Bill Text: TX HR281 | 2015-2016 | 84th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Expressing support for the continuation of a defined benefit plan for retired participants in the Teacher Retirement System of Texas.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2015-02-12 - Referred to Pensions [HR281 Detail]
Download: Texas-2015-HR281-Introduced.html
84R2449 BK-D | ||
By: Keffer | H.R. No. 281 |
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WHEREAS, Established through an amendment to the Texas | ||
Constitution in 1936, the Teacher Retirement System of Texas | ||
provides for the well-being of retired employees of public | ||
education institutions in the state; and | ||
WHEREAS, TRS delivers lifetime retirement benefits to | ||
retired school personnel in the form of a defined benefit plan; | ||
through this plan, a participant's monthly pension is calculated | ||
based on the person's age at retirement, years of service, and | ||
highest average salary, rather than the balance in the individual's | ||
account; funds are managed by investment professionals to protect | ||
against market fluctuations; and | ||
WHEREAS, An alternative that has been offered--a defined | ||
contribution plan--would require TRS participants to make payments | ||
into a retirement account, with possible contributions from their | ||
school districts, and to take responsibility for investment | ||
decisions while assuming the risks that investing entails; this | ||
places an added burden on participants that can lead to greater | ||
uncertainty, as their pension funds are vulnerable to unfavorable | ||
market conditions; moreover, instituting a defined contribution | ||
plan would eliminate the protection that TRS currently grants, | ||
since benefits would cease if a retiree's account balance were | ||
depleted; and | ||
WHEREAS, The proposed defined contribution model does not | ||
allow for any beneficiary coverage and might not allow any | ||
insurance plans; of the 330,000 retirement recipients served by | ||
TRS, only a small percentage worked in a school system that paid | ||
into social security at any time in their careers, and the choice of | ||
school districts to forgo social security benefits was made with | ||
the expectation that the state would safeguard employees' | ||
retirement assets; and | ||
WHEREAS, Most retired teachers did not earn large sums of | ||
money during their working careers, but rather worked for the love | ||
of teaching; for a great majority of these men and women, the | ||
monthly annuity from TRS is the only source of funds; were these | ||
retirees to outlive their benefits under a defined contribution | ||
plan, they would be left with no means of replacing the lost income; | ||
and | ||
WHEREAS, Recognizing the significance of this issue to the | ||
interests of older Texans, the 15th Texas Silver Haired Legislature | ||
has adopted a resolution endorsing the continuation of the TRS | ||
defined benefit plan; and | ||
WHEREAS, Teachers play a proud and vital role in nurturing | ||
the leaders of tomorrow, and after many years of service, they | ||
deserve all the security and peace of mind that the State of Texas | ||
can offer them; the defined benefit plan administered by the | ||
Teacher Retirement System remains the most reasonable option to | ||
provide this assurance to the educators of Texas, and it is | ||
imperative that it receive the state's full support; now, | ||
therefore, be it | ||
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 84th Texas | ||
Legislature hereby affirm its support for the defined benefit plan | ||
for retired participants of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas; | ||
and, be it further | ||
RESOLVED, That the chief clerk of the house forward official | ||
copies of this resolution to the executive director and the board of | ||
trustees of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas. |