Pension insolvency, tuition savings at issue in race for Pa. treasurer

The race for Pennsylvania treasurer may not be a high priority for voters, but they’ll have a choice among three hopefuls for the commonwealth’s next manager of financial assets.

At a time in which the state’s pension crisis looms large on the horizon — and in the headlines — the Republican candidate for treasurer says she has solutions.

Diana Irey Vaughan says her 17 years as a Washington County commissioner equipped her with the know-how to manage the state’s money.

“No. 1, we need to decrease our debt. We need to, two, simplify our investments, eliminating unnecessary risk and the high fees that we’re paying, and No. 3, we need to responsibly fund our pensions,” Vaughan says.

Democratic incumbent Rob McCord points to his work managing another unfunded liability — the 529 college savings program to help make university tuition more affordable.

“We repaired it. We took it from 70 percent funded, to more than 97 percent funded,” he said.

Also running for the position is Libertarian candidate Patricia Fryman.