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11/14/2002PENSION ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING CITY OF CLEARWATER November 14, 2002 Present: Whitney Gray Acting Chair/Commissioner John Lee Committee Member John Schmalzbauer Committee Member Tom Jensen Committee Member Hoyt P. Hamilton Committee Member/Commissioner Frank Hibbard Committee Member/Commissioner Empty seat Committee Member Also Present: Richard Ebelke Assistant Human Resources Director Cynthia Bender Human Resources Manager Debbie Ford Human Resources Analyst Patricia O. Sullivan Board Reporter The Chair called the meeting to order at 9:03 a.m. at City Hall. To provide continuity for research, items are in agenda order although not necessarily discussed in that order. ITEM #2 – Selection of Chair & Vice-Chair (Tabled) ITEM #3 - Approval of Minutes In reference to the October 10, 2002, minutes, it was stated the third paragraph on page four should read, “It was requested staff update the committee regarding the Integrated Disability Management study.” Member Jensen moved to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of October 10, 2002, as amended. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. ITEM #4 – Employees to be Heard - None ITEM #5 – Action Items a) Review and Action on Employee Requests for Years of Service Pensions. 1. Marvin L. Green – Police Officer, Police Department 2. Dale A. Hoffman – Fire Lieutenant, Fire Department Member Jensen moved to approve Years of Service Pensions for Marvin L. Green and Dale A. Hoffman. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. b) Review and Action of Employee Requests to Vest Pensions 1. Lee Achterhof – Marine Recreation Program Supervisor, Marina Lee Achterhof has resigned his position after being employed by the City for more than 10 years. He will qualify to receive his reduced pension beginning March 1, 2012. 2. Douglas R. Pope – Public Utilities Supervisor, Public Utilities Douglas R. Pope has resigned his position after being employed by the City for more than 19 years. He will qualify to receive his reduced pension beginning November 1, 2006. Member Lee moved to approve the requests by Lee Achterhof and Douglas R. Pope to vest their Pensions. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. b) Approval of New Hires as Plan Members. As of November 7, 2002, the City had 1730.47 FTEs out of 1844.9 budgeted positions. Elaine Lewis originally was employed as part-time; transferred to full-time and pension eligible as of October 7, 2002. Member Jensen moved to accept the following employees into membership in the Pension Plan: Date of Pension Employment Elig. Date Debra Lagroix, Staff Assistant Public Utilities 09/23/02 09/23/02 Frederick Broda, Parking Technician Engineering 10/07/02 10/07/02 Heather Faessler, Engineering Specialist Engineering 10/07/02 10/07/02 John Rist, Systems Analyst Official Records/Leg Svcs 10/07/02 10/07/02 Rosemarie Alfaro, Administrative Analyst Official Records/Leg Svcs 10/21/02 10/21/02 Darlene Ruud, Accounting Technician Planning & Dev. Services 10/21/02 10/21/02 Deborah Moore, Accounting Technician Public Utilities 10/21/02 10/21/02 Tyrone Austin, WWTP Operator Trainee Public Utilities 10/21/02 10/21/02 Jonathan Hunter, WWTP Operator Trainee Public Utilities 10/21/02 10/21/02 Elaine Lewis, Fire Public Educa/Info Spec. Fire Department 03/01/99 10/07/02 Alexander Lane, Public Utilities Technician I Public Utilities 11/04/02 11/04/02 Jayme Weaver, Public Utilities Technician I Public Utilities 11/04/02 11/04/02 Roger Lane, Life Hazard Safety Inspector Fire Department 11/04/02 11/04/02 James Beattie, Mechanic II Solid Waste/General Svcs 11/04/02 11/04/02 Douglas Ball, Mechanic II Solid Waste/General Svcs 11/04/02 11/04/02 Bruno Baiermann, Police Cadet Police Department 11/04/02 11/04/02 Thomas Cleator, Tradesworker I Solid Waste/General Svcs 11/04/02 11/04/02 Lafayette Gillette, Parks Service Tech I Parks & Recreation 11/04/02 11/04/02 Angel Haines, Senior Staff Assistant Planning & Dev. Services 10/29/02 10/29/02 The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. ITEM #6 – Pending/New Business a) Contract with Northern Trust for Custodial Service At the Trustee’s direction, staff went out with a RFQ (Request For Qualifications) for custodial services. Ten financial institutions responded positively to the RFQ: 1) Bank of New York; 2) Citibank; 3) JP Morgan/Chase; 4) Merrill Lynch; 5) Northern Trust; 6) Salem Trust; 7) State Street Bank & Trust; 8) South Trust; 9) Wachovia; and 10) Wells Fargo Bank. Three financial institutions declined to submit, citing “assets size too small,” “services requested can not be provided,” and “can not meet minimum qualifications”: 1) Deutsche Bank; 2) Mellon Trust; and 3) Sun Trust Bank Financial institutions were ranked on criteria: 1) Qualifications and Experience; 2) Settlement and Custody; 3) Systems & Technology; 4) Client Servicing; 5) Fees; 6) Securities Lending (Review only); and 7) Performance Measure and Guideline Compliance (Review only). Based on the above criteria, the top three financial institutions and their score are: 1) Bank of New York (87); 2) State Street (87); and 3) Northern Trust (86). Cash & Investments Manager Steve Moskun reviewed recent changes to the market and indicated it has been difficult to determine the value of the Pension Plan’s portfolio for analysis. He said any of the top-rated financial institutions can provide that type of information within five minutes. He said staff recommends Northern Trust as the institution is smaller than the other two and more customer friendly. Staff feels more comfortable with Northern Trust’s staff, who they feel have more expertise. The firm’s CEO met with staff, and personally expressed their commitment. In response to a question, he said no published ranking exists. Callan ranked the top three institutions within one point. A price war is underway, with Northern Trust lowering their rate. Support was expressed for Northern Trust. In response to a question, Mr. Moskun said staff would recommend Northern Trust even if the City does not participate in the institution’s securities lending services, which would lower costs an additional $25,000. The contract is open ended. At any time, the City can terminate the contract, which contains no provision to raise fees. It was stated to avoid liability, compliance issues must be monitored, which is not being done currently. Member Jensen moved to recommend approval of the contract with Northern Trust to provide custodial services for the Employee’s Pension. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. b) Contract with Northern Trust for Securities Lending Services Securities lending is the process where the owner of a security (stock or bonds) loans the security to a third party. The borrower benefits because they get the use of the security. The owner of the security benefits through extra income. The lender/owner of the security retains all the economic benefits of the security except proxy voting. Securities lending has a long history and very definitive regulations. For example, statutes give the lender the right to recall a security at anytime. There are regulations that govern the behavior of all parties involved. Securities lending is transparent to our money manager and will have no effect on them or their decision to buy or sell a security. The main reasons organizations borrow securities are: 1) To cover a settlement failure; 2) To cover a short trading position; and 3) In a proxy fight. When securities are loaned, the borrower provides collateral to the lending agent with a value of 102% of the market value of the security being loaned. On a daily basis the collateral is 102% of the market value of the security being loaned and adjusted if needed. The vast majority of the time the collateral is in cash. The lending agent (Northern Trust) invests the collateral at a rate higher than they are paying the borrower. The additional earnings are split 70% Clearwater 30% Northern Trust. Mr. Moskun said no plan sponsor has lost any money on securities lending. The industry has produced one standard contract for securities lending services. Northern Trust will absorb all risk. It was felt securities lending will provide an opportunity for income. Member Jensen moved to recommend approval of the contract with Northern Trust (lending agent) to provide securities lending services for the Employee’s Pension Plan. The motion was duly seconded and carried unanimously. ITEM #7 – Director’s Reports Human Resources Manager Cynthia Bender provided a project overview of IDM (Integrated Disability Management). A draft of the Phase I assessment has been completed and is being finalized. A team of key managers will review the assessment to determine which recommendations should be implemented. Phase II implementation will begin in January and is planned for completion at the end of 2004. A draft will be released once revisions are completed. Ms. Bender said the cost of sick leave increased by $1-million between 2000 and 2001. In response to a question, she said staff may consider more effective ways to determine ongoing disability claims, rather than self-evaluation. It was stated light duty employees need to be provided useful and meaningful work. Concern was expressed “make work positions,” over extended periods of time, have significant financial costs and erode morale. Concern was expressed Human Resources staff are not qualified to make medical decisions. Ms. Bender said one recommendation is to hire a medical professional, such as a nurse practitioner, to manage a total health management system. To avoid confusion, it was recommended one department handle all disability-related issues. ITEM #8 – Committee Members to be Heard In reference to Joseph Egger’s suit against the City regarding the seventh seat on the PAC (Pension Advisory Committee), the Chair reported at the October 31, 2002 hearing, the judge decided the PAC is not a legal entity and could not be included in any suit. The judge also dismissed the suit but allowed it to be amended. Meanwhile, the PAC will continue to hear cases. ITEM #9- Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 9:46 a.m.