New Jersey expects to make its full actuarial-determined contribution to the New Jersey Pension Fund, Trenton, for the fiscal year starting July 1, a top state Treasury official said Wednesday.
Assistant Treasurer Michael Kanef made the forecast at a meeting of the State Investment Council, which governs investing policies for the division of investment. The division manages investments for the $83.7 billion New Jersey Pension Fund.
Mr. Kanef didn't provide details or numbers, which will be revealed when Gov. Phil Murphy submits his fiscal 2024 budget request to state legislators. Budget requests are usually presented in February or early March.
If legislators approve the budget with full pension fund support, it will mark the third consecutive year of the state making 100% of its actuarial-determined contribution.
Separately, the division of investment said Wednesday William J. Connors and Lisa A. Walker have been named deputy chief investment officers for the pension fund.
Both started their jobs Jan. 3, according to a news release by the State Department of the Treasury.
Mr. Connors, who also gained the title of deputy executive director, has been head of fixed income for the division. A state Treasury Department spokeswoman did not return a request for comment about whether Mr. Connors would retain his fixed-income role. Mr. Connors has been a division employee since 2020.
Ms. Walker, who also will have the title of deputy director, had been a managing director at BlackRock and senior investor on its Global Allocation Fund, a multiasset strategy fund with assets under management during her tenure of up to $100 billion, according to the news release.
"By promoting Bill and bringing Lisa in, our leadership team is now well-rounded with institutional knowledge and fresh ideas," Shoaib Khan, the pension fund's CIO and director of the division of investment, said in the news release.
Also, the division of investment reported that the unaudited net return for the New Jersey Pension Fund was 0.83% for the six months ended Dec. 31, the first half of the current fiscal year. The benchmark was 1.17%.
The one-year net return as of Dec. 31 was -10.41%, compared to a benchmark of -8.87%. The net annualized three-year return as of Dec. 31 was 4.84%, trailing the benchmark of 6.28%; five-year return was 5.62%, below the benchmark of 6.61%; 10-year return was 7.17%, below the benchmark of 7.5%; and the 20-year return of 7.4% exceeded the benchmark of 7.2%.
