Press Kit — Arkansas Pension Investment Integrity

Current facts, dates, terminology, source documents, and contact information for reporting on Arkansas's Israel Bonds decisions.

Campaign summary

Arkansans for Pension Integrity is a statewide campaign for transparent, financially sound stewardship of public retirement money. The campaign is advancing the Pension Investment Integrity Act, an issuer-neutral proposal that would require written credit, alternatives, liquidity, and fiduciary analysis for covered pension purchases of non-tradable sovereign debt.

The campaign can be reached at info@arpensions.org.

Copy-ready overview

Arkansas agencies put at least $65M into completed Israel Bonds purchases: $50M at the State Treasury and $15M at APERS. ATRS separately moved $50M into a manager account created for the same strategy. Arkansans for Pension Integrity is asking the General Assembly to require a written, issuer-neutral financial analysis for future covered pension purchases of non-tradable sovereign debt. Citizens First Congress selected pension investment integrity as a short-term priority for the 2027 session.

Figures to use

Figure Meaning
$65M Completed security purchases: $50M at Treasury plus $15M at APERS.
$50M Money transferred to the ATRS Reams manager account for the strategy; security-level reporting is the next public step.
$115M $65M in completed purchases plus $50M in ATRS manager funding.
+$10M A later Treasury payment shown at the bank-processing stage.
Up to $100M Combined pension authority: ATRS up to $50M and APERS up to $50M; later transactions establish how much money moved.

Agency-by-agency

Arkansas State Treasury

  • Treasury records support $50M in completed purchases after accounting for a $5M maturity in February 2026.
  • A $20M purchase settled in May 2025.
  • An internal overview dated October 8, 2024 summarized rating downgrades and recommended holding existing positions while maturities rolled off.
  • A later +$10M payment remained marked as processing by the bank.

APERS

  • The Investment Finance Subcommittee authorized a $25–$50 million range on May 15, 2025.
  • APERS completed a $15M two-year bond purchase on October 15, 2025.
  • The purchase was $10M below the motion’s stated minimum.
  • APERS’s chief investment officer’s February 2026 email makes the need for a standard decision memo concrete.

ATRS

  • ATRS authorized up to $50M through Resolution 2025-22 on June 2, 2025.
  • Aon compared implementation options, recommended Reams, and noted limited marketability.
  • Aon’s assignment centered on implementation and manager selection; trustees carried the investment decision.
  • ATRS reported $50M funded to the Reams account on December 29, 2025.
  • ATRS’s public account currently ends at the transfer to Reams, with security-level reporting still due to members.

Short timeline

Treasury internal overview recommends holding existing positions and continued monitoring.

An eight-stop itinerary lists outreach across pension, executive, legislative, Treasury, and cabinet offices or settings.

$20M in Treasury positions settles.

APERS authorizes a $25–$50 million range.

ATRS authorizes up to $50M and receives Aon's implementation memo.

APERS completes its $15M purchase.

ATRS reports $50M funded to the Reams account.

Citizens First Congress selects pension investment integrity as a 2027 short-term priority.

Terminology

Completed purchase: A transaction supported by a completed security or cash-flow record.

Manager funding: Money transferred to an investment manager’s account. Security-level statements document what the manager later buys and holds.

Authorization ceiling: The maximum amount a board allowed. Transaction records establish how much was later spent.

Non-tradable sovereign debt: Debt issued by a national government without a secondary market, generally committing the holder through maturity.

Pension Investment Integrity Act: A prospective, issuer-neutral proposal for covered pension acquisitions. It leaves investment outcomes with trustees and requires them to publish the financial work behind the decision.

Primary documents

Media contact

Arkansans for Pension Integrity
info@arpensions.org arpensions.org