The chief investment officer of California's $350 billion pension fund is stepping aside.

Ted Eliopoulos announced this week he's leaving the California Public Employees' Retirement System once a replacement is hired.

He's one of California's highest paid state workers and responsible for the nation's largest public pension fund. His base salary was $543,000 in the last fiscal year and he received a $314,000 bonus.

Eliopoulos' five-year tenure coincided with significant volatility in financial markets.

CalPERS investments returned 11.2 percent in the last fiscal year after they fell short of the system's 7-percent target for several years.

CalPERS chief executive Marcie Frost credits Eliopoulos with reducing the costs and complexity of investments.

Eliopoulos says his family is moving to New York City, where two daughters are in college.