Investment Overview
ERS Investments Division
The ERS Investments Division, on behalf of the Board of Trustees and under the direction of the Executive Director, manages the ERS Retirement Trust Fund on behalf of active and retired state employees and other qualified participants. The Division also oversees the investments of the Texas Employees Group Benefits Program (GBP) administered by ERS for the benefit of GBP participants.
Investment Policy
View the ERS Investment Policy, which applies to the funds of the retirement trust administered by the Employees Retirement System of Texas (ERS) as well as the assets of GBP.
Investment Strategy
- ERS is a long-term investor that balances risk to achieve positive investment returns at a reasonable cost, with the ultimate goal of providing lifetime retirement benefits for State of Texas retirees.
- ERS investments earnings do the heavy lifting to pay retirees' annuities accounting for two-thirds of annuity payments with state and employee contributions making up the other third.
- Additional information on the ERS investment strategy and resulting returns can be found in the ERS Investment Policy.
Investment Performance
ERS invests on a long-term basis with the goal of earning risk-adjusted investment returns at a reasonable cost to help provide retirement benefits for State of Texas retirees. Investment returns continue to be the largest funding component of retirement benefits, accounting for more than 60% of the benefits provided by the ERS Trust .
ERS Investments Division
ERS Plans provide retirement benefits for state employees and elected officials (ERS fund), law enforcement and custodial officers (LECOSRF), and judges (JRS 1 and 2). Every year ERS pays $2.6 billion in annuities to retirees, 95% of whom stay in Texas.
Proxy Voting
The Board of Trustees recognizes that proxy voting powers are an asset of ERS, are a fiduciary responsibility, and must be exercised for the exclusive benefit of participants of ERS.
