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