The Louisiana State Employees’ Retirement System (LASERS) recently ended the recent fiscal year with a 15.8 percent investment return. This return ranks as one of the best in the history of LASERS, and makes it clear the system is a strong consistent economic stimulus for Louisiana.
LASERS, one of Louisiana's major state pension systems, provides a defined benefit pension plan that covers approximately 100,000 members and pays over $1 billion in annual benefits to beneficiaries.
This fiscal year return places LASERS in the top third percentile of 86 other public retirement funds greater than $1 billion, according to Wilshire’s Trust Universe Comparison Service (TUCS). TUCS is the most widely accepted benchmark for the performance of institutional assets and represents the largest database of any peer-comparison service in the industry.
As Louisiana lawmakers prepare to discuss tactics to solve the impending fiscal cliff, these returns showcase the payoffs Louisiana's economy receives from investing in its state workers.