Kentucky House Speaker David Osborne (R-Prospect) appointed Rep. James Tipton (R-Taylorsville) to co-chair the Public Pension Oversight Board (PPOB). The board meets throughout the year to review and oversee issues affecting state-administered retirement systems and the County Employees Retirement System (CERS).

“Fiscal responsibility has always been a priority but particularly so because we have so much riding on our public pension systems,” Tipton said. “We must be able to meet our commitments and still afford future needs. It is a balance, but the taxpayers of Kentucky – some of whom are public pension participants – deserve our very best efforts.”

“We have made great strides in addressing both the financial and structural problems that the state’s public pension systems face, but we are far from being finished,” commented Osborne. “Representative Tipton has been key to the progress we’ve made, and I firmly believe that his expertise and leadership approach will be invaluable in this role. Representative Tipton has demonstrated a lifelong dedication to our public servants, and that passion will surely translate to his work on this committee.”

Tipton’s appointment became effective May 20. Rep. Jim DuPlessis (R-Elizabethtown) has served as the House’s co-chair and will continue to serve as a committee member until he retires at the end of his term this year.

A House Republican spokesperson said that Rep. Ken Fleming (R-Louisville) and Rep. Phillip Pratt (R-Georgetown) would join PPOB.

While PPOB will not meet this month, other interim committee meetings begin Thursday with hearings at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center in Covington. Click here to see the calendar.