We remain vigilant in ensuring TTC Pension Plan continues to deliver on the promise of a sustainable pension for our members, now and in the future.
As the Board of Directors of TTC Pension Plan, we are responsible for oversight of the Plan and support the Management team in delivering a secure pension for our members throughout their retirement. In fulfilling our fiduciary duty, we continually monitor investment performance, funded status and expenses, while ensuring the Plan adheres to strong governance policies.
Amidst a challenging and disruptive year, TTC Pension Plan remained in a fundamentally solid position owing to the prudent investment strategies of the Management team. The Plan continued to meet its targets for financial performance, exceeding its benchmarks. Despite the difficult year for markets, the Plan’s benefit promise is now fully funded on a going-concern basis. This means it has enough funds to pay our current and future pensions (excluding any provisions for benefit increases that may be approved in the future).
On an annual basis, the Board assesses the ability to provide benefit improvements based on a careful actuarial review of the affordability and long-term health of the Plan. We are pleased to report that, for the 13th consecutive year, the Board approved an update to the base period and a cost-of-living increase, effective January 1, 2023. Together with these updates, the survivor benefit has been moved to January 1, 2023. This means that for married members, the 60% survivorship option will have no cost for all pension service prior to January 1, 2023. As a reminder, there is no contractual obligation to provide benefit improvements, nor are future enhancements guaranteed. The Board will continue to manage the risks and pursue adjustments to our strategies as needed to ensure the Plan remains sustainable and meets the pension security needs of our members for the long term.
In 2022, we conducted a scheduled review of the mandate for each of the Board committees to ensure they continue to address the governance requirements of the Plan. As an outcome of this review, we expanded the scope of two of the committees to recognize the full picture of the Board’s mandate: the Audit Committee has been renamed the Audit and Risk Committee, and the Governance Committee has been renamed the Governance and Human Resources Committee.
The management and employees of TTCPP continue to pursue new ways to engage with our members and meet their needs. From a new strategic plan that focuses on enhancing member service and pension security, to our first-ever Members Survey that gauges the satisfaction of our membership, our team is united in our constant work to enhance how we deliver for our members.
We would like to express our gratitude to outgoing Board member Megan MacRae and retiring Board President Orest Kobylansky for their valuable guidance and dedication to our mission. The Board is thankful for their steady counsel and support over the years. We also welcome new Board members Anja Schiralli and Steve Anderson and look forward to their insights and expertise as we move forward.
Finally, we would like to thank our members for their continued support and trust in TTC Pension Plan. We appreciate the importance of providing you with retirement security, and we are committed to doing all we can to ensure that we continue to meet this objective.
With our careful investment strategies and the hard work and commitment of our team, we remain confident in the long-term sustainability of TTC Pension Plan and its ability to provide our members with the security they can rely on throughout their lifetime.