North Carolina Consolidated Judicial Retirement System
| Consolidated Judicial Retirement System (CJRS) | |
 | |
| Basic facts | |
| Location: | Raleigh, North Carolina |
| Top official: | Dale Folwell, state treasurer |
| Year founded: | 1985 |
| Active members: | 581 |
| Website: | Official website |
| Total assets under management | |
| 2022: | $653,867,680 |
- See also: Public pensions in North Carolina
The Consolidated Judicial Retirement System (CJRS) is a North Carolina state pension fund that provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to the state's judiciary employees and their beneficiaries. CJRS had $653,867,680 ($653.8 million) in total assets under management as of December 31, 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 CJRS.
- Pension performance overview: Overview of the funding level and assets managed by CJRS.
- Assets and asset management: Information about the asset management companies (AMCs) that contract with CJRS, 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 CJRS's oversight board, including members and selection.
Background
- See also: Public pensions
The Consolidated Judicial Retirement System (CJRS), founded in 1985, is a defined benefit plan that uses a formula to calculate monthly retirement benefits for North Carolina's local government employees and their beneficiaries once eligibility requirements are met. The North Carolina Retirement Systems Division invests the assets of and provides funding for CJRS, among other North Carolina public employee retirement plans.[2][3]
CJRS served over 581 active members and approximately 816 retirees and beneficiaries as of February 2024.[2]
Pension performance overview
The following table features information about the funding level and assets managed by the Consolidated Judicial Retirement System (CJRS) as of December 31, 2022:[1]
| Consolidated Judicial Retirement System pension performance (December 31, 2022) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fiscal year | Percent funded | Unfunded liabilities | Total market value of assets |
| 2022 | 82.3% | $155.4 million | $653.8 million |
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 investment assets for state pension funds across all 50 states.
The Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative (NZAM) suspended operations in January 2025 and relaunched in February 2026 with more than 250 signatories under a revised commitment statement that removed its prior net-zero deadline requirement.[4]
As of October 2024, 391 AMCs were investor participants in the Climate Action 100+ initiative, which aims to align investor engagement with companies toward the goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.[5]
List of AMCs contracting with the North Carolina Retirement Systems
- See also: North Carolina Retirement Systems
The Consolidated Judicial Retirement System (CJRS) is a sub-fund within the North Carolina Retirement Systems Division (NCRS). NCRS administers CJRS, among other retirement and benefit plans for the governmental workers of North Carolina. CJRS does not contract with its own AMCs; the AMCs for NCRS account for all the pension plans it administers.[6]
NCRS contracted with 445 asset management companies (AMCs) or specific funds as of June 30, 2022. Of those companies, 18 were investor participants in Climate Action 100+, and 22 were members of NZAM, as of 2024. The following list identifies the AMCs (and in some cases, the specific funds) contracting with NCRS:[7]
Governance and accountability
This section features information about the 13-member board of trustees that oversees the North Carolina Consolidated Judicial Retirement System (CJRS). The board is not specific to oversight of CJRS and exercises oversight duties for other state funds, such as the Teachers’ and State Employees’ Retirement System (TSERS).[8][2]
Board selection method
The board of trustees that oversees the Teachers' and State Employees' Retirement System (TSERS)— and that also oversees CJRS— is made up of 13 members: eight actively working employees or retirees, and five public and appointed members who also serve on the Local Governmental Employees’ Retirement System Board.[8]
Board of trustees membership
A 13-member board of trustees oversees the operation and administration of CJRS. The following individuals served on the board as of February 2024:[8]
- Dale Folwell, state treasurer
- Lentz Brewer
- John Ebbighausen
- Vernon Gammon
- Pat Hurley
- Barbara Gibson
- Linda Gunter
- Oliver Holley
- Margaret Reader
- Joshua Smith
- Catherine Truitt
- Jeffrey Winstead
- Margaret Reader
See also
- Public pensions in North Carolina
- 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 My NC Retirement, "Consolidated Judicial Retirement System of North Carolina, Principal Results of Actuarial Valuation as of December 31, 2022," February 21, 2024.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 My NC Retirement, "CONSOLIDATED JUDICIAL RETIREMENT SYSTEM," February 21, 2024.
- ↑ National Association of State Retirement Administrators, "History of NC Retirement Systems," February 21, 2024.
- ↑ Reuters, "Net Zero Asset Managers initiative relaunches after suspension", February 25, 2026
- ↑ Climate Action 100+, "The Three Goals," accessed June 20, 2023
- ↑ This information is sourced from research performed by Ballotpedia staff.
- ↑ Ballotpedia, "Ballotpedia: Asset management data for state-administered pension funds across the 50 states," March 2023
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 North Carolina Total Retirement Plans, "TSERS & LGERS Boards of Trustees," February 7, 2024.
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