City of Omaha Employees' Retirement System

City of Omaha Employees' Retirement System

City of Omaha Employees' Retirement System (COERS) was established to provide retirement security for the city's civilian employees, excluding part-time, seasonal, and temporary workers. It operates as a contributory defined-benefit plan, with governance provided by a board that includes Finance Director Stephen Curtiss, City Treasurer Donna Waller, and Mayor Jean Stothert as an ex-officio member. The system shares an oversight framework with but remains legally separate from the City of Omaha Police and Fire Retirement System, and reports to the Nebraska Retirement Systems Committee, which monitors underfunded plans. COERS accesses markets entirely through a fund-of-funds structure, allocating to external managers rather than making direct investments. The portfolio spans three main asset classes: institutional real estate funds, including positions managed by JP Morgan Asset Management and Mercer; multistrategy hedge funds; and commodity exposures. The geographic footprint of underlying real estate holdings extends to New York and Massachusetts, reflecting a preference for institutional core and core-plus strategies in major U.S. markets. No direct co-investment or separate account activity has been publicly reported. Altss estimates total plan assets in the $250 million to $350 million range based on comparable municipal pension disclosures in Nebraska. The system maintains a lean administrative structure, with the city's finance leadership serving as the board rather than a dedicated investment staff. Participation in the Nebraska Retirement Systems Committee's annual hearings — a requirement for underfunded plans — provides a layer of legislative oversight distinct from the board's internal governance. Structurally, COERS differs from its police and fire counterpart by covering a civilian, non-uniformed workforce — a bifurcation common in municipal pensions but one that creates distinct liability profiles and funding ratios. The civilian plan's reliance on a small group of commingled fund managers, without a dedicated investment office, marks a governance approach that depends heavily on consultant relationships and board-level decision-making rather than in-house portfolio construction.