The TEXPERS Blog

TEXPERS names new executive director

Today is Art Alfaro's first day on the job as executive director of the Texas Association of Public Employee Retirement Systems. In his position, Alfaro oversees TEXPERS' business operations and reports to the nonprofit association's board of directors. He may already be a familiar face to the association's membership, however. In addition to having served on boards of three public pension systems in Austin, he has attended TEXPERS conferences. "I am excited to be joining TEXPERS as its executive director," he says. "My official start date is July 1, and I'll be officing out of the association's offices in Austin." Alfaro comes to TEXPERS after spending 31 years with the city of Austin. The last 13 years of his tenure were as the city's treasurer, responsible for the city's cash management program - the $5.9 billion debt management program and $3.3 billion investment portfolio. Alfaro also served as a trustee on several city boards, including the City of Austin Employees Retirement System, Austin Firefighters' Relief and Retirement Fund, Austin Police Retirement System and the Austin Deferred Compensation Committee. "I have a passion for defined benefit pensions," he says. "In the early 1990s, I began executing trades for pension funds. I have seen the industry change in the 2000s and watched it rebound from the Great Recession of 2008." Also, Alfaro served on the Government Treasurers' Organization of Texas, Government Finance Officers Association of Texas, Austin Convention Center Enterprises, Austin Convention Condominium Association, Austin-Bergstrom Landhost Enterprises, Travis County Investment Committee, Public Trust Advisors Texas CLASS Investment Advisory Board, Texas TERM Investment Advisory Board and Hispanic Business Alliance Fund. Alfaro also served as president of the Government Treasurers' Organization of Texas in 2010 and as its legislative committee chair. TEXPERS' board of directors formed a search committee, chaired by the association's second vice president John Jenkins. TEXPERS also retained The Woodlands-based Lowry Rhoads Associates to assist with the search. The firm focuses on recruiting senior- and mid-level leadership to a broad range of organizations. You can learn more about Alfaro in TEXPERS' upcoming edition of its membership magazine, TEXPERS Pension Observer Vol. 3, 2019. The magazine publishes quarterly, and the next publication is to be mailed out to members July 25.