Winter blast forces Austin funds to close, put plans on ice

Several Austin, Texas-based pension systems have either closed offices or canceled scheduled board meetings due to inclement weather, road conditions and power outages.

The call center and physical building for the Texas County & District Retirement System have both been closed, according to Amy Bishop, executive director of the $36 billion pension system.

Despite the ongoing power issues, however, all member and employer services will be available Friday, the website is still up and running, and neither investment management nor benefit payments have been impacted.

"We are concerned for our many members and retirees that are suffering during this winter storm and express our appreciation for our first responders that are on the front lines of helping our local Texas communities," Ms. Bishop added in an email.

Due to current weather conditions and power outages throughout the region, Texas Municipal Retirement System's scheduled Thursday board meeting was canceled, according to Michelle Mellon-Werch, spokeswoman for the $31.5 billion plan.

T.J. Carlson, chief investment officer of TMRS, added in an email that even though the system's physical building is closed, the investment team has been working remotely and has "been able to accomplish all required tasks as a team, on time, even during this challenging environment."

Meanwhile, David Veal, CIO of the $3.2 billion Austin (Texas) City Employees' Retirement System, said in an email that the staff "has been working remotely for many months now" due to the coronavirus pandemic. Though several "employees have been affected by the storm," the system's technology infrastructure has enabled critical functions such as investment management running.

Several other plans have posted announcements online that they're closed for business or canceling planned meetings.

Texas Teacher Retirement System, Austin, posted on its homepage that the $155.2 billion pension plan will be closed for business Thursday through Friday "due to continued issues with inclement weather, travel, and the resulting power and communication outages that affect onsite and remote work."

A message on the $30.9 billion Texas Employees Retirement System's website said that it "is closed due to inclement weather conditions and power outages."

The $935.3 million Austin (Texas) Police Retirement System canceled its Wednesday board meeting “due to everyone on the board experiencing different impacts” of the winter storm, said Pattie Featherston, executive director of the plan, in an email.

Ms. Featherston added that this week, she had asked the APRS team, which has been working remotely since March, “to power down to the greatest extent possible to conserve energy as was needed in the community, and to check email periodically via their phones, addressing only the most important needs.”

“No needs went unmet,” she said. “Fortunately, we were able to meet the deadlines of our custodial bank for disbursements before power availability worsened.”