House advances bill to define and disclose Public Treasurer's Investment Fund holdings

House Bill 10, presented by Representative Walter, would codify the Public Treasurer's Investment Fund (PTIF) in state statute and require the State Treasurer’s office to provide an aggregated report showing the June 30 balances held by political subdivisions and state entities invested in the PTIF.

"House Bill 10 is a government transparency and accountability bill," Walter said during the House floor presentation, noting that the PTIF "has existed for many years" but was not previously defined in statute. Walter told members the proposal would aggregate information already disclosed in annual financial reports into one accessible place for the Legislature.

Walter cited historical and current PTIF holdings as part of his rationale. "In 2016, state entities held $10,000,000,000 in the Public Treasurer's Investment Fund. Today, it's $29,000,000,000 — an increase of $19,000,000,000," he said, adding the disclosure would make it easier for lawmakers to see which entities are holding cash in reserve.

The Speaker opened and closed the roll for HB 10; the Speaker announced the bill passed and will be transmitted to the Senate. The transcript records that there were 0 nay votes; a specific count of yes votes was not specified in the House record provided.

If enacted, the bill would not create a new disclosure requirement for entities that already report in annual financial statements but would centralize and standardize the information the Legislature receives.

The House moved the bill to the third-reading calendar under a suspension of rules and transmitted it to the Senate for consideration.