I have a government client interested in converting a DB plan to a DC plan (Despite current environment). The client would like to know about and possibly contact other government entities that have already done this. I would appreciate hearing from anyone about specific governments that have been through this process. Please post the name of the government entity and any other information that you could share. Thank you.

Washington State gave members the option to transfer in several plans. Right now, we're in the middle of a conversion program for our largest one.

A good contact person would be Jeff Wickman, at 360.664.7303 or jeffw@drs.wa.gov

Assuming that your client is a local government in PA, does it have authority to change its plan, or is it constrained by state law?

There are a number of governmental entities in Pennsylvania that have converted for a DB to a DC plan. If this governmental entity qualifies for state aid under Act 205 there is a process that needs to be completed. This will insure that they will not need to requalify after the mandatory three year period. The ICMA has completed the transition, as has a few of the major Pennsylvania actuarial firms that specialize in public pension plans. You may want to contact them directly.

The largest DB voluntary conversion to a DC plan is taking place in Florida. www.myfrs.com

I am working with some local governments (cities and towns) in Oklahoma to terminate their participation in a DB plan and switch to DC. I previously worked with a fire district in Missouri to terminate their overfunded DB plan. They used the $10 million of reversion funds to fund a post-retirement medical benefit plan for the firefighters.