Rhode Island Treasurer Seth Magaziner, a former financial executive elected in 2014, has announced a landmark proposal to increase transparency at the state’s pension fund. Unlike dozens of states around the country, Rhode Island will now disclose the full range of fees and expenses it pays to investment managers and will fully disclose those managers’ performance.
“It really comes down to a basic principle,” said Magaziner, who announced the proposal Tuesday. “When you're managing public funds, the public has the right to know.”
In many states, details of public pension investments have become closely guarded secrets known only to lawmakers and financial executives hired to manage the savings of teachers, firefighters, cops and other government employees. From Florida to Illinois, states across the country have passed laws exempting financial details of these public investments from open records laws. Continue>>>
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