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Contact
E-mail the PERS Board at PERS.BOARD@state.or.us.
Administration
The legislature has delegated authority to the PERS Board of Trustees to administer the system. The Board is composed of five trustees who administer retirement (service and disability), death, and retiree health insurance benefits.
PERS also administers the Oregon Savings Growth Plan, a deferred compensation program for state and local government employees. A handbook on the Oregon Savings Growth Plan is available by calling 503-378-3730.
Director and Consultants
The Board retains consultants and appoints an executive director. The executive director serves at the discretion of the Board and is responsible for the PERS administrative staff.
Consultants include:
- legal counsel,
- medical advisor,
- actuary, and
- insurance consultant.
PERS Board Members
As trustee of the Public Employees Retirement Fund, the PERS Board has a responsibility to manage and administer the system as set forth by law. The Board also monitors the plan for compliance with federal laws.
Statute specifies Board membership as:
- three people with experience in business management, pension management, or investing who are not members of the PERS system;
- one person who is either an employee of the state in a management position or a person who holds an elective office in the governing body of a participating public employer other than the state; and
- one person representing public employees and retirees.
The three Board members representing business management, pension management, or investing are James Dalton, Eva Kripalani, and Michael Pittman. Pat West was appointed to represent public employees and retirees; Laurie Warner was appointed to represent public employers and is vice-chair. Mr. Dalton is Board chair.
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James Dalton (chair)
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 James Dalton was a senior vice president of Tektronix, Inc., a leading test and measurement technology company. He retired in 2008 after Tektronix was acquired by Danaher Corporation. He was a past member of the board of directors of RadiSys Corporation and the Multnomah County Library Foundation. Dalton received his bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Massachusetts and his J.D. from Boston College of Law School. |
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Eva Kripalani
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 Eva Kripalani serves on the board of trustees for Willamette University College of Law, is vice-chair of the Metropolitan Family Service board, and serves on the Multnomah County Library Foundation board in addition to serving on the PERS board of trustees. Until August 2007, she served as the executive vice president and general counsel of Knowledge Learning Corporation and had served as senior vice president, general counsel, and corporate secretary for KinderCare Learning Centers, Inc. since 1997. Prior to joining KinderCare, Kripalani was a partner in the law firm of Stoel Rives LLP in Portland, Oregon, where she had practiced since 1987, primarily in corporate and securities law, mergers, and acquisitions. She graduated from Portland State University with a bachelor's degree in finance law in 1983 and received her J.D. from Willamette University College of Law in 1986. She is currently providing legal and consulting services to corporate legal departments. |
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Michael Pittman
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 Michael Pittman has approximately 20 years experience in the Human Resource and employee benefits field. He has served in senior corporate human resource roles, which have included responsibilities for pensions in the United States and the United Kingdom. Currently, he is providing consulting services in the general business/human resources field. Pittman received his bachelor’s degree in environmental health in 1975 and his master’s degree in environmental health in 1982. He earned both degrees at the University of Washington. |
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Laurie Warner (vice-chair)
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 Laurie Warner began working in state government in 1988 when she was hired as assistant director of the Federal Child Nutrition Programs with the Department of Education. In 1991 she was hired as a budget analyst in the Department of Administrative Services and was later promoted to budget section manager. In 1999 she left DAS to become deputy director of the Oregon State Parks and Recreation Department, where she later served as acting director. Warner returned to DAS in July 2001 to serve first as the Internal Audits manager and then the Facilities Division administrator. In October 2003 she was asked to serve as the acting director for PERS as it went through Board and program changes required by 2003 legislation. In June 2004, Warner returned to DAS as the deputy director and served as the acting director from September 2004 through December 2005. In January 2006, she was appointed the director of the Employment Department. Warner has a bachelor's degree from Oregon State University and an MBA from Willamette University's Atkinson Graduate School of Management. |
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| Pat West |
 Pat West began his career as a Salem firefighter in 1975 and retired as a captain in 2001. Pat was also the legislative director of the Oregon State Firefighters Association from 1987 to 1998 and president from 1998 to 2008. He served on the Oregon Workers' Compensation Management Labor Advisory Committee, the Governor's Fire Policy Committee, PERS' Legislative Advisory Committee, and the Board of Oregon PERS Retirees, Inc. Pat is a graduate of South Salem High School and Chemeketa Community College. He attended Oregon State University and was in the U.S. Army from 1968 to 1970.
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