Friday, September 7, 2018
IN THIS BRIEFING NAST News — Featured Books — State News Roundup — Top Tweet
NAST News
TODAY is the LAST DAY to use the #NASTAnnual Group Rate for the Hotel Block! Register now! Register today for our 2018 #NASTAnnual Conference, which will take place on September 30- October 3 in Scottsdale, AZ! The conference will feature expert panels and keynote speakers, which can be found here. To register for this year's conference or learn more, click here. The conference will take place at The Scottsdale Resort at McCormick Ranch, click here to reserve a room, or call (800) 540-0727 and ask for the NAST Annual Conference group rate before it expires tonight! — NAST.org
Page 1 of 6 NEXT WEEK: State Treasurer Discussing 529 Plans on Education Talk Radio with Larry Jacobs South Carolina State Treasurer Curtis Loftis and CSPN Chairman Jim DiUlio will be joining Education Talk Radio with Larry Jacobs on Wednesday, September 12, at 9AM ET to discuss 529 plans. The discussion will cover each of their initatiatives in South Carolina and Wisconsin, respectively and share some success stories from constituents now taking advantage of their plans. Join more than 75,000 listeners per month and tune in Wednesday! You can listen to the show here.
Featured Books
In honor of National Read a Book Day, we have been compiling some of the best books that Treasurers, their staffs, our members and Corporate Affiliates have been reading this summer. Thank you to everyone that sent along their favorites and please don't hesitate to send out any additional books or reading material that you are currently enjoying! Please see below for the top-10 books we received from you!
1. Lincoln by David Herbert Donald 2. The Congressional Budget Office by Phillip G. Joyce 3. American Icon: Alan Mulally and the Fight to Save Ford Motor Company by Bryce G. Hoffman 4. The Marshall Plan: Dawn of the Cold War by Ben Steil 5. The River Why by David James Duncan 6. A Burnt Out Case by Graham Greene 7. The Revenge of Analog by David Sax 8. The Billion Dollar Spy by David E. Hoffman 9. Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer 10. Life 3.0 by Max Tegmark
State News Roundup California ScholarShare 529 Proves Effective For College To kick off September’s National College Savings Month, California State Treasurer John Chiang and ScholarShare 529 are reminding California families to start saving for college early. “The cost of higher education may be going up, but that shouldn’t get parents down,” said Treasurer Chiang. “Saving for college is one of the best things parents can do for their children and it doesn’t have to be a financial burden. Kids with a savings account in their name have a much better chance of avoiding crippling student loan debt when they graduate, so — during National College Savings Month — there’s no better time to start saving.” — Oakdale Leader
Colorado Financial Focus: Consider financial gifts for grandchildren on Grandparents Day National Grandparents Day is observed on Sunday, Sept. 9. If you're a grandparent, you may get some gifts or cards — or maybe even a phone call. But you might feel that it's better to give than to receive, especially when it comes to your grandchildren. And you can make a real difference in their lives by making a financial gift for their future. — Vail Daily
Page 2 of 6 difference in their lives by making a financial gift for their future. — Vail Daily
Illinois Treasurer's office introduces new money match program Getting your unclaimed property will now be easier. State Treasurer Michael Frerichs announced Illinois' new money match program. Instead of having to file a claim for your unclaimed property online, the treasurer's office will now match your unclaimed property to your name and simply mail you a check. — Fox Illinois
Illinois treasurer says new law could save state $100 million Treasurer Michael Frerichs said the state could save up to $100 million a year under legislation he proposed that was signed by Gov. Bruce Rauner. The bill, which garnered only one “no” vote in the General Assembly, allows the treasurer’s office to pay off some backlogged bills currently waiting payment in Comptroller Susana Mendoza’s office. Senate Bill 2858 authorizes the treasurer to use up to $2 billion in funds that aren’t immediately needed for other purposes. The treasurer’s office invests state tax collections until the money is needed to pay expenses. — The State Journal-Register
Treasurer has $12 million to give back to Illinoisans The next time you get a letter saying you have money waiting for you, it may not be a scam. Starting this month, the state treasurer's office is doing the legwork of its unclaimed property division, which it expects will result in $12 million worth of checks ending up in the hands of Illinois residents. — The News-Gazette
Indiana State Treasurer Kelly Mitchell calls on Lake and LaPorte E-911 to promote text to 911 services Indiana State Treasurer Kelly Mitchell overheard a E-911 dispatcher assisting a child birth while visiting the Lake County call center Friday afternoon. Around her, other dispatchers were dealing with complaints of reckless driving, a student passed out at a middle school and an armed robbery in the space of a half hour. — Northwest Indiana Times
Iowa Iowa Gov. Will not Cut IPERS’s Benefits Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds is considering changes to the $30 billion Iowa Public Employees’ Retirement System IPERS)—but cutting retirement benefits isn’t one of them. After a Tuesday meeting with the State Executive Council, Reynolds, a Republican, was asked about the future of the local government worker and teachers’ pension fund, as Democratic leaders such as State Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald —who also serves on the fund’s board—have been leery of Republican proposals attempting to “break the promise” of retirees, reports The Des Moines Register. — Chief Investment Officer
IPERS beats goal with nearly 8% gain on pension fund investments Iowa's largest public employees' pension fund returned nearly 8 percent on its investments for the fiscal year ending June 30, exceeding its annual target of 7 percent. The Iowa Public Employees' Retirement System, which has more than 350,000 members, reports that its assets totaled $32.26 billion. The return of 7.97 percent for the most recent year fell short of the 11.7 percent gain for the prior fiscal year. But it was significantly better than the annual gain of 2.15 percent reported two years ago. — Des Moines Register
Cash Course: A talk with researcher who found one-third of young people are financially unstable
Page 3 of 6 It’s not surprising when students in college are dirt poor. By the time I reached senior year, just hearing the words “ramen noodles” was vomit-inducing — mostly because, man, that joke gets old. With tuition, fees and the cost of living rising, it feels like there’s a lot working against students. And it’s even more difficult because college is the first time most young adults have been out on their own, responsible for paying for each meal, housing and regular living expenses. I watched several students have their college careers paid for by family members. But the rest of us were left working jobs between classes to scrape by on sad, convenience store meals for four years. — Quad-City Times
Louisiana Too soon for Louisiana to celebrate its budget? In recent years, Louisiana has bounced from one budget crisis to another, with a decade’s worth of short-term fixes barely keeping the lights on. As the current fiscal year approached, the state faced yet another fiscal showdown, with revenue sources expiring and a shortfall threatening deep cuts to hospitals, nursing homes, and colleges and universities, as well as the possible elimination of the food stamp program entirely. — Governing
Too soon for Louisiana to celebrate its budget? Louisiana has “stopped the bleeding,” but political observers point out that the financially strained state still has several major spending problems. In recent years, Louisiana has bounced from one budget crisis to another, with a decade’s worth of short-term fixes barely keeping the lights on, Governing reports. As the current fiscal year approached, the state faced yet another fiscal showdown, with revenue sources expiring and a shortfall threatening deep cuts to hospitals, nursing homes, and colleges and universities, as well as the possible elimination of the food stamp program entirely. — Greater Baton Rouge Business Report
Michigan State Treasurer State of Michigan Invests $490,000 in Cloudera Inc State Treasurer State of Michigan bought a new stake in Cloudera Inc (NYSE:CLDR) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 35,908 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $490,000. — Fairfield Current
Schuette’s literacy plans: A-F school rankings, financial incentives, state literacy director Between now and November's election, we’re having conversations with statewide candidates about a variety of issues. The first one we’re tackling with candidates is education. Recently- released state test results show that literacy scores of Michigan schoolchildren have continued to decline. Only 44 % of kids from 3rd grade through 8th grade in the state reached proficiency in the literacy portion of the test. That means more than half failed. — Michigan Radio
New Jersey Mount Saint Mary educator wants financial literacy to add up for students Kathleen Brennan, an economics teacher and mathematics department chair at the Watchung- based Mount Saint Mary Academy, participated in Next Gen Personal Finance’s (NGPF) Summer Institute from June 17 through 20. She was one of 24 teachers selected from more than 200 applicants nationwide who applied for the program, which is conducted annually at NGPF’s offices in Palo Alto, California. — MyCentralJersey
New York State comptroller questions costs at Brooklyn housing complex
Page 4 of 6 The owner of a sprawling affordable-housing complex in East New York is seeking a rent hike to cover unmonitored spending, according to a report released by the office of state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. DiNapoli's office found that Linden Plaza Housing Co., which owns Linden Plaza, a four-building, 1,525-unit Mitchell-Lama development, spent $10.7 million between January 2016 and August 2017 on goods and services that it hadn't competitively procured. — Crain's New York
North Carolina Transparency would help lower health care costs State Treasurer Dale Folwell asked a simple question: How much should North Carolina taxpayers be shelling out for state workers to receive care at UNC Health medical facilities? The University of North Carolina Health Care System’s answer: That’s a secret. — Reflector.com
South Carolina S.C. treasurer returns unclaimed money to city of Aiken, school district There's currently more than $550 million of unclaimed property throughout the state, and on Thursday, S.C. Treasurer Curtis Loftis returned a chunk of that money to both the City of Aiken and the Aiken County Public School District. On Thursday morning, Loftis presented a $9,800 check to City Council member and mayor pro tempore Gail Diggs. Loftis then presented a nearly $8,400 check to King Laurence, the public school district's chief administration officer. — Aiken Standard
Utah Utah’s 529 Educational Savings Plan, Fifth Largest In The Nation, Experiencing Rapid Growth Salt Lake City–my529, Utah’s official college savings plan, has surpassed $13 billion in assets under management, less than a year after reaching the $12 billion mark. The latest milestone for Utah’s educational savings plan indicates that families value investing for higher education. A 2018 report[1] by Sallie Mae Bank showed saving for college was the third most important priority for parents after emergency savings and general savings but ahead of retirement savings. — Utah Business
Utah's college savings plan managing more than $13B in assets Utah's college savings plan, my529, has more than $13 billion in assets under management, the plan's managers announced Tuesday. This milestone comes less than a year after the plan reached $12 billion in assets under management, which was achieved in January. Formerly the Utah Educational Savings Plan, my529 is Utah’s official nonprofit 529 college savings plan. The plan has been recognized by the financial press and consumer experts for its low fees and industry innovations such as customized allocation investment options. — KSL.com
Washington Got GET? Deadline approaching for account-holders to switch If you have money in Washington’s prepaid college-tuition plan, you only have about a week to roll your units over to a new type of plan. And with the September 12 deadline approaching to exchange Guaranteed Education Tuition (GET) units for a stake in the DreamAhead 529 college savings plan, state phone lines are jammed. Earlier this week, one account-holder said he waited more than 90 minutes to get through to an operator. — Seattle Times
Page 5 of 6 TOP TWEET: One @Eagles fan is likely to remember this Falcons/Eagles matchup in '08. A ticket stub from that game was stored in a safe deposit box, and its contents were eventually reported as unclaimed property. We'll hold onto it until the owner comes forward. #FlyEaglesFly — @PATreasury
Sent to: [email protected]
Unsubscribe
National Association of State Treasurers, 701 Eighth Street NW Suite 540 , Washington, DC 20001, United States
Page 6 of 6