The statewide leadership of SEANC’s political action committee, EMPAC, proudly endorses State Treasurer Dale Folwell for re-election in the 2020 General Election.

EMPAC endorsed Folwell in the 2016 election, and since his first day in office he has been a staunch advocate for state employees and retirees. He has always been willing to lend a collaborative ear to SEANC’s concerns involving the retirement system, State Health Plan and protecting the interests of our members. He has been willing to stand up to insurance companies, big healthcare and Wall Street.

"After years of bad decisions by our two previous treasurers, Treasurer Folwell has been a dream come true for state employees and retirees,” said EMPAC Statewide Chairman Mark Dearmon. “EMPAC is proud to endorse him. We all need to work hard to get him re-elected."

When he took office, Folwell promised to cut unnecessary spending on Wall Street fees paid by the retirement system. He made good on that promise by cutting more than $500 million in fees from the plan in his first year.

Ridiculed by his opponents for his safe investing of the state pension plan, that conservative approach proved the right one this year as the economy faced its biggest threat since the Great Depression. While pension plans all over the country have been left reeling, North Carolina’s plan has gained around 4% and now sits at over $105 billion.

“His conservative management of our retirement fund kept the plan from having significant losses when the economy tanked,” Dearmon said. “He has reduced some of the outrageous fees the pension plan was paying to Wall Street money managers and instituted a more conservative investment strategy. As a result, TSERS weathered the economic downturn much better than most pension funds.”

He put his career on the line for state employees and retirees in last year’s fight over the Clear Pricing Project, which would bring transparency and cost savings to the State Health Plan. The big health care machine showed its true colors by enacting a boycott rather than sign on to the much-needed reforms. Folwell was able to get more than 25,000 providers in the state to sign on to the plan, which ties reimbursement rates to Medicare rates.

We are confident he will continue to fight for working families in his next term as State Treasurer.