Nebraska retirement director resigns after less than half a year with agency

LINCOLN — After an 18-month search to find a new director for Nebraska’s Public Employees Retirement System, the man selected for the position is resigning at the end of October.

NPERS legal counsel Tag Herbek confirmed in an email that Executive Director Thomas Pfeifle resigned effective Oct. 31. The Nebraska Public Employees Retirement Board officially approved Pfeifle’s employment on June 15.

Herbek said Pfeifle “expressed an interest to be closer to his family in Colorado” as the reason for his resignation. He said the board will hold a special meeting Sept. 30 to consider “leadership succession matters.”

Before selecting Pfeifle as executive director, NPERS went without a permanent director for more than a year and a half. The previous director, former State Treasurer John Murante, left in December 2024 after just over a year with the agency.

Through most of the search process, NPERS’ deputy director Tyler Cummings served as interim director. The board recommended Cummings to replace Murante, but Gov. Jim Pillen rejected his appointment.

The decision contributed to the departure of board member Allen Simpson in April 2025, who previously told the Examiner he believed that he shouldn’t stay on the board if the governor didn’t approve the committee’s pick.

“They’re not going to get a better candidate than Tyler Cummings,” Simpson said.

Laura Strimple, the governor’s spokesperson, said Pillen rejected Cummings based on his lack of experience in the retirement industry, citing reasons similar to those state lawmakers gave in 2023 for rejecting the appointment of Nebraska State Education Association lobbyist Jason Hayes to lead NPERS.

Cummings left NPERS in April 2026 after roughly seven years to take a job with the city of Lincoln managing pension plans for police and firefighters.