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DRS annual briefing: serves nearly 1,000,000 members, reports progress on security and CorePAM modernization
Summary
Department of Retirement Systems Executive Director Catherine Leathers told the LEOFF2 board DRS serves almost 1 million customers, reduced call-hold times toward a 2-minute goal, and plans to go live with its CorePAM pension modernization project around September 2027; she said the project has remained under budget to date.
Department of Retirement Systems Executive Director Catherine Leathers told the Law Enforcement Officers' and Fire Fighters' Plan 2 Retirement Board on Nov. 19 that DRS administers eight pension systems (15 plans) and serves nearly 1,000,000 people in Washington.
"In fiscal year 2025, we collected $5,600,000,000 from our 1,400 employer partners in contributions, and we paid out about $8,900,000,000 in benefit payments and contribution refunds," Leathers said. She told board members DRS manages those payments with a staff of roughly 300 team members who handle member experience, operations and specialized units for disability and survivor benefits.
Leathers highlighted operational improvements meant to reduce customer wait times and processing delays. She said the agency's goal is an average phone wait below two minutes and reported current performance of about two minutes and two seconds, crediting recent hiring and training investments. She also said average completion time for benefit estimates has dropped from highs near 50 days to about 10 days following increased staffing.
On security and technology, Leathers said DRS completed a contract with LexisNexis to add live risk-event monitoring to the customer portal and automatically block high-risk events. She described CorePAM (Pension Administration Modernization), a multiyear IT replacement project, as a three-year transformation with a targeted go-live around September 2027 and said the project has been under budget so far.
Leathers said CorePAM aims to automate manual processes, shorten staff training time and offer a member self-service option for official benefit estimates. "With this new technology, most customers will be able to get that estimate through our website, and they can apply to retire immediately," she said.
Board members asked about restoring a dedicated LEOFF2 specialist and other staffing continuity concerns; Leathers recommended continuing to work with staff contact Seth Miller while she explores options. She said DRS will share an updated strategic plan with the board in 2026 as it completes the modernization and stakeholder listening process.
The presentation closed with Leathers thanking her team and offering to answer follow-up questions at the board's request. The board did not take formal action on operational items at the Nov. 19 meeting.
