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1929. NEW ZEALAND.

GOVERNMENT RAILWAYS SUPERANNUATION FUND. REPORT OF BOARD.

Laid before Parliament in pursuance of Section 124 of the Government Railways Act, 1926.

The Board has the honour to transmit, for the information of Parliament, the following report upon the transactions of the Government Railways Superannuation Fund for the year ended 31st March, 1929. The Revenue Account, Balance-sheet, and statements in connection therewith will be found appended. The balance of income over expenditure for the year amounts to £127,548 2s. 9d., as compared with £125,255 13s. Id. for the previous year. Members' Contributions. —The receipts under the heading of members' contributions show a steady increase, being £166,439 3s. 3d., as compared with £158,600 4s. 6d. for the previous year, an increase of £7,838 18s. 9d. Table B, Statement of Contributors, discloses that there is a net increase of 196 members. The contributors at 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 per cent, have increased by 241, 38, 2, 1, and 1 respectively, while contributors at 3 per cent, and 4 per cent, have decreased by 40 and 47 respectively. Contingent Contributors. —During the year 38 casual employees elected to contribute to the fund, so that in the event of their subsequently being permanently appointed they would not be faced with having to pay accumulated arrears on account of service prior to permanent appointment. The total number of employees so contributing at the end of the year under review was 196, and the amount standing to their credit £8,118 4s. 4d. Subsidy. —During the year the sum of £170,000 was paid into the fund by the Working Railways Department. Interest. —The interest amounts to £65,537 ss. 6d., an increase of £7,244 os. 7d. as compared with the previous year. Reference to Table C, Statement of Investments, shows that the average rate of interest on securities held at the 31st March, 1929, was 5-823 per cent., and the average rate earned on the mean funds for the year 5-761 per cent., as against 5-820 per cent, and 5-758 per cent, respectively for the previous year. Owing to the increase in interest collections the expenditure, under the heading " Public Trust Commission," is £141 Is. Id. in excess of the figures for the previous year. Life Allowances. —The expenditure on account of life allowances to members amounts to £240,710 ss. 4d., an increase of £12,849 9s. lid. as compared with the figures for the previous year. The increases under this heading were £12,610 13s. 4d. for the year ended 31st March, 1928, and £16,360 6s. 4d. for the year ended 31st March, 1927. On referring to Table A, Statement of Allowances, it will be seen that the average amount of the 96 allowances granted during the year is £216 17s. 2d., and that the average amount of the 65 allowances discontinued is £145 6s. sd. Allowances to Widows and Children. —The expenditure under the heading of allowances to widows and children shows a decrease of £129 Bs. 2d. The sum of £12,336 12s. 3d., being £43 3s. lOd. less than the previous year, was transferred from the Working Railways Account during the year on account of the increased payments to widows and children as provided in section 114, Part 111, of the Government Railways Act, 1926. Approval was received for the continuance of the cost-of-living bonus to annuitants in cases of special hardship where the allowance was less than £100, the amount of bonus granted being sufficient to bring the allowance up to £100, but with a maximum bonus of £26. The bonus is provided for out of the Working Railways Account, and is not a charge on the Superannuation Fund. At the 31st March, 1929, there were 1,478 members, 485 widows, and 452 children, making a total of 2,415 persons actually on the fund, involving an annual liability of £258,632 Is. sd. Investment of the Fund. —The Investment Account has been increased during the year to the extent of £125,000. All moneys not required in the Current Account have been transferred to the Investment Account without delay. W. B. Taverner, Chairman of the Government Railways Superannuation Fund Board.

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