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National Public Service Recognition Week – May 5-11

This week marks National Public Service Recognition Week, and the Arizona State Retirement System would like to recognize and thank all our members who have dedicated their work to serving others.

The Other Half: Your Employer's Role in the ASRS

While member contributions go a long way to funding all the benefits the ASRS provides, none of what we provide to members would be possible without contributions from our employer partners: ASRS employers contribute the same percentage as ASRS members for each member they employ!

Contributions from both you and your employer are then pooled together, invested, grown, and used to fund benefits such as a lifetime pension when you retire, Long Term Disability, and more.

The Flexibility of Your ASRS Account

There are currently over 700 employer partners with the ASRS, which consists of a diverse group of public education, state agencies, counties, cities and towns, and more! What does this mean for you? If you leave one ASRS employer for another, your ASRS account will pick up right where you left off.

Enrollment Code

ASRS Highlighted by Top1000Funds.com

Arizona State Retirement System (ASRS) the $50 billion pension fund for some 600,000 public sector employees in America’s Four Corners region, will opportunistically increase both US and international public equity exposure in line with its moderately bullish view on public equities and a new strategic asset allocation that targets 44 per cent of AUM in the asset class. The global public equity allocation is mostly passive in line with a belief in the efficient market hypothesis. However, the investment team does introduce marginal enhancements to index weights and takes advantage of trading opportunities within the tactical asset allocation in what executive director Paul Matson calls “enhanced passive”, that isn’t a fundamental approach but still seeks to add small, incremental returns where possible. The strategy has helped the fund achieve a 10-year return of 8.45 per cent, amongst the top 6 per cent of US public funds.

Supplementing Your Retirement

If you’re on the fence about opening a supplemental savings account, keep in mind that when you establish a savings plan, it is okay to start small. With Nationwide Retirement Solutions, a partner of the ASRS, the minimum starting amount is $10 per pay period.

Over time, you can adjust your contributions as needed – the important part is getting started. The earlier you begin, the more time you allow compounded interest to increase your money. Building the habit of saving money early on can provide additional comfort for retirement.

Our Strategic Plan

Every five years, the ASRS develops a new Strategic Plan. This plan is meant to identify key areas the agency wishes to enhance and optimize, as well as areas we’d like to monitor and maintain. Our newest plan, which began on July 1, 2023, will run until June 30, 2028.

The goal for our new strategic plan is to excel in the areas of:

Keeping Your myASRS Account Secure

When thinking about how to keep your myASRS account secure, most probably only think about having a strong password. And, while this absolutely helps, you may want to put some thought into your Login ID as well.

An Overview of our Board of Trustees

A look at the makeup of our Board of Trustees, how often they meet, and how to view meetings online.

Summer School & Your Pension

As many of our members are school staff and work less than 12 months a year, the question of how working extra over the summer affects your future pension is a common one.

First, a quick note about how non-12-month school staff earn service credit. Because of the shortened work year, these ASRS members earn more service per month (.111 credit per month) than a traditional 12-month employee (.083 credit per month). This is to make sure that non-12-month members earn a full year’s worth of service between the start and end of their school year.

ASRS Statement on Silicon Valley Bank/Signature Bank Issues

The Arizona State Retirement System is providing the following information with regard to the receivership of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank as they relate to the ASRS investment portfolio.

The ASRS had relatively small index-like investments in shares of SVB Financial Group (the parent company of Silicon Valley Bank) and Signature Bank.