Great-West, TIAA-Cref Finalists for R.I. Pensions

Great-West Retirement Services and TIAA-Cref are the finalists to administer Rhode Island’s new defined contribution pension program by a unanimous vote of the State Investment Commission, General Treasurer Gina Raimondo announced.

The two companies were chosen from four vendors, including Fidelity Investments and ICMA Retirement Corp., who made presentations to the commission last week in Providence.

The agency is expected to make its final choice by March 1.

Raimondo’s office had made requests for proposals after the state in November passed a law, the Rhode Island Retirement Security Act, overhauling its pension system for public employees.

The measure creates a hybrid plan that merges conventional public defined-benefit pension plans with 401(k)-style plans. It also includes a suspension of cost-of-living adjustment increases for retirees and raises the retirement age for employees not yet eligible for retirement.

The new program will take effect July 1.

“We will continue to evaluate the two finalists in the core areas defined in the RFP to determine which offers the best options, fees and level of service for Rhode Island,” Raimondo said in a statement. The next steps in the selection process include site visits and final evaluations.

Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor’s rate the state’s general obligation bonds AA, while Moody’s Investors Service rates them an equivalent Aa2.

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Rhode Island
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