Troubled by 401 (k) losses? Imagine what Glenn Deck feels like.

Deck is the executive director of the Kansas Public Employees Retirement System, which is the pension plan for state workers, teachers and many local governmental employees.

For the first quarter of the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, the assets of KPERS dropped more than $1 billion, bringing the fund to about $12 billion.

“It has been a pretty significant downturn,” he said.

Deck said the performance of KPERS has mirrored pension plans across the nation.

The dropoff is not unlike stock problems after the terrorist attack on Sept. 11, 2001, or the market crash in 1987, he said.

Long term, he said, he expects the market to recover. In the previous fiscal year, assets were down $640 million, but in the three years before that, KPERS’ investment income grew by $2.2 billion, $1.4 billion and $1.2 billion, he said.

He said retirement benefits are safe, but added that if the market doesn’t recover in the next year or so, employer contributions to KPERS may have to be increased.