November 2020
Texas' 87th Legislative Session
Begins Jan. 12, 2021
BLOG POST - Texas' 87th Legislative Session begins at noon on Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2021.

The Texas Legislature meets in regular session on the second Tuesday in January of each odd-numbered year. It limits its regular session to 140 calendar days. 

Public pension fund trustees and administrators tracking this year's session activity should familiarize themselves with additional dates of importance.

www.texpers.blogspot.com
State Lawmakers Prefile 548 Bills
BLOG POST - Texas legislators got their first chance to file legislation for the state's 87th legislative session on Nov. 9, and it was a record-breaking start to prefiling.

www.texpers.blogspot.com
TEXPERS on Social Media
TEXPERS is active on our Facebook social media channel, @TEXPERS. Click the image below to see one of our most recent posts that may share with your public pension fund's active and retired members.
Membership Magazine
The fourth and final edition of TEXPERS Pension Observer for 2020 was released last month. Due to pandemic social distancing recommendations, TEXPERS' membership magazine has been produced digitally only. However, expanded editions of the magazine have been created for our members. If you missed most recent edition, Vol. 4, in your email box, here it is.

Click here or on the magazine cover at left to access your digital flipbook.
Want to Advertise in TEXPERS'
Membership Magazine? Here's How!
TEXPERS' quarterly publication, Pension Observer, resumes production early in 2021. We have advertising packages you will want to take advantage of before they expire. Click here to see our 2021 Rate Sheet.
Mark Your Calendar
Texas & U.S. Public Pensions
Fund's Executive Director Says its Asset Allocation is "on a Journey"
In webpost for Institutional Investor's II Network, Cheryl Alston, executive director and CIO of Employees' Retirement Fund of the City of Dallas, is profilled.

www.iinetworks.com
Labor Department Readies Cybersecurity Guidance Package
NEWS - Plan sponsors and record keepers can expect to soon see guidance from the Department of Labor concerning cybersecurity best practices

www.pionline.com
Site may require subscription to access article.
IPPFA Asks Pension Trustee to Forward this Survey to Retiremed Members
SURVEY - The Illinois Public Pension Fund Association is looking for police and fire retirees to participate in an online survey.

The IPPFA is researching the topic of public safety retirees "second careers" and will add this subject to future training sessions and modules in its PSfit educational program. To assist, the organization is asking retirees to participate in a brief survey.

www.ippfa.org
Education, Research, and Studies
Video Highlights New Research Paper's Tips on Closing Public Pension Funding Gaps
RESEARCH - A new research paper from the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems, “Ten Ways to Close Public Pension Funding Gaps,” offers practical, common-sense solutions to counteract ill-advised quick fixes. The paper describes alternative approaches that public pension systems and their government relations team should consider, understand, and bring up in discussions, debates, and negotiations.

Click the image above to watch a video about the report, or click here to access the recording.
Texas Plans Among those Listed in Data Chart of October 2020 Return Assumptions
CHART - The National Association of State Retirement Administrators releases latest investment return assumptions for October 2020.

www.nasra.org
Does Late-Career Nontraditional Work Improve Retirement Security?
BRIEF - The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College released a new Issue Brief regarding the impact of late-career nontraditional work on retirement security.

The brief's key finding are:

  • Nontraditional jobs lack health and retirement benefits, but could help older workers prolong their careers by offering more flexibility and less stress.
  • The questions are whether workers in traditional jobs at 62 who are underprepared for retirement are more likely to switch to nontraditional work, and whether it helps.
  • The results show no evidence that they are more likely to switch.
  • But, those who do switch close much of the gap in their retirement security by age 68, suggesting nontraditional jobs are a viable option.

www.crr.bc.edu
State & U.S. Economy
Texas Named the Top State for Foreign Direct Investment and Free Trade
NEWS RELEASE - Governor Greg Abbott issues a statement after Site Selection Magazine named Texas the top state for foreign direct investment projects and the top Free Trade Zone state in the country.

www.gov.texas.gov
Experts Discuss Senate Bill to De-list Foreign Companies That Fail to Allow Full Inspection of Their Audited Financial for Last Three Years
WEBINAR - On Oct, 27, 2020, the National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems hosted a webinar with Rosen Law Firm.

This webinar discussed: Chinese companies’ lack of transparency, and why the Senate has recently passed a bill mandating that foreign companies be de-listed if they fail to allow full inspection of their audited financials going back 3 years.

Click the image above or here to view a recording.
Retirement
The Technologies that Could Transform Ageing
NEWS - Providing a growing older generation with a dignified and independent life means doing more with less – and governments and industry are looking to cutting-edge technology to help.

www.bbc.com
Retirement has become more frustrating than a Rubik’s Cube. Here’s how to solve the puzzle
OPINION - Government needs to address healthcare and housing costs and make individual savings a priority.

www.marketwatch.com
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About Us 
The Texas Association of Public Employee Retirement Systems (TEXPERS) is a statewide voluntary nonprofit association that provides education and legislative advisory services to the trustees, administrators, professional service providers and employee groups that manage the retirement money of police, firefighters, municipal and district employees in cities across Texas.