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Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System
| Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System (LASERS) | |
 | |
| Basic facts | |
| Location: | Baton Rouge, Louisiana |
| Top official: | Byron P. Decoteau, Jr., chairman |
| Year founded: | 1946 |
| Active members: | 38,414 |
| Website: | Official website |
| Total assets under management | |
| 2023: | $14,512,703,270 |
- See also: Public pensions in Louisiana
The Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System (LASERS) is a Louisiana state pension fund that provides retirement, disability, and survivor benefits to the state's officers, employees, and their beneficiaries. LASERS had $14,512,703,270 ($14.5 billion) in total assets under management as of June 30, 2023.[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 LASERS.
- Pension performance overview: Overview of the funding level and assets managed by LASERS.
- Assets and asset management: Information about the asset management companies (AMCs) that contract with LASERS, 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 LASERS's oversight board, including members and selection.
Background
- See also: Public pensions
The Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System (LASERS), founded in 1946, invests the assets of and provides funding for the retirement of state officers, employees, and their beneficiaries. LASERS operates as a defined benefit plan.[2]Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; invalid names, e.g. too many
LASERS served over 38,414 active members and approximately 49,928 retirees and beneficiaries as of June 30, 2023.[1]
Pension performance overview
The following table features information about the funding level and assets managed by the Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System as of June 30, 2023:[1]
| Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System pension performance (June 30, 2023) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fiscal year | Percent funded | Unfunded liabilities | Total assets |
| 2023 | 68.5% | $6,679,818,859 | $14,512,703,270 |
Assets and asset management
| Environmental, social, and corporate governance |
|---|
|
| • 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 Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System
The Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System (LASERS) contracted with 65 asset management companies (AMCs) or specific funds as of June 30, 2023. Of those companies, three were investor participants in Climate Action 100+, and three were members of NZAM, as of October 2024. The following list identifies the AMCs (and in some cases, the specific funds) contracting with LASERS:[6]
| Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System (LASERS) asset management companies Click on a column header below to sort the list of asset managers. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AMC name | Investment type | Assets under management | Percentage of total fund assets | NZAM Initiative signatory as of October 2024[7] | Climate Action 100+ signatory as of October 2024 |
| Goldman Sachs | Private Equity; | 1,010,000.00 | 0.006% | No | Yes |
| GTCR | Private Equity; | 157,000,000.00 | 0.930% | No | No |
| Harbourvest | Private Equity; | 500,000.00 | 0.003% | No | No |
| Huff Alternative Fund | Private Equity; | 100,000.00 | 0.001% | No | No |
| Insight Venture Partners | Private Equity; | 276,600,000.00 | 1.639% | No | Yes |
| KKR | Private Equity; | 140,500,000.00 | 0.833% | No | No |
| KPS Special Situations | Private Equity; | 55,200,000.00 | 0.327% | No | No |
| Mesirow | Private Equity; | 43,700,000.00 | 0.259% | No | No |
| Newstone Capital | Private Equity; | 4,200,000.00 | 0.025% | No | No |
| OHA Strategic | Private Equity; | 26,800,000.00 | 0.159% | No | No |
| Oaktree | Private Equity; | 14,000,000.00 | 0.083% | No | No |
| Pantheon Ventures | Private Equity; | 15,500,000.00 | 0.092% | No | No |
| Private Advisors | Private Equity; | 59,300,000.00 | 0.351% | No | No |
| Quellos-BlackRock | Private Equity; | 6,200,000.00 | 0.037% | No | No |
| Siguler Guff | Private Equity; | 196,400,000.00 | 1.164% | No | No |
| Stepstone | Private Equity; | 10,000,000.00 | 0.059% | No | No |
| Sterling Partners | Private Equity; | 7,600,000.00 | 0.045% | No | No |
| Vista Equity | Private Equity; | 415,900,000.00 | 2.465% | Yes | No |
| Warburg Pincus | Private Equity; | 146,200,000.00 | 0.866% | No | No |
| Williams Capital | Private Equity; | 200,000.00 | 0.001% | No | No |
| Adams Street | Private Equity; | 35,600,000.00 | 0.211% | No | No |
| AEA Investors | Private Equity; | 144,200,000.00 | 0.855% | No | No |
| Altas Partners | Private Equity; | 101,800,000.00 | 0.603% | No | No |
| Apax Digital | Private Equity; | 400,000.00 | 0.002% | No | No |
| Apollo | Private Equity; | 111,600,000.00 | 0.661% | No | No |
| ArcLight Energy | Private Equity; | 30,300,000.00 | 0.180% | No | No |
| Audax | Private Equity; | 200,000.00 | 0.001% | No | No |
| Baring Private Equity | Private Equity; | 115,600,000.00 | 0.685% | No | No |
| Bernhard Capital | Private Equity; | 79,100,000.00 | 0.469% | No | No |
| Brinson | Private Equity; | 1,100,000.00 | 0.007% | No | No |
| Brookfield Capital | Private Equity; | 297,400,000.00 | 1.762% | Yes | No |
| CCMP Capital | Private Equity; | 3,400,000.00 | 0.020% | No | No |
| Cerberus | Private Equity; | 123,700,000.00 | 0.733% | No | No |
| Coller International Partners | Private Equity; | 128,600,000.00 | 0.762% | No | No |
| DoubleLine | Private Equity; | 54,600,000.00 | 0.324% | No | No |
| EIG Energy | Private Equity; | 45,500,000.00 | 0.270% | No | No |
| Energy Spectrum | Private Equity; | 900,000.00 | 0.005% | No | No |
| Gamut | Private Equity; | 59,500,000.00 | 0.353% | No | No |
| Glendower | Private Equity; | 40,600,000.00 | 0.241% | No | No |
| GoldenTree | Private Equity; | 54,100,000.00 | 0.321% | No | No |
| LSV Asset Management | Small Cap Value; | 154,500,000.00 | 0.916% | No | No |
| LASERS S&P 400 Index | Index Funds; | 684,000,000.00 | 4.054% | No | No |
| LASERS S&P 500 Index | Index Funds; | 2,333,000,000.00 | 13.826% | No | No |
| LASERS S&P 600 Index | Index Funds; | 553,800,000.00 | 3.282% | No | No |
| LASERS Nasdaq 100 Index | Index Funds; | 955,600,000.00 | 5.663% | No | No |
| Mondrian Inv Partners | Large Cap Value; | 284,500,000.00 | 1.686% | No | No |
| MSCI Index Fund | Large Cap Core; | 704,100,000.00 | 4.173% | No | No |
| Terror-Free Fund | Large Cap Value; | 32,600,000.00 | 0.193% | No | No |
| Mondrian Inv Partners | Small Cap; | 227,000,000.00 | 1.345% | No | No |
| Goldman Sachs | Small Cap; | 315,700,000.00 | 1.871% | No | Yes |
| City of London | Emerging Markets Equity; | 266,800,000.00 | 1.581% | No | No |
| Westwood Global | Emerging Markets Equity; | 285,600,000.00 | 1.693% | No | No |
| LSV Asset Management | Emerging Markets Equity; | 264,000,000.00 | 1.565% | No | No |
| Loomis Sayles | Investment Grade; | 177,200,000.00 | 1.050% | No | No |
| Orleans Capital | Investment Grade; | 123,700,000.00 | 0.733% | No | No |
| Gramercy | Emerging Market Debt; | 395,300,000.00 | 2.343% | Yes | No |
| DoubleLine | Global Multi-Sector; | 326,300,000.00 | 1.934% | No | No |
| GoldenTree | Global Multi-Sector; | 360,900,000.00 | 2.139% | No | No |
| PIMCO | Global Multi-Sector; | 463,000,000.00 | 2.744% | No | No |
| Blackstone | Global Multi-Sector; | 268,400,000.00 | 1.591% | No | No |
| Zais Group | Global Multi-Sector; | 119,400,000.00 | 0.708% | No | No |
| ArrowMark | Global Multi-Sector; | 139,800,000.00 | 0.828% | No | No |
| Entrust Capital | Absolute; | 331,100,000.00 | 1.962% | No | No |
| Prisma Capital | Absolute; | 296,500,000.00 | 1.757% | No | No |
| Stark Investments | Absolute; | 100,000.00 | 0.001% | No | No |
Governance and accountability
This section features information about the 13-member board of trustees that oversees the Louisiana State Employees' Retirement System (LASERS). The board is specific to oversight of LASERS and does not exercise oversight duties for other state funds.[8]
Board selection method
The board of trustees that oversees LASERS is made up of 13 members. Nine members are elected by the system membership, six of whom are elected by the active membership and three of whom are elected by the retired membership. The remaining four are ex-officio members comprising the Louisiana State Treasurer, the chair of the Senate Committee on Retirement, a member of the House Committee on Retirement, and the commissioner of the Division of Administration, or their designees.[8]Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; invalid names, e.g. too many
Board of trustees membership
A 13-member board of trustees oversees the operation and administration of LASERS. The following individuals served on the board as of July 2024:[8]
- Byron P. Decoteau, Jr., chairman
- Virginia Burton, vice chair
- Pam Diez
- Beverly Hodges
- Ternisa Hutchinson
- Cortny Jarrell
- Laura Lapeze
- Amy A. Matthews
- Barbara McManus
- Taylor F. Barras
- John C. Fleming, M.D.
- Sen. Edward J. "Ed" Price
- Rep. Tony Bacala
See also
- Public pensions in Louisiana
- 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 LASERS, "LASERS Actuarial Valuation June 30, 2023," July 23, 2024
- ↑ LASERS, "History of LASERS," July 23, 2024
- ↑ 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
- ↑ Note: NZAM announced on January 13, 2025, that it was suspending operations and removing the commitment statement and list of signatories from its website.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 LASERS, "LASERS Board of Trustees," July 23, 2024
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