Creating an Investment Opportunity for Early Childhood Workers Act of 2025 - Pass-Through Fiscal Agent

Act 587 of 2025 tasked the Board of Trustees of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System (ATRS Board) with approving a non-profit pass-through fiscal agent (Fiscal Agent) that will facilitate the participation of eligible early childhood workers as members of the Arkansas Teacher Retirement System (ATRS or System).

The Fiscal Agent will be required to:

• Certify that during the past five (5) years there have been no actions, proceedings, or investigation pending against the Fiscal Agent that may reasonably be expected to have a material adverse impact on the Fiscal Agent or that has resulted in the Fiscal Agent or its agents, employees, subsidiaries or affiliates being convicted or found civilly liable for a breach of fiduciary duty or financial crimes.
• Execute a confidentiality agreement and a memorandum of understanding with the System.

The responsibilities of the Fiscal Agent will include, but may not be limited to:

• Implementing an application process for childcare providers to become covered employers of the System.
• Approving childcare provider applicants as eligible for participation as a covered employer of the System.
• Annually verifying that each participating childcare provider is licensed, accredited, and has an active subsidy or grant agreement with the Arkansas Department of Education.
• Timely submitting to the System reports that provide concise explanations of the Fiscal Agent’s determination that a new or current childcare provider is eligible for initial or continued participation in the System.
• Reviewing the participation of each childcare provider at least every (5) years from the effective start date of their participation in the System.
• Timely submitting to the System reports concerning early childhood workers who have elected to become members of ATRS and are employed by a participating childcare provider.
• Timely remitting employer and employee contributions received from participating childcare providers to the System.
• Managing and accounting for contributions received from participating childcare providers according to generally acceptable accounting standards.
• Upon request, timely submitting to the System financial records concerning the management and accounting of employee and employer contributions.
• Retaining and ensuring that childcare providers retain all records pertaining to their participation in accordance with any applicable law, rules, and polices.
• Retaining and ensuring that childcare providers retain all record pertaining to their early childhood worker employee’s membership in ATRS in accordance with any applicable the law, rules, and polices.
• Maintaining a confidentiality policy that complies with applicable law, rules, and policies.
• Other duties that are reasonably necessary to achieve the objectives of Act 587 of 2025.

Please see Act 587 and 24 CAR § 10-329 for more information.

If you are interested in having your organization serve as the Fiscal Agent, please mail a letter of interest to: ATTN: Legal Unit, Arkansas Teacher Retirement System, 1400 W. Third Street, Little Rock, Arkansas, 72201. The deadline for submitting a letter of interest is Friday, March 6, 2026.

Your letter of interest should address your organization’s experience with providing financial services and working with governmental entities, as well as your organization’s ability to perform the responsibilities listed above.

Along with your letter of interest, please submit:

• Articles of Incorporation issued by the Arkansas Secretary of State.
• IRS determination letter or certificate confirming non-profit status.
• Any relevant certifications and licenses, including but not limited to Certified Public Accountant, Certified Management Accountant, and Certified Government Financial Manager.
• Audited financial statements for your organization for the past three (3) years.
• Any other relevant documentation that you would like to be considered.

If you have any questions, please contact Mark White by phone at (501) 621-8853 or by e-mail at markw@artrs.gov.

Executive Director Update: Retirement Saving Options + Announcements & Updates

I’m pleased to announce that the Public Pension Coordinating Council has awarded ATRS the 2025 Public Pension Standards Award for Funding and Administration. This award is given annually to public pension systems like ATRS that certify that they meet standards and best practices in the areas of funding adequacy, investments, comprehensive benefits, actuarial valuations, audits, and member communications. This is the second year in a row that ATRS has received this Award.  

At ATRS our mission is to provide retirement security for Arkansas’s past, present, and future public education professionals. This Award demonstrates the strong leadership provided by our ATRS Board of Trustees and the great work of our dedicated staff. We dedicate every workday to ensuring a secure retirement for our more than 140,000 members. 

I’m also happy to announce that we have published a new update to our Member Handbook. The Handbook answers many of the questions that you might have about retirement, your ATRS membership, and the System. This 2025-2026 version of the Member Handbook is available on our website in the Publications section here:
https://www.artrs.gov/Publications/ATRS2526Handbook.pdf

  

Updates for Retirees

We recently mailed check stubs to our members who received a payment from ATRS in December. If you itemize your tax deductions, you will want to keep that check stub. It documents how much was withheld from your ATRS benefits for medical insurance premiums last year.

In the next few weeks, if you received any payments from ATRS at any time in 2025, you will be receiving an IRS Form 1099 in the mail. You can also view your 1099 Form through the member portal on our website, beginning January 26.  If you don’t have a member portal account, I encourage you to take this opportunity to sign up for one.  You will need this Form when you file your taxes for 2025.  

If you don’t receive a 1099 Form by February 16, please contact us and let us know. You can always email us at info@artrs.gov or call us at (501) 682-1517 for assistance.

 

Retirement Savings for Working Members

Our members do vital work in public education. Your future deserves the same attention and care you give your students. By being a member of ATRS, you’ve taken the most important step toward retirement security: guaranteed lifetime income. Social Security will add another layer when you retire, but one piece remains—personal savings.

Why does this matter? Even though your ATRS benefits and Social Security may cover your normal day-to-day expenses, life happens – things like car repairs, medical bills, or a busted water heater. A savings cushion can make all the difference when the unexpected hits.  

Here are a few ways to start (or grow) your nest egg:

403b or 457b Plan: Many ATRS employers allow employees to contribute additional pre-tax dollars to a retirement account that is separate from ATRS. These savings will grow tax-deferred. You can begin withdrawing from them when you retire, and in some cases as soon as you stop working for that employer. Check with your employer for more information.   

Traditional or Roth IRA: Anyone with earned income can open and contribute to an Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA) account, even when you are also covered by ATRS as your retirement plan. Traditional IRAs may offer tax deductions, while Roth IRAs provide tax-free growth. Additional info is here:
https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/traditional-and-roth-iras
https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc451 

T-DROP: ATRS offers actively-employed members with at least 28 years of credited service the ability to build savings in the Teacher Deferred Retirement Option Plan (T-DROP). When you enroll in T-DROP, you accumulate a portion of monthly retirement benefits in a cash savings account, even as you continue to work. And once you are in T-DROP, you no longer have to make member contributions, which means that 7% of your salary will be going straight to you. Additional info is here:
https://www.artrs.gov/teacher-deferred-retirement-option-t-drop 

Keep in mind that the tax advantages and tax implications of these different plans may vary depending on your unique situation. Consider talking with a financial advisor or tax expert as you make decisions on how to save for retirement.   

As always, if you ever have a question about your retirement options or need information or advice, please reach out to one of our experienced counselors by calling (501) 682-1517 or e-mailing info@artrs.gov. And if you have any concerns or questions about the System as a whole, please contact me at the email address or phone numbers below.

 

Mark White
Executive Director, ATRS
MarkW@artrs.gov
Office: (501) 621-8853
Cell: (501) 541-2057