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Take Action: Public Pensions Aren't up for Pence (or Anyone Else!) to Grab
08/02/2016

In July (prior to his decision to become Donald Trump’s running mate), Gov. Pence introduced a plan to “boost entrepreneurship and innovation” in Indiana that reportedly would cost $1 billion over the next 10 years. Great, right? Not so fast!

Pence’s proposal calls for half of the money to run this program, or $500 million, to come from the Indiana Public Retirement System (INPRS) — Indiana’s public employee retirement program. According to reports, Pence would ask INPRS to invest a portion of its investment funds into early-stage and mid-market Indiana companies.

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It is not acceptable for the retirement assets of Indiana’s public employees to be manipulated to become risked seed money to benefit private companies.

Under Indiana law, the various public employee retirement funds – including the public employee retirement fund (PERF) and teachers’ retirement fund (TRF) – aretrusts overseen by a board of trustees. This board is vested with a fiduciary responsibility that should not be impacted by others — including the governor, his agency heads, nor any other crony.  

And these political figures and agencies certainly should not be given a green light to fund untested projects on the backs of public employees, including public school educators, who are counting on a secure financial future after retirement.

Especially in the wake of inflation-adjusted declining wages and reduced benefits that have been followed by a series of recent changes made to an important part of each PERF and TRF participant’s retirement benefit — their respective annuity benefit — members of these funds are justifiably skeptical about politicians yet again putting their fingerprints on their assets.

In the last two years, interest rates on PERF/TRF annuities were dramatically reduced. And beginning January 2017, those rates will have likely been cut in half during this same time frame. 

The assets of INPRS are not a bucket for politicians to dip into for pet projects and the INPRS board cannot ignore its fiduciary duties. 

If this entrepreneur and innovation plan is such a good idea, then fund it straight up. Indiana has more than a couple billion dollars in surplus. 

Mike Pence may now be on to other pastures, but we may not have seen the last of this idea and public employees -- including educators -- are watching.

Send a message to Steve Russo, executive director for INPRS telling him you won’t accept anyone gambling with your future.

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