Oregon Treasurer Ted Wheeler is being honored for his efforts to increase access to low-cost, high-quality retirement plans in his state and encourage people in Oregon to save more for retirement.
The National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems named Wheeler its Elected Official of the Year.
"Treasurer Wheeler recognizes that the private sector's retirement savings deficit poses an economic threat not just to individuals and families, but to local and national governments as well," said Hank Kim, NCPERS' executive director and counsel. "We applaud his efforts to bolster retirement savings in Oregon and nationally."
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Wheeler has called on financial leaders in government and in the private sector to collaborate to craft new, professionally managed retirement savings options to increase retirement savings.
In 2013, he successfully advocated for legislation in Oregon that created a State Retirement Savings Taskforce to consider trends, current laws and savings options and could recommend reforms to the 2015 state assembly.
Wheeler also convened a bipartisan roundtable of national labor organization representatives, financial industry leaders and state treasurers to discuss options to help the half of private sector workers who have no retirement savings plans through their employers.
"In Oregon and across the nation, a lack of sufficient retirement savings threatens family security and quality of life, and could place an increasingly heavy burden on social safety net programs," Wheeler said. "Time is not our ally."
The National Conference on Public Employee Retirement Systems is the largest trade association for public sector pension funds, representing more than 550 funds throughout the United States and Canada.
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