State Treasurer Beth Pearce was recently recognized at both the state and national levels for her service and work within state government.
The Vermont League of Cities and Towns presented Pearce with the Town Government Award at their annual Town Fair. She was recognized for her focused concern for the welfare of stricken Vermont municipalities as they recovered from Tropical Storm Irene and more recent storms this summer. In granting the award, the league highlighted work by Pearce in 2011 and in 2012 to develop a financial assistance package to ease municipal financial stress during storm recovery efforts. The State provided for the advance of millions of dollars to towns for town highway aid, current use, education payments, and payment in lieu of taxes, at the same time deferring some education payments due the state. This summer the Treasurer’s office and Administration reinstated advance of payments programs subsequent to storms and flooding.
The league also recognized her work in the disbursement of Title III funds to towns with Green Mountain National Forest land within their borders for emergency service expenses stemming from the 2011 flood damage.
Also, the membership of the National Association of State Treasurers (NAST) elected new officers for 2014, including state treasurers from Utah, Tennessee, Washington, Vermont, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Wyoming . Their term of office in the national organization is one year, beginning in January.
Elected recently were:
• Utah State Treasurer Richard Ellis will serve as president of the national association. He had formerly served as its senior vice president.
• Tennessee State Treasurer David Lillard Jr. will serve as the 2014 NAST senior vice president. Lillard had formerly served as secretary treasurer of the organization.
• Washington State Treasurer James McIntire was elected to serve as NAST's secretary-treasurer for 2014.
• Vermont State Treasurer Beth Pearce will serve as Eastern Region Vice President
• Oklahoma State Treasurer Ken Miller will serve as Southern Region Vice President
• South Dakota State Treasurer Richard Sattgast will serve as Midwest Region Vice President
• Wyoming State Treasurer Mark Gordon will serve as Western Region Vice President:
Virginia State Treasurer Manju Ganeriwala will continue to serve as NAST president until her term ends on Dec. 31, 2013. At that time, she will continue to serve on the NAST Executive Committee in her capacity as immediate past president.
The treasurers were elected during the NAST Annual Conference, held this year in Asheville, N.C. NAST is a non-profit, bi-partisan organization comprised of state treasurers and other financial leaders and financial industry experts throughout the United States.
Its mission is to encourage the highest ethical standards, promote education and the exchange of ideas, build professional relationships and influence public policy for the benefit of the citizens of the states.
