I was reading through the GAO audit of TSP today (from June, 2007), and found this interesting quote in it, from Greg Long, Executive Director of teh FRTIB. It just reinforces what we have found in many other sources.....the administrative expenses of the TSP are very low now, and getting lower as time goes on and assets increase. Therefore, their claim that expenses have increased greatly due to frequent IFT's by a small number of TSP participants is BOGUS! If you need a quote from Long to include in your letter(s), consider using this one:
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"We concur with the use of benchmarking of costs in appropriate situations. The Agency is always mindful of its responsibility to ensure prudent use of TSP resources. In fact, as the report notes, overall TSP administrative costs, which include all Agency expenditures, compare extremely favorably with private sector 401(k) plans, which we view as the most appropriate benchmark. TSP total administrative costs, including all record keeping and staff costs, as well as investment costs, were only three basis points in 2006. This is far lower than the reported costs of any other 401(k) plan (the report cites an average of 75 basis points) and is in fact several times less than the reported investment expenses alone for the cheapest 401(k) plans."
