2023 South Carolina Code of Laws › Title 9 - Retirement Systems › Chapter 16 - Retirement System Funds › Section 9-16-315. Retirement System Investment Commission; membership; terms; qualifications; chief executive officer; chief investment officer and administrative staff; attorneys; costs and salary.

(A) There is established the "Retirement System Investment Commission" (RSIC) consisting of eight members, seven of which have voting privileges, as follows:
(1) two members appointed by the Governor, one of which is an active member of the South Carolina Retirement System, Police Officers Retirement System, the Judges and Solicitors Retirement System, or the National Guard Retirement System;
(2) one member appointed by the State Treasurer;
(3) one member appointed by the Comptroller General;
(4) one member appointed by the Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee;
(5) one member appointed by the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee;
(6) one member who is a retired member of the South Carolina Retirement System, Police Officers Retirement System, Judges and Solicitors Retirement System, or National Guard Retirement System. This representative member must be appointed by unanimous vote of the voting members of the commission; and
(7) the Executive Director of South Carolina Public Employee Benefit Authority, ex officio, without voting privileges.
(B) In making appointments, the appointing authorities shall select members who are representative of the racial, gender, and geographical diversity of the State.
Members shall serve for terms of four years and until their successors are appointed and qualify. Except for the Executive Director of the South Carolina Public Employee Benefit Authority, a person appointed may not serve until the appointing official certifies to the Secretary of State that the appointee meets or exceeds the qualifications set forth in subsections (D) and (E). A person appointed may not qualify unless he first certifies that he meets or exceeds the qualifications applicable for his appointment. Terms are deemed to expire after June thirtieth of the year in which the term is due to expire. Members are appointed for a term and may be removed before the term expires only by the Governor for the reasons provided in Section 1-3-240(C). A member may not be appointed to serve more than two consecutive full four-year terms. A member serving a second or greater term, beginning July 1, 2016, may not serve an additional consecutive four-year term upon the expiration of his term pursuant to the provisions of this subsection. A member who has served for ten or more years as of July 1, 2017, may complete the term for which he was appointed but may not be reappointed to the commission.
(C) The commission shall select one of the voting members to serve as chairman and shall select those other officers it determines necessary.
(D) A person may not be appointed to the commission unless the person possesses at least one of the following qualifications:
(1) the Chartered Financial Analyst credential of the CFA Institute;
(2) at least twelve years as a Certified Financial Planner credentialed by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards;
(3) the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst certification of the Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst Association;
(4) at least twenty years professional actuarial experience, including at least ten as an Enrolled Actuary licensed by a Joint Board of the Department of the Treasury and the Department of Labor, to perform a variety of actuarial tasks required of pension plans in the United States by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974;
(5) at least twenty years professional teaching experience in economics or finance, ten of which must have occurred at a doctorate-granting university, master-granting college or university, or a baccalaureate college as classified by the Carnegie Foundation;
(6) an earned Ph.D. in economics or finance from a doctorate-granting institution as classified by the Carnegie Foundation;
(7) the Certified Internal Auditor credential of The Institute of Internal Auditors;
(8) at least twelve years of professional experience in the financial management of pensions or insurance plans; or
(9) at least twelve years of professional experience as a certified public accountant with financial management, pension, or insurance audit expertise.
(E) Except for the member appointed pursuant to subsection (A)(6) and (7), a person may not be appointed or continue to serve who is an elected or appointed officer of the State or any of its political subdivisions, including school districts.
(F) The Retirement System Investment Commission is established to invest the funds of the retirement system. All of the powers and duties of the State Budget and Control Board as investor in equity securities and the State Treasurer's function of investing in fixed income instruments are transferred to and devolved upon the Retirement System Investment Commission.
(G) The commission shall employ a chief executive officer who serves at the pleasure of the commission. The chief executive officer is the chief administrative officer of the commission as an agency and is charged with the affirmative duty to carry out the mission, policies, and direction of the commission as established by the commission. The chief executive officer is delegated the authority of the commission necessary, reasonable, and prudent to carry out the operation and management of the commission as an agency and to implement the commission's decisions and directives. Notwithstanding Section 9-16-30, the chief executive officer may execute on behalf of the commission any documents necessary to implement a final decision to invest.
(H)(1) The chief executive officer shall employ a chief investment officer. The chief investment officer shall develop and maintain annual investment plans and invest and oversee the investment of retirement system funds subject to the oversight of the chief executive officer.
(2) The chief executive officer shall employ the other professional, administrative, and clerical personnel he determines necessary to support the administration and operation of the commission and fix their compensation pursuant to an organizational plan approved by the commission. All employees of the commission are employees at will and serve at the pleasure of the chief executive officer. The compensation of the chief executive officer, chief investment officer, and other employees of the commission is not subject to the state compensation plan.
(I) Notwithstanding Section 1-7-170, the commission, in consultation with the Attorney General, may engage, on a fee basis, attorneys necessary to exercise its exclusive authority to invest and manage the retirement system's assets. The commission shall establish policies and procedures for the retention of attorneys pursuant to this subsection and shall notify the Attorney General of the terms and conditions of a representation upon engagement. The commission shall provide quarterly reports to the Attorney General on attorneys retained, hourly rates, and estimated maximum fees, which he shall monitor for reasonableness and to ensure consistency with the terms and conditions of the representation.
(J)(1) The administrative costs of the Retirement System Investment Commission must be paid from the earnings of the state retirement system.
(2) Each commission member, except for the Executive Director of the South Carolina Public Employee Benefit Authority, shall receive an annual salary of twenty thousand dollars plus mileage and subsistence as provided by law for members of state boards, committees, and commissions. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, membership on the commission does not make a member eligible to participate in a retirement system administered pursuant to this title and does not make a member eligible to participate in the employee insurance program administered pursuant to Article 5, Chapter 11, Title 1, if the member is not otherwise eligible. Compensation paid on account of the member's service on the commission is not considered earnable compensation for purposes of any retirement system administered pursuant to this title.
HISTORY: 2005 Act No. 153, Pt IV, Section 3, eff July 1, 2005; 2012 Act No. 278, Pt IV, Subpt 3, Section 64.A, eff July 1, 2012; 2017 Act No. 13 (H.3726), Pt. III, Section 10, eff July 1, 2017.