Texas: Teacher Retirement System execs get $8.2 million bonuses

Via Texas Watchdog:

This thorough review of the $8.2 million in bonuses earned this year by 54 members of the investment management team for the $100 billion fund is also a stark reminder that taxpayer-supported retirement funds are supported by complex investments that carry with them risk and not piggy banks filled with the nickels and dimes of thrifty state employees.

In the middle of a tepid economy and state budget negotiations that will almost certainly cost teachers their jobs, retirement fund managers are playing a furious game of catch-up from a 2008 market crash that saw the value of the fund portfolio drop $23.3 billion.

In 2008 and 2009, according to the weekend story, top managers earned $6.5 million in bonuses for exceeding investment targets, but deferred payment because the fund operated at a loss. Restored to profitability in 2010, managers earned another $1.7 million in bonuses, and the $8.2 million total was paid out in January.