State treasurer announces ‘fee holiday’ extension for participants in N.C. Supplemental Retirement Plans

Posted on by Mike Fuhrman

Special to Iredell Free News

RALEIGH – State Treasurer Dale R. Folwell has announced the extension of a fee holiday that increases two-year savings to more than $4 million for members of North Carolina Supplemental Retirement Plans.

Folwell and the North Carolina Supplemental Retirement Plans Board of Trustees unanimously approved the extension of the 2019 Administrative Fee Holiday through 2020 at their recent board meeting.

This fee holiday amounts to a total savings of more than $2 million for participants in the NC 401(k) and NC 457 Plans. That follows a $2 million fee reduction in 2019.

“Everything we do in this department is for the customer — those that teach, protect and serve,” Folwell said. “We are committed to driving down costs, reducing complexity and increasing the value of these plans for our hard-working teachers, troopers and other public employees.”

The fee holiday will eliminate NC 401(k) and NC 457 participants’ annual administrative fees charged by the department and the board. Each participant is charged 25 cents for each $1,000 held in an account. Other fees, including the fee charged by Prudential, will continue to apply.

Those fees will be covered by rising reserve funds that accumulated under the oversight and efficient practices by the board and Department of State Treasurer staff, including strong portfolio oversight and successful fee negotiations with partners and vendors.

“We have a loyalty and duty of care to protect and preserve the state retirement plans for our members and make sure we have opportunities available for additional retirement savings to support the retirement lifestyle they desire,” Folwell said. “I am proud of our staff for understanding the importance of managing these plans efficiently, to the benefit of our members, and appreciate the dedication of the Board in finding opportunities to enhance value and our members’ savings.”

North Carolina’s supplemental retirement plans are among the largest and lowest-cost public plans in the country. The plans are administered by the N.C. Department of State Treasurer and the Supplemental Retirement Board of Trustees, offered by more than 1,000 public employers, including state agencies, local governments, school districts and community colleges.