Members Elect New Trustees in 2015 LASERS Board Election

Five member representatives were re-elected to the LASERS Board of Trustees in the 2015 election.

Re-elected active incumbents are Thomas Bickham, Undersecretary of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections, Judge William T. Kleinpeter of the City Court of Port Allen, and Shannon S. Templet, former Director of the Department of State Civil Service and now Director of Human Resources of the House of Representatives.

Retired LASERS members elected two candidates: Virginia Burton, retired from the Louisiana Department of Revenue; and Lorry Simmons Trotter, retired from Louisiana State University. Both previously served as Trustees on the LASERS Board.

For more information on the newly elected Trustees, please visit our website.

Thank you for participating in this election. The next LASERS Board of Trustees Election will take place in 2017.

LASERS Board Elects New Chair and Vice Chair, Re-elected Trustees Sworn In

                    

                             Shannon Templet,
                            LASERS Board Chair

Kathy Singleton,
LASERS Vice Chair

The LASERS Board of Trustees unanimously elected Shannon Templet and Kathy Singleton as new Chair and Vice Chair, respectively, at its February meeting.

Shannon Templet, Director of the State Department of Civil Service, will lead the LASERS Board as Chair. Templet has served as an active member Trustee since 2012. She most recently chaired the Management Committee of the LASERS Board.

Kathy Singleton, retired from the Department of Social Services, will serve as the new Vice Chair. Singleton previously served three terms as an active member, holding the positions of Board Chair and Chair of the Management and Legislative Committees. She is beginning her second term as a retiree member.

LASERS Executive Director Cindy Rougeou said, “We are fortunate to have Shannon Templet and Kathy Singleton as Trustees. Their leadership skills and dedication to LASERS will certainly serve our members well in 2014.”

Re-elected Trustees in the 2013 LASERS Board Election took their oath of office at the February meeting. Beverly Palmer Hodges, Judge William Kleinpeter, Janice Lansing, Lori Pierce, and Kathy Singleton were re-elected by LASERS members in October. The 13-member policy-making Board has fiduciary oversight over LASERS.

LASERS provides a defined benefit pension plan that covers approximately 150,000 members. LASERS pays over $1 billion in annual benefits to retirees and their beneficiaries, providing a strong and reliable economic stimulus for Louisiana.

LASERS Board Urges Legal Clarification of Cash Balance Plan

Baton Rouge- At its June board meeting, the Louisiana State Employees’ Retirement System (LASERS) Board of Trustees considered implications of the cash balance plan created by Act 483 of the 2012 Legislative Session. The cash balance plan will apply to certain employees hired in non-hazardous duty positions after July 1, 2013. Given the implementation delay, the Board recognized the opportunity to clarify important questions about Social Security and tax consequences.

Therefore, the Board voted to urge the Division of Administration on behalf of the State, as the employer for state employees, to seek a determination from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) of the Social Security equivalency of the new cash balance plan. Since LASERS members do not participate in Social Security, it is critical to determine whether the cash balance plan offers a benefit to all members that is adequate to maintain the current exemption from Social Security.

The Board also voted to seek a determination from the IRS as to whether the cash balance plan will jeopardize the tax qualified status of the existing defined benefit plan. Plan status determines whether contributions and earnings are taxable and if distributions are eligible for rollover into another tax-qualified vehicle.

The 12-member policy-making Board of Trustees has fiduciary oversight over LASERS.

Senate Bill 16 Signed into Law

Governor Jindal signed SB 16, now Act 718, which provides for increased educational requirements for LASERS Board of Trustees. Act 718 will become effective August 31, 2012. Trustees will be required to complete four hours of Actuarial Science, two hours of Laws, Rules, and Regulations, two hours of Fiduciary Duty/Ethics, and eight hours of Investments.


Stay up to date on the 2012 Legislative Session by checking the LASERS website daily.