New Investment Option for Local Governments

Washington Treasurer offers new program to provide local governments with another investment option.

Members of the Office of the State Treasurer’s investments team gathered as Washington Gov. Jay Inslee signed Substitute House Bill 1284 last week. The bill creates the capacity for the State Treasurer’s Office (OST) to provide separately managed investment portfolios to eligible governmental entities.

Eligible governmental entities include any county, city, town, municipal corporation, quasi-municipal corporation, public corporation, political subdivision, or special purpose taxing district in the state.

“We are giving locals a longer-term option for their investments,” Treasurer Davidson said.

Since 1986, OST has provided a short-term investment option for local governments through its Local Government Investment Pool, a program with participants that include all 39 counties in the state and all Washington cities with a population greater than 10,000.

The passing of this bill marks the inception of a longer-term investment opportunity for local governments through the State Treasury.

With the passage of the bill OST is now set to develop a separately managed accounts program that will take advantage of the investment expertise and financial knowledge of the office to benefit local governments around the state.