Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund
| Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund | |
| Basic facts | |
| Location: | Madison, Georgia |
| Top official: | J. Terry Norris, secretary/treasurer |
| Year founded: | 1963 |
| Active members: | 157 |
| Website: | Official website |
| Total assets under management | |
| 2022: | $96,854,834 |
- See also: Public pensions in Georgia
The Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund is a Georgia state pension fund that provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to sheriffs of the state of Georgia and their families. Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund has $96,854,834 ($96.9 million) in total assets under management as of June 30, 2022.[1]
The management of public pension funds can indicate support or opposition to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) investment practices. ESG investing considers the extent to which corporations align with and promote certain non-financial standards, such as net carbon emission or corporate board diversity goals. States typically hire asset management companies (AMCs) to direct pension plan investments, some of which have ESG commitments that guide their strategies.
This article features the following sections:
- Background: Information about the structure and functions of the Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund.
- Pension performance overview: Overview of the funding level and assets managed by the Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund.
- Assets and asset management: Information about the asset management companies (AMCs) that contract with Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund, including a list of contracting AMCs that are participants in the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative and the Climate Action 100+ initiative.
- Governance and accountability: Details about the Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund's oversight board, including members and selection.
Background
- See also: Public pensions
The Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund, founded in 1963, operates as a defined benefit plan based on a formula established by Georgia state law. These plans—based on the employee's length of service and salary— provide retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to sheriffs of the state of Georgia and their families.[1]
The Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund served over 157 active members and 198 retirees and beneficiaries as of 2022.[1]
Pension performance overview
The following table features information about the funding level and assets managed by the Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund as of June 2022:[1]
| Employees Retirement System of Georgia (June 2022) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fiscal year | Percent funded | Unfunded liabilities | Total assets[2] |
| 2022 | 57.1% | $169,173,012 | $96,854,834 |
Assets and asset management
| Environmental, social, and corporate governance |
|---|
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| • What is ESG? • Enacted ESG legislation • Arguments for and against ESG • Opposition to ESG • Federal ESG rules • ESG legislation tracker • Economy and Society: Ballotpedia's weekly ESG newsletter |
Asset management companies (AMCs) are hired to manage asset investment for state pension funds across all 50 states.
As of October 2024, 330 AMCs were members of the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative (NZAM), and 391 AMCs were investor participants in the Climate Action 100+ initiative. Both international asset manager initiatives aimed to align the investment decisions of signatories with the goal of achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.[3][4]
NZAM announced on January 13, 2025, that it was suspending operations and removing the commitment statement and list of signatories from its website. The group said in a statement it would reevaluate its plans and operations in light of “[r]ecent developments in the U.S. and different regulatory and client expectations in investors’ respective jurisdictions.”[5]
List of AMCs contracting with the Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund
The Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund contracted with an unknown number of asset management companies (AMCs) as of June 2021. Of those companies or funds, it is unknown how many were investor participants in Climate Action 100+ or NZAM as of 2024.[6]
Governance and accountability
This section features information about the six-member board of trustees that oversees the Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund. The board is specific to oversight of the Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund and does not exercise oversight duties for other state funds.[7]
Board selection method
The board of trustees that oversees the Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund is made up of six members, all of which are appointed by the governor:
- the director of the Office of Treasury and Fiscal Services;
- one former sheriff who is receiving benefits from the fund;
- and four active sheriffs who are members of the fund.[7]
Board of trustees membership
A six-member board of trustees oversees the operation and administration of the Georgia Sheriffs' Retirement Fund. The following individuals served on the board as of June 2024:[7]
- Robert Markley, chair
- Bill Hutson, vice chair
- Bill Hutson
- Jud Smith
- Jimmy McDuffie
- Randy Shirley
- Steve McCoy
See also
- Public pensions in Georgia
- Environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG)
- Arguments about environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG)
- Opposition to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) investing
- Reform proposals related to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG)
- State legislative approaches opposing ESG investing
- State legislative approaches supporting ESG investing
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Georgia Sheriffs.org, “Sheriffs’ Retirement Fund of Georgia, Financial Statement as of June 30, 2022," accessed June 25, 2024
- ↑ Note: By default, this refers to the actuarial valuation of total assets. In some cases, the total market value of assets is shown instead. See the cited source for details.
- ↑ The Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative, "The Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative," accessed January 26, 2023
- ↑ Climate Action 100+, "The Three Goals," accessed June 20, 2023
- ↑ Pensions and Investments, "Net Zero Asset Managers initiative to suspend activities in wake of BlackRock departure," accessed January 15, 2024
- ↑ Ballotpedia, "Ballotpedia: Asset management data for state-administered pension funds across the 50 states," March 2023
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Georgia Sheriffs.org,’’ “Sheriffs’ Retirement Fund of Georgia,” accessed June 24, 2024
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