As State Treasurer,Zweifel managed a 50 member team that invested $3.5 billion in assets on behalf of Missourians. He also led the state’s banking system while spearheading work on retirement security,small business,college savings,military installations and housing while maintaining the state's AAA-credit rating. [4] He served two terms as State Treasurer,winning election in 2008 and reelection in 2012. [5]
Political positions
- Retirement security
As State Treasurer,Zweifel served as an ex-officio member of the Missouri State Employees' Retirement System which administers retirement,life insurance,and long-term disability benefits for state employees. His focus on retirement policy and advocacy resulted in legislation banning the predatory practice known as "pension advances" for Missouri public pensioners. [6] [7]
Zweifel also pursued policy to ensure sound financial stewardship of public funds. He worked with a national bipartisan coalition of state and local treasurers and comptrollers to set clearer guardrails around investing public funds. He joined his counterparts around the country to call on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to establish consistent standards around fees and expenses associated with private equity for public funds. It was an important step toward transparency and enhanced financial stewardship of public funds on behalf of Missouri consumers. [8] [9]
- Addressing homelessness
Zweifel served on the Missouri Housing Development Commission through which he passed a housing plan of more than $120 million to combat homelessness in the state. The proposal represented the largest commitment to affordable housing in Missouri's history,including for thousands of veterans,school-age children and those suffering from mental health issues. The plan recalibrated Missouri's housing tax credit program to focus directly on developing affordable housing - dramatically enhancing the program's efficiency and cost effectiveness. while refocusing resources for vulnerable populations. [10] [11]
- Small business
By working with Missouri lenders and small businesses,Zweifel dramatically expanded The Missouri Linked Deposit Program,which makes low-interest loans to Missouri small businesses. Through his effective stewardship of the program he was able to secure an additional $400 million in lending power during his time in office to bolster small businesses around the state.
In 2014,Zweifel leveraged his good working relationships with the Missouri banking community to quickly establish a Small Business Relief Fund for Ferguson-area businesses that were affected by unrest in that community.
- MOST 529
Zweifel oversaw MOST,Missouri's 529 college savings program,and lowered fees by as much as 80 percent during his time in office,cutting costs for savers and making higher education more accessible for thousands. [12] He also regularly traveled the state to speak with students about the importance of financial literacy and starting to save early.
