To the Members of the American Samoa Government Employees Retirement Fund (ASGERF),
Over the past several months, I have shared with you four open letters detailing the governance and management challenges within our Fund. These letters were not written lightly. They were grounded in documented facts and shaped by the fiduciary duty I uphold as both a trustee and a member. Each letter was a step toward illuminating the problems we face. This final letter serves as an epilogue to that series—and a call to organize.
Evidence of Dysfunction
Over the past three years, the Fund has expended significant resources issuing Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for key service providers: a pension administration system, an independent auditor, an actuary, and an executive director. Despite these efforts, none of these RFPs reached the decision stage.
Compounding this dysfunction, the investment advisor’s contract expired in February or March of this year. No RFP was issued to fill this critical role, nor has the Board reviewed the advisor’s performance—because no Board meeting has occurred since October 2024.
Another matter of concern is a provision in the investment advisor’s original contract, which states that after the initial three-year term, the advisor would be compensated an additional 3%, in addition to the flat fee originally agreed upon. It remains unclear whether the 3% is based on the flat fee or the value of the Fund’s investment portfolio. It is also unknown if this contract was renewed without the rest of the Board’s involvement.
The 2025 NCPERS Conference
Last month, some trustees and staff traveled to Denver for the NCPERS annual conference. Travel checks were issued. Registrations were completed. Yet not all who registered participated. Some individuals may have received travel funds without registering or attending at all.
This is not an isolated case. Based on my observations as a trustee and accounts from past participants, such practices have recurred for years. I attended this year’s conference at my own expense after the chairman denied my participation—without discussion—despite my active service. I went anyway, expecting the annual board meeting to take place there, as it did in Seattle in 2024. It did not.
The primary purpose of the annual board meeting, held in conjunction with the NCPERS conference (as it was last year), is to receive and deliberate on the annual reports and performance evaluations from service providers, including the custodian, investment advisor, actuary, and auditor. These sessions are crucial for informed fiduciary decision-making and strategic planning by the Board.
Critical Decisions Deferred
At the 2024 annual board meeting in Seattle, the issue of the discount rate used to calculate our Net Pension Liability (NPL) was raised, but the Board deferred discussion and decision to a future meeting. The actuary and investment advisor recommended retaining the 8% rate, while the auditor advocated for a more conservative and lower discount rate to align with industry standards. No decision was made, and the matter has not returned to the agenda since May 2024 or the last board meeting in October.
Additionally, both the actuary and investment advisor are subsidiaries of the same company. This dual-role arrangement raises serious concerns about conflicts of interest and undermines the independence essential to prudent pension fund governance. It is not aligned with best practice standards for fiduciary oversight.
This is no minor technicality. The discount rate directly impacts the size of our reported pension liability, and thus the financial statements of the American Samoa Government (ASG). According to a 2019 U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, [1] ASG’s net pension liability in FY 2017 stood at approximately $213.1 million—about 33% of the territory’s GDP. The GAO identified this as a serious fiscal risk [2], warning that unfunded liabilities could jeopardize ASG’s access to debt markets, federal grants, and long-term solvency.
While a needed reform was enacted in 2022—increased employer and employee contributions—$11 million remains unpaid to the Fund. A prolonged ASG failure to meet its obligations, coupled with continued governance paralysis, threatens the Fund’s sustainability.
Inaction, particularly regarding the discount rate, perpetuates underreporting of liabilities and heightens scrutiny of ASG’s financial integrity.
Governance in Conflict with Law
At the heart of these failures lies not a technical flaw, but a structural one. The Fund is governed by a seven-member Board, as required by statute and bylaws. In practice, however, its direction and operations are now effectively controlled by a single individual—one who also serves as one of the heads of the legislative branch of government—assisted by the legal counsel (also a legislative counsel) and the acting executive director. This concentration of power is contrary to the law and must be addressed without delay.
A Lost Decade and a Half
Since peaking at over $300 million in 2007 (before the global financial crisis), the Fund’s assets have stagnated between $150–$200 million. In contrast, major U.S. indices—the S&P 500, Dow Jones, and NASDAQ—have more than doubled over the same period, rebounding from crises and continuing to climb. The Guam government employees’ pension fund, in comparison, has a two-billion-dollar investment portfolio.
We missed opportunities not because of market volatility, but due to poor governance, inadequate investment oversight, and an absence of timely, disciplined decision-making.
A Call to Organize
We can no longer afford to remain silent if reform is not to come from the top. It must come from us—the contributors, the retirees, the rightful stakeholders.
It is time to form an Association of ASGERF Members to demand accountability, governance reform, and active oversight. We owe this to ourselves and to the generations that follow.
In her 2025 commencement address at the Harvard Kennedy School, journalist Christiane Amanpour reminded graduates that democracy and truth-telling depend on moral courage, vigilance, and personal responsibility. She urged them to resist complacency, protect free expression, and speak truth to power.
We are also reminded:
“No one man can terrorize a whole nation unless we are all his accomplices.” — Edward R. Murrow
“Moral courage can often be harder, even, than physical bravery.” — Robert F. Kennedy
“Dissent is not disloyalty. Dissent is an invaluable part of our democratic process.”
And as echoed in Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning: “We do this for those we hold dear, and for those we will never meet.”
Let us organize. Let us act. Let us build.
I am taking the initiative to form the Association of ASGERF Members. If you are interested in joining or learning more, please email me at keniseli.lafaele55@gmail.com.
This is our moment—not merely to preserve the Fund as it is, but to reimagine it as it must become. For the future. For transparency. For our shared retirement security.
With respect,
Fuiavailili Keniseli Lafaele
References
[1] GAO-19-525: U.S. Territories: Public Debt Outlook – Increases in Federal Assistance Needed for Long-Term Fiscal Sustainability. https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-19-525.pdf
[2] GAO-18-160: U.S. Territories: Public Debt Outlook – Concerns about Sustaining Government Operations and Services. https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-18-160.pdf
