 8.5 million annuitants (those receiving a regular benefit, including retirees, disabilitants and surviving beneficiaries). At the end of fiscal year 2014, systems in the Survey held assets of $3.19 trillion. The membership and assets of systems included in the Survey comprise approximately 85 percent of the entire state and local government retirement system community. Beginning in FY 13, survey data has been compiled primarily by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College.

The primary source of Survey data is public retirement system annual financial reports. Data also is culled from actuarial valuations, benefits guides, system websites, and input from system representatives. The Survey is updated continuously as new information, particularly annual financial reports, becomes available. This report focuses on FY 14. Using graphs, this summary describes changes in selected elements of the survey.

Public Fund Survey

House Bill 899 – PERS Technical Amendments Bill – has passed the full Senate. Please do not make any more calls to the Senate today regarding this bill. If any issues arise when the bill goes back to the House of Representatives for concurrence or if the bill goes to conference, notice will be provided.

House Bill 899 includes various technical amendments, many of which the PERS Board of Trustees has requested since 2012. See the attached unofficial summary of the bill prepared by MRPEA.

Summary of House Bill 899 (2016) as passed by Senate Finance Committee

According to PERS Executive Director Pat Robertson, Senator Sally Doty will bring PERS’ technical amendments bill (House Bill 899) before the Mississippi Senate either Tuesday, March 29 or Wednesday, March 30, and PERS has requested support in helping get this bill passed.

House Bill 899 includes various technical amendments, many of which the PERS Board of Trustees has requested since 2012. See the attached unofficial summary of the bill prepared by MRPEA.

Summary of House Bill 899 (2016) as passed by Senate Finance Committee

Interested individuals can help PERS get these technical amendments passed by contacting their senator before March 29 and letting him or her know they support this bill.

Greetings!

I pray this message finds you doing well.

Our first MRPEA Day at the Capitol March 9 was a great success, not only in making an impression on members of the Legislature, but also in making contact with other potential members who were visting the Capitol that day! The event, a first for us, was designed to make sure our legislators know who we are and that we passionately support the Public Employees’ Retirement System of Mississippi (PERS). Our Legislative Committee members did a fabulous job in planning and preparing for the day and a special thank you goes to Legislative Committee Chairman Ed LeGrand and MRPEA Vice President Ann Thames, who led the way on this event. MRPEA Day at the Capitol went so well that we already have a date – February 8, 2017 – reserved for next year.

As Legislative Committee chairman, Mr. LeGrand sent letters to all members of the Legislature prior to the Day at the Capitol, thanking them for their service and support of our retirement benefits and inviting them to join MRPEA. Fortunately, no adverse legislation is currently pending before the Mississippi Legislature this session; however, we are keeping a watchful eye and will alert our members if we become aware of any harmful legislation.

The MRPEA Board of Director’s Organizational Review Committee, chaired by Ann Homer Cook, continues to review the overall structure of MRPEA. They are researching potential membership software options, seeking input from long-term board members, and meeting to share ideas to enhance the operation of MRPEA. The Committee’s recommendations are anticipated for the Board’s April meeting.

We recently had quite a few membership renewals and gained some new memberships, perhaps in part due to our attendance at PERS seminars across the state during the past year. Thank you to the Membership Committee, chaired by Howell Garner, and other board members for continuing to promote MRPEA.

Dr. Doss Brodnax, MRPEA district director from Starkville, recently submitted his resignation. Dr. Brodnax has done a wonderful job for many years, and we are sorry to see him go. As a result of his resignation, there is a need to fill the district director position to represent Attala, Calhoun, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Clay, Lowndes, Monroe, Montgomery, Noxubee, Oktibbeha, Webster, and Winston counties. We also have a district director vacancy for Hinds, Madison, Rankin, Warren, and Yazoo counties due to the resignation of Mrs. Hilda Westbrook earlier this year; however, we will wait to fill that vacancy until after the Organizational Review Committee has completed its assessment of the districts.

We were deeply saddened by the passing of Mr. Bill Rieves of Tupelo February 27. Mr. Rieves served for many years after his retirement on the MRPEA Board of Directors.

The Board of Directors will meet again April 11, and we will provide you with an update on that meeting as well as the status of legislation in the next newsletter, which should be mailed in late April or early May. Until then, please look for us on Facebook and Instagram. I encourage you to share posts and let others know about the good work of MRPEA.

Best,

Becky Cade, MRPEA President

The following PERS-sponsored bills remain under active consideration by the Mississippi Legislature during the 2016 Regular Session and are currently assigned to the Senate Finance Committee. Tues., Mar. 22 is the deadline for the Senate Finance Committee to take action on these bills.

House Bill 880 – Huddleston (15th) – Changes the number of years required to vest in PERS from eight years to four years for all members of PERS, regardless of the date upon which they became a member.

House Bill 899 – Huddleston (15th) – Makes numerous technical amendments to PERS law. Reference the attached unofficial summary of House Bill 899 prepared by MRPEA.

Summary of House Bill 899 (2016) as passed by the House of Representatives

House Bill 903 – Huddleston (15th) – Defines certain terms and clarifies investment options under the Government Employees’ Deferred Compensation Plan law and clarifies the administration of the Mississippi Deferred Compensation Plan and Trust, as well as the administration of any other deferred compensation plan authorized under the applicable law.

Other PERS-related bills of potential interest that remain under active consideration by the Mississippi Legislature during the 2016 Regular Session are listed below.

House Bill 114 – Gunn – Renames the PERS building the “Timothy Alan (Tim) Ford Building”

Senate Bill 2161 – Tollison – Authorizes charter schools to join PERS in order to allow charter school employees to participate in PERS.

Senate Bill 2260 – Parks – Requires forfeiture of benefits for any member convicted of a job-related felony.

Senate Concurrent Resolution 575 – McDaniel – Requests PERS to conduct a study of SLRP to determine the feasibility of closing or allowing members to opt out.

According to the National Association of State Retirement Administrators (NASRA), on a nationwide basis, pension contributions made by state and local governments account for roughly 4.1 percent of direct general spending. Current pension spending levels, however, vary widely and are sufficient for some entities and insufficient for others. The brief is available at the link below.

According to the National Association of State Retirement Administrators (NASRA), the average real rate of return among plans in the Public Fund Survey has risen since FY 01, from approximately 4.25 percent to 4.60 percent. NASRA reports that this has occurred as a result of some plans that have reduced their inflation assumption without changing their nominal investment return assumption; or reductions in inflation assumptions by an amount greater than they have reduced their nominal assumption; or both. Read the full, updated issue brief by clicking on the link below.

NASRA Issue Brief: Public Pension Plan Investment Return Assumptions

The Public Employees’ Retirement System of Mississippi (PERS) will mail ballots, biographical information, and candidate statements Mar. 8 to eligible voters for a runoff election to determine the new PERS Board of Trustees public school and community/junior college employee representative.

The candidates in the runoff are incumbent Dr. Edward Lee Childress, Corinth Public School District superintendent, and Billy Wayne Folkes, Lamar County School District director of student services. Votes must be cast by mail, phone, or online by 5 p.m. Apr. 8. Instructions on the voting process are on the ballot.

The election schedule and a sample ballot are available on the PERS website, www.pers.ms.gov.

The 10-member Board includes the State Treasurer, a gubernatorial appointee who is a member of PERS, two PERS retirees, two state employees, and one representative each of public schools and community colleges, Institutions of Higher Learning, counties, and municipalities. With the exception of the State Treasurer and the gubernatorial appointee, board members are elected to staggered six-year terms.

The following PERS-related bills remain under active consideration by the Mississippi Legislature during the 2016 Regular Session. Thurs., Mar. 3 is the deadline for action on general bills.

House Bill 114 – Philip Gunn – Renames the PERS building the “Timothy Alan (Tim) Ford Building”

House Bill 880 – Huddleston (15th) – Changes the number of years required to vest in PERS from eight years to four years for all members of PERS, regardless of the date upon which they became a member. This is a PERS-sponsored bill.

House Bill 899 – Huddleston (15th) – Makes numerous technical amendments to PERS law. This is a PERS-sponsored bill. Reference the attached unofficial summary of House Bill 899 prepared by MRPEA.

Summary of House Bill 899 (2016) as passed by House Appropriations

House Bill 903 – Huddleston (15th) – Defines certain terms and clarifies investment options under the Government Employees’ Deferred Compensation Plan law and clarifies the administration of the Mississippi Deferred Compensation Plan and Trust, as well as the administration of any other deferred compensation plan authorized under the applicable law. This is a PERS-sponsored bill.

Senate Bill 2161 – Gray Tollison – Authorizes charter schools to join PERS in order to allow charter school employees to participate in PERS.

Senate Bill 2260 – Rita Parks – Requires forfeiture of benefits for any member convicted of a job-related felony.

Senate Bill 2362 – Clarke – Provides that all special fund agencies, including PERS, will be funded through General Fund appropriation.

Senate Concurrent Resolution 575 – McDaniel – Requests PERS to conduct a study of SLRP to determine the feasibility of closing or allowing members to opt out.

The Public Employees’ Retirement System of Mississippi (PERS) is sponsoring House Bill 899, which, if enacted, would make numerous technical clarifications and administrative amendments to PERS law. Many of the proposed amendments seek to clarify the law to conform with current regulations. Click the link below for a summary of House Bill 899 as it passed House Appropriations Feb. 17. This unofficial summary was prepared by MRPEA.

Summary of House Bill 899 (2016) as passed by House Appropriations

The deadline for the full House to take action on House Bill 899 is Thurs. Mar. 3. Questions regarding PERS-sponsored legislation should be directed to PERS at 601-359-3589 or 800-444-7377.