The State of Wisconsin Investment Board (SWIB) manages the State Investment Fund. The State Investment Fund invests the excess operating cash balances of State of Wisconsin agencies, the Wisconsin Retirement System, and the Wisconsin Local Government Investment Pool (LGIP). The LGIP is a voluntary option for local governments, such as counties, cities, villages, towns, and school districts.
We provided an unmodified opinion on the financial statements and related notes of the State Investment Fund as of and for the year ended June 30, 2024. Our unmodified opinion is included in SWIB’s State Investment Fund Annual Financial Report. We conducted the financial audit by auditing the State Investment Fund financial statements in accordance with applicable government auditing standards, issuing our auditor’s opinion, reviewing internal controls, assessing compliance with Wisconsin Statutes and investment guidelines, and issuing our auditor’s report on internal control and compliance.
Participants in the State Investment Fund hold shares in the pool of investments. Participant shares held by State of Wisconsin agencies decreased from $13.9 billion as of June 30, 2023, to $13.4 billion as of June 30, 2024. This decrease in participant shares is largely driven by decreases in cash balances in the State’s General Fund.
SWIB’s investment objectives for the State Investment Fund are liquidity, safety of principal, and competitive rates of return. Wisconsin Statutes enumerate the types of investments in which the State Investment Fund can be invested. Repurchase agreements are a form of short-term lending in which SWIB enters into a contract and lends cash to another party in return for collateral typically in the form of U.S. Treasury securities. In addition to repurchase agreements, the State Investment Fund investments included U.S. Treasury obligations and securities of federal agencies, such as the Federal Home Loan Bank; commercial paper; time deposits; corporate notes; and certificates of deposit.
Net position is a measure of overall financial condition and reflects the total shares of the participants in the State Investment Fund. Net position remained high from June 30, 2023, to June 30, 2024, due to high cash balances in the State’s General Fund and the Budget Stabilization Fund, which is the State’s rainy day fund.
