The MOSERS Board of Trustees met for their annual Board Educational Conference on June 16, 2021, and regular quarterly meeting on June 17, 2021. Since the official minutes of that meeting won't be available until after they are approved at the next quarterly board meeting, we are providing this summary in order to get information to you more quickly. Please watch the video above and read the information below to learn more.

Welcome to this edition of A Moment with MOSERS!

We held our annual Board Educational Conference on Wednesday, June 16, and our regular 2^nd quarter Board meeting on Thursday, June 17.

Our Board Education Conference assists in satisfying the requirement that Board members attend at least six hours of continuing education each year, as described in the MOSERS Governance Manual.

As part of the education component, I provided an update to the Board about our response to the pandemic during the past 14 months. Staff remained available to members by phone and email throughout the pandemic and, in May, we were pleased to reopen our offices to in-person visits and began offering in-person seminars again!

I also provided an overview of how the changing demographics of active state employees impact employer contributions. For example, more than 52% of current active state employees are in the MSEP 2011, meaning they contribute 4% of their pay toward the cost of their future benefit. Next, Cindy Rehmeier, Manager of Defined Contribution Plans, presented information about the College & University Retirement Plan (CURP) and MO Deferred Comp. I'm pleased to report that more than 80% of active state employees participate in MO Deferred Comp! Such personal savings will supplement the retirement income they will receive from MOSERS and Social Security and will ultimately assist in their overall financial security.

The Board also received updates on our strategic plan as well as continuing education on investment benchmarks and the Sunshine Law.

At the next day of meetings, the Board conducted the 2nd quarter Board meeting, on June 17. An important topic at this meeting was the review of actuarial methods and assumptions used in the actuarial valuation process. This review occurs at least every 5 years per state statute. During this review, our independent actuary proposed modifications to our demographic and economic assumptions, most notably, the adoption of new mortality tables, which project, over the long-term, that our members will live longer. After much discussion, the Board adopted the actuary's recommended changes which will work to ensure the long-term sustainability of the plan. Our plan projections have, and continue to indicate, the MSEP employer contribution rate will increase and the funded ratio of the plan will decrease over the next several years. Once the actual plan experience for Fiscal Year 2021 is known and incorporated into the June 30, 2021 actuarial valuation, the Board will certify the Fiscal Year 2023 employer contribution rates at its 3rd quarter Board meeting on September 23. These certified employer contribution rates will be part of the appropriation process during the 2022 legislative session.

I am very pleased to share with you that our CIO, Shannon Davidson, reported to the Board very strong investment returns for Fiscal Year 2021. While we will not have the final investment return numbers until our books are audited after June 30th, we know the investment return for this fiscal year was 17% as of March 31, 2021 and anticipate an ongoing double digit investment return for Fiscal Year 2021!

We wrapped up the Board meeting with a legislative report: The 2021 legislative session ended on May 14. Proposed legislation that would have directly affected MOSERS' statutes did not pass. However, the General Assembly did authorize the appropriation of $505 million to MOSERS for Fiscal Year 2022. This appropriation fully funds the Board-certified employer contribution rate.

Thank you for watching this edition of A Moment with MOSERS. In this life, we only have so many moments, thank you for spending THIS MOMENT with us. Have a great day and enjoy a safe and happy summer!