PRESS RELEASE
Treasurer Fitzpatrick Sworn-In for Four-Year Term
Jefferson City, MO – During today’s inauguration
at the Missouri State Capitol, Missouri State Treasurer Scott Fitzpatrick was
sworn-in for a four-year term by Barry County Associate Judge Johnnie Cox. The
Treasurer was elected November 3 with more votes than any treasurer in Missouri
history. “I
am grateful for the opportunity to continue serving as Missouri’s Treasurer,”
Treasurer Fitzpatrick said. “As a husband and father, a business owner, and now
as State Treasurer, I value fiscal responsibility. Over the past two years, I
have worked to increase government transparency, to support small businesses,
and to help Missouri families save for the future. 2020 was certainly a
challenging year, but I am hopeful for Missouri’s future and I look forward to
continuing this important work to ensure that all Missourians are able to thrive.” PROTECTING YOUR
TAX DOLLARS As the state’s Chief Financial
Officer, Treasurer Fitzpatrick is actively engaged in the management of state
funds. While the impact of COVID-19 could be felt across the financial sector, including
record low interest rates, the state still beat its benchmark for investment
earnings over the past two years. Missouri
continues to maintain its AAA bond rating, the highest rating issued by
Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s, and Fitch Ratings, one of the few states with
the distinction of a triple-triple credit rating. INVESTING IN MISSOURIANS Less than two months after
taking office, Treasurer Fitzpatrick enacted important reforms to Missouri FIRST,
the state’s linked deposit program, ensuring the long-term viability of the
program and allowing Missouri small business owners and farmers continued
access to its benefits. These
reforms had their intended impact and the program is no longer in danger of
reaching the statutory cap. Linked deposits allow the state
to partner with Missouri financial institutions to provide low-interest loans
to small businesses and farmers. In 2019, following widespread flooding and
storm damage across Missouri, Treasurer Fitzpatrick launched
LIFT which used linked deposits to provide low-interest loans to small
businesses and farms economically impacted by natural disasters. This
program has placed nearly $3.5 million in linked deposits for recovering
businesses and farms. Treasurer Fitzpatrick is working
to place more of the state’s investment portfolio into the Missouri economy by
bringing back time deposits which place money in Missouri banks. By pursuing
competitive bidding for these deposits, Treasurer Fitzpatrick is maximizing the
state’s return while investing in Missouri banks. RETURNING YOUR MONEY
A reflection of Treasurer Fitzpatrick’s dedication to returning money to
Missourians, the Unclaimed Property Division broke three records under his
leadership—returning
the first $1 million of his administration in just nine days
(including a state holiday), returning
a record $45 million for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2019, and
returning
money to more Missourians for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2020,
than any prior year. Treasurer Fitzpatrick is
committed to finding innovative ways to streamline returning Unclaimed Property
to Missourians. In 2019, he announced a
new partnership with the Department of Social Services that
created an automated system to match past-due child support
cases with the Unclaimed Property database. This partnership has returned over
$3.5 million to Missouri families. In 2020, Treasurer Fitzpatrick partnered
with the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations to return Unclaimed
Property to those who have applied for unemployment benefits. In three months,
this partnership has already returned over $1 million. The
Treasurer also partnered
with military institutions across the state to engage Missourians in
returning unclaimed military medals. He is also working
with Missouri’s federal delegation to encourage the passage of
legislation that would empower states to act on behalf of the U.S.
Treasury Department to find owners of matured unredeemed U.S. savings bonds. HELPING MISSOURIANS SAVE FOR
THE FUTURE
Treasurer Fitzpatrick has made growing MO ABLE a priority. Since taking office,
MO
ABLE has doubled in size and is one of the largest programs in the nation. Encouraging
Missouri businesses to add payroll deductions for MO ABLE accounts to their
benefits packages is another major priority for the office. Currently Cox
Health, the largest employer in southwest Missouri, Truman
State University, University
of Central Missouri, Missouri
State University, and Central
Bank have established payroll deductions for MO ABLE. The Treasurer is
partnering with Chambers of Commerce across the state to engage employers in
making it easier for their employees with disabilities and parents of children
with disabilities to save for the future. Likewise,
Treasurer Fitzpatrick negotiated with MOST 529 Plan partners to lower
investment fees for MOST participants, saving Missourians $8 million over the
life of the contract. The MOST 529 Plan is one of the highest rated plans in
the country, earning
a silver rating from research firm Morningstar. GOVERNMENT
TRANSPARENCY A
proponent of increasing government transparency, Treasurer Fitzpatrick has
worked to expand access to expenditure data, growing the Show-Me Checkbook, one
of the most comprehensive state financial data portals in the country, to
include local governments. Currently, eight
local governments are participating with several more in progress. Following
the passage of the CARES Act, the Treasurer also created a spending portal
to track Coronavirus Relief Fund spending. This portal uses technology
employed by the Show-Me Checkbook to aggregate and single out spending data
related to COVID-19 for state agencies and is searchable by fund, agency,
object code, vendor, and date. A lifelong Missourian, Treasurer Fitzpatrick
graduated from Cassville High School and the University of Missouri. He and his
wife Mallory have two sons, Luke and Carson. ###
