Topics & Report

              Retirement Security for Illinois Educators
topics &
report
Teachers’ Retirement System of the State of Illinois
Winter 2011-12
Investment Returns
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SB 512
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Senate Bill 512 Proposes Benefit and Funding Changes
Throughout the summer and fall, TRS Executive Director
Dick Ingram was heavily engaged in lengthy and detailed
discussions over the future of legislation that would
change the pension financing and benefit structure for
active TRS members.
The proposal, Senate Bill 512, is pending in the General
Assembly. The summertime discussions among state
legislators, TRS officials, organized labor and other inter-ested
parties resulted in several changes to the original
concept, changes that were approved by a House com-mittee
in November. The next opportunity for further
action on the bill will be during the annual general ses-sion,
which convenes in January 2012.
The central provisions of Senate Bill 512 were retained by
the bill’s sponsors. The legislation still allows teachers to
accrue benefits from the existing benefit structure up
through June 30, 2013 and guarantees these earned ben-efits
will be paid. Teachers would have to select a new
Fiscal Year 2011 Has 23.6% TRS Investment Rate of Return
Fiscal year 2011, which ended on
June 30, saw near-record level
investment returns for Teachers’
Retirement System. Total TRS invest-ment
assets totaled $37.4 billion at
the end of June, a 19 percent increase
over the assets held by TRS at the
end of fiscal year 2010, $31 billion.
The TRS investment rate of return
for the 12-month per iod was
23.6 percent, net of fees.
“TRS investments had a spectacu-lar
year and were way above our
target rate of return of 8.5 percent.
All of our asset classes performed
well,” said TRS Executive Director
Dick Ingram. “While this is good
news for our members, we are very
aware that with the volatile state of
the world economy, returns of this
magnitude will not happen every
year. TRS will continue to focus
on steady, long-term investment
returns. The relationships we have
with our members last decades and
our policies have to match these
long-term needs.”
Ingram noted that over the last 30
years, the TRS investment rate of
return was 9.9 percent, which also
exceeds the target rate.
In all, total TRS revenues during fis-cal
year 2011 were $10.470 billion:
$7.235 billion in investment income,