# El Paso County Retirement Plan

El Paso County Retirement Plan is a Pension Fund based in Colorado Springs, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Pension Fund
- **Headquarters:** Colorado Springs, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** Colorado Springs, CO, United States
- **Founded:** 1967
- **Assets under management:** $461M (Altss estimate)
- **Website:** retirement.elpasoco.com
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/el-paso-county

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

The El Paso County Retirement Plan launched in 1967 to provide retirement, death, and disability benefits to employees of El Paso County and select public entities. A Board of Trustees governs the plan, with El Paso County CFO Nikki Simmons serving as Chair of the Retirement Board and County Treasurer Chuck Broerman sitting as a board member. Participating employers include El Paso County itself, the Pikes Peak Library District, El Paso County Public Health, and the 4th Judicial District Attorney's office, making this a compact but multi-employer pool serving a diverse slice of Colorado's public workforce. The plan deploys capital across an unusually broad mix for a mid-sized county pension. The portfolio extends beyond traditional fixed income and public equities into venture capital and growth equity, with strategy tags spanning early-stage, buyout, distressed debt, and special situations. On the real-assets side, confirmed exposures include core-style open-end real estate funds, real estate limited partnerships, and timber and mortgage-linked investments, all concentrated within the United States. Total AUM is estimated at $461 million, though the plan does not publicly disclose an audited figure in its current communications. Executive Director Greg Kuppenheimer oversees the administrative and operational functions, working under the direction of a board whose membership blends county financial officers and elected officials. There is no evidence of a separate philanthropic foundation or adjacent investment vehicle tied to the plan. The governance structure ensures that the El Paso County Treasurer and CFO retain direct budgetary oversight of the retirement trust. Structurally, the plan stands out as a multi-employer county retirement system in a state where most public pensions consolidate at the state level. El Paso County opted to self-administer rather than join the Colorado Public Employees' Retirement Association, giving the board autonomy over asset allocation, actuarial assumptions, and participant appeals. That independence introduces both flexibility and a concentrated fiduciary burden on the county's financial leadership.

## Sectors

- Real Estate
- Private Credit
- Venture Capital
- Secondaries & Special Situations

## People

- Greg Kuppenheimer — Executive Director
- Chris Long — Chairman of the Board of Trustees
- Nikki Simmons — Chair of the Board of Retirement, El Paso County CFO
- Chuck Broerman — Board Member, El Paso County Treasurer

## Questions

### Who runs investment decisions at El Paso County Retirement Plan?

The Board of Trustees holds fiduciary authority over investment decisions. The board includes El Paso County CFO Nikki Simmons as Chair, County Treasurer Chuck Broerman as a member, and Chairman Chris Long. Day-to-day administrative leadership falls to Executive Director Greg Kuppenheimer. Specific investment committee structures or external consultant mandates are not disclosed in public materials.

### How is El Paso County Retirement Plan different from Colorado PERA?

Colorado PERA is the state-level retirement system covering most public employees in Colorado. El Paso County chose to operate its own independent defined-benefit plan rather than join PERA. This gives the county board direct control over benefit design, actuarial assumptions, and asset allocation — a level of autonomy rare among Colorado counties.

### What employers participate in the plan?

The plan serves as a multi-employer trust. Participating employers include El Paso County, the Pikes Peak Library District, El Paso County Public Health, and the 4th Judicial District Attorney's office. Each entity contributes on behalf of its eligible employees, and the benefits are portable across participating employers.

### What real asset categories does the plan hold?

Confirmed real asset exposures include core-style open-end real estate funds, real estate limited partnerships, and timber and mortgage-linked investments, all domestic United States. The plan does not disclose target allocation percentages or specific fund names in publicly available documents.

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Last updated: 2026-08-11T02:43:31.692Z

Canonical page: https://altss.com/profile/el-paso-county-retirement-plan

Maintained by Altss — https://altss.com — methodology: https://altss.com/methodology