SPRINGFIELD, IL – The Teachers’ Retirement System Board of Trustees today approved the engagement of Aksia, LLC as its consultant to help the System’s investment staff administer potential investments in the private debt/credit sector of the $11.9 billion Income Portfolio.

The contract with Aksia will be for five years. The firm is the first consultant for the System dedicated to private debt/credit opportunities.

During the Board’s regularly-scheduled August meeting, the following actions within the $51.3 billion TRS investment portfolio were reported:

SPRINGFIELD, IL – Teachers’ Retirement System has committed more than $575 million to various investment opportunities; all designed to advance the mission of TRS on behalf of its 412,000 members.

During a regularly scheduled meeting of the TRS Board of Trustees, the System’s investment staff reported the following actions:

SPRINGFIELD, IL – The Teachers’ Retirement System Board of Trustees has given final approval to a $4.466 billion state contribution to the System for fiscal year 2019.

The FY 2019 state contribution falls short of the amount of money that actuaries calculate would “fully fund” the cost of TRS pensions during the year. The FY 2019 contribution is $2.9 billion below the full funding amount of $7.4 billion.

SPRINGFIELD, IL – The Teachers’ Retirement System Board of Trustees has given preliminary approval to a $4.466 billion state contribution to the System for fiscal year 2019, a 9.05 percent increase over the current year’s contribution.

Adhering to recently enacted state laws, the trustees also revised the FY 2018 state contribution for TRS upwards from $4.034 billion to $4.095 billion. In August a new state law shifted more of the pension costs of federally-funded teachers’ salaries from local school districts to state government.

SPRINGFIELD, IL – Teachers’ Retirement System investments generated a positive 12.6 percent rate of return, net of fees, during fiscal year 2017 – a return that exceeded the System’s custom investment benchmark of 11.4 percent.

TRS ended FY 2017 on June 30 with $49.4 billion in assets. Gross of fees, the TRS return for FY 2017 was 13.3 percent. Total investment income, net of fees, was $5.5 billion. The 30-year investment return for TRS currently is 8.1 percent, net of fees, which exceeds the System’s long-term investment goal of 7 percent.

Springfield, IL - Teachers’ Retirement System has begun the complicated process of creating a new Tier 3 “hybrid” benefit structure for future members, in compliance with a new state law enacted in July by the General Assembly.

Based on preliminary planning conducted over the last few months, TRS anticipates that the earliest date that Tier 3 may be implemented for members is July 1, 2019. The TRS Board will establish the final implementation date of the Tier 3 plan.

SPRINGFIELD, IL – The Teachers’ Retirement System Board of Trustees this week reduced the State of Illinois’ annual funding contribution to the System for fiscal year 2018 by $530.8 million; reluctantly adhering to a new law that changes the statutory pension funding formula.

The revised state contribution for TRS is now $4.034 billion. The previous FY 2018 contribution, certified by the TRS Board last October, was $4.564 billion.