PIERRE, S.D. – The Society of Actuaries has selected the South Dakota Retirement System as a winning Retirement 20/20 Model, awarding the state with a $10,000 prize. SDRS was one of four designs honored by the group for its ingenuity in handling risk, governance, and administration and for being a design that is understandable to its stakeholders.
“This recognition is well earned by the SDRS Board. The South Dakota Retirement System has been solidly funded for decades. We do not have unfunded liabilities and SDRS provides excellent benefits while operating with fixed funding at a low cost,” Gov. Dennis Daugaard said.
Retirement 20/20 is the Society of Actuaries’ ongoing initiative to align retirement systems with the economic and demographic needs of the 21st Century. As part of its initiative, the Society last fall called for models on governmental pension designs. The group chose South Dakota’s plan based on recently passed legislation, the fund’s financial condition and investment
performance.
The Pew Charitable Trusts also recently recognized the state’s retirement system as one of two best-funded public pension plans in the nation. SDRS funded 97 percent of the plan’s accrued liabilities in 2016 and 100 percent of liabilities in 2017.
