SJ 263 — Commending Ronald D. Schmitz.

SESSION INTRODUCEDENROLLED 23101886D I SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO.

263 OfferedE January 16, 2023 N Commending Ronald D.

TN Patron––Howell R ––––––––––Agreed to by the House of Delegates, January 23, 2023 O WHEREAS, Ronald D.

Schmitz retired as chief investment officer at the Virginia Retirement System L on January 1, 2023, after more than 11 years of dedicated service to the Commonwealth's public DL employees,empWHEREAS, employers,Ronald "Ron" Schmitz holds a master's degree in finance and retirees;marketing from E Northwestern University and a bachelor's degree in finance from Western Illinois University;

and WHEREAS, Ronaldprior "Ron"to Schmitzhis holdspublic afund master'sexperience, degreeRon inSchmitz financeworked andfor marketingthe fromIllinois-based UKraft NorthwesternD UniversityFoods, andwhere ahe bachelor'sgot degreehis start in financefund frommanagement Westernin Illinois1982; University;

anChe WHEREAS,also priorserved toon histhe publicstaff fundof experience, Ron Schmitz worked for the Illinois-basedchief Kraft financial officer at Sears Roebuck & Co., as an industry expert on pension fund management activities, as well as employee benefits and executive compensation, and at the Blue Cross Blue Shield D Association, where he was managing director for a decade;

andandat the Blue Cross Blue Shield WHEREAS, before joining the Virginia Retirement System (VRS), Ron Schmitz served as chief investment officer of the Illinois State Board of Investment and subsequently served with the Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund, the State Accident Insurance Fund, and the cash management accountJ foraccWHEREAS, statethe andVRS localBoard governments,of whereTrustees heengaged furtherRon demonstratedSchmitz hisin investment2011 acumen;to lead the agency'sacumen;

and WHEREAS,6 theinvestment VRSprogram Boardas ofit Trusteescontinued engagedto Ronensure Schmitzan inefficient 2011portfolio tofrom leada therisk agency'sand reward perspective E with the target portfolio expected to generate returns within an acceptable level of risk;

andspectiveand R WHEREAS, Ron Schmitz led the investment team with distinction during a number of challenging2challenging financial environments, steadily guiding the system through these periods of market fluctuation3whilefluctuation exercisingwhile calm,exeWHEREAS, steadyduring leadership;Ron Schmitz's tenure, the VRS Trust Fund almost doubled in size, increasing from $51 billion in 2011 when he first arrived at the agency to more than $100 billion as of June 30, 2021, marking a significant milestone for the fund;

and WHEREAS, during Ron Schmitz's tenure, the VRS Trust Fund almost doubled in size, increasing from $51 billion in 2011 when he first arrived at the agency to more than $100 billion as of June 30, 2021, marking a significant milestone for the fund;

andg fiscal year return of 27.5 percent in 2021, a fiscal year performance not seen in the past 30 WHEREAS, Ron Schmitz was instrumental in leading, challenging, and inspiring his team to provide the fund over the last 10 years with a value-add compared to the policy benchmark of more than $10.2 billion in the portfolio, equating to $1 billion a year coming from strong relative performance at the 35 total fund level;

and 36 WHEREAS, Ron Schmitz was so keenly focused on reducing fees that CEM, an international 37 pension fund benchmarking service, calculated that in-house investment management has saved VRS $61 38 million a year that would otherwise have been spent on external manager fees;

and WHEREAS, Ron Schmitz ensured that his team deploy the best execution in transactions and increases in efficiency under his leadership, having saved the agency approximately $55 million per year;yeaWHEREAS, Ron Schmitz exercised his ability to leverage his experience and expert leadership skills to develop strategies that have enabled the growth of the fund and the maximizing of investment returns, while minimizing risk;

and WHEREAS, Ron Schmitz exercised his ability to leverage his experience and expert leadership skills to develop strategies that have enabled the growth of the fund and the maximizing of investment returns, while minimizing risk;

and WHEREAS,now afterlooks moreforward than 11 years of distinguished service to thetraveling Commonwealth,and Ronenjoying Schmitztime nowRESOLVEDwith byfamily; the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend Ronald D.

now, therefore, be itRon Schmitz RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend Ronald D.

and, be it RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Ronald D.