North Carolina introduced a statewide 403(b) plan for its public school employees – but few chose to participate.
Summary
To address limited oversight of local retirement plans, North Carolina introduced a statewide 403(b) plan for its public school employees. This study looks at the locally managed 403(b) plans that were available before the statewide plan rollout and charts the difficulties facing the sole provider of the statewide plan. It also examines statewide plan participation levels by district.
Key Insights
- District leaders were content with locally managed plan vendors.
- Legislation introducing a statewide 403(b) plan did not require replacing current vendors with a single statewide option.
- Midsized districts (1000-2000 eligible personnel) were most likely to adopt the statewide 403(b) plan.
