Rhonda Smith, Deputy Director and Chief Financial Officer at Houston Police Department (HPD) has been elected by her peers to serve a four-year term on the Houston Municipal Employees Pension System (HMEPS) Board of Trustees.
Rhonda brings more than 30 years of combined financial and pension experience including managing the billion-dollar pension fund, successfully negotiating the Meet and Confer contract that created more revenues for the pensions while also advocating, developing, coordinating, and implementing the governmental strategy for state and federal legislation. As a board member, she will hold a fiduciary responsibility to the more than 25,000 participants to protect the $3 billion investment portfolio.
“I am elated to serve and have committed to working collaboratively with the members of the board to ensure we have a sound investment strategy, improved education inclusive of mobile and onsite opportunities, and advocacy for the employees of the City of Houston,” Smith stated. “Meeting so many people, sharing my vision and asking for their vote was hard, but now, the real work begins.”
As the Chief Financial Officer and Deputy Director for the Houston Police Department, she and her team provide oversight of HPD’s $900M+ general and special funds, capital improvement budgets, procurement and grant management and she serves as the City Council liaison. Rhonda knows numbers.
Prior to her position at HPD, Rhonda spent several years in the pension sector. She previously served as both the Executive Director of the Houston Municipal Pension System as well as the Deputy Director for the Houston Firefighters’ Relief and Retirement Fund.
Rhonda holds a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Houston and a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Accounting from The Ohio State University. She is a graduate of the Rice University Certified Financial Planner Certification Education Program.
About Houston Municipal Employees Pension System:
Created in 1943, HMEPS currently has over 25,000 participants which include: Active members, Deferred participants, Retirees, Eligible survivors. HMEPS is administered by an 11-member Board of Trustees which consist of four elected trustees who are members of HMEPS, two elected trustees who are retirees of HMEPS, a trustee appointed by the elected trustees, the mayor’s appointee, the controller’s appointee, and two city council appointees.