Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-05-24 Commissioners of Trust Fund Minutes Town of Reading Meeting Minutes Fe ho itr N! rlcRK Board - Committee - Commission - Council: pq OCT -i PM 4: 41 Commissioners of Trust Funds Date: 2018-05-24 Time: 7:00 PM Building: Reading Town Hall Location: Lower Level Conference Room Address: 16 Lowell Street Purpose: General Business Attendees: Members - Present: Elizabeth Klepeis, John Daly, Neil Cohen and Endri Kume Members - Not Present: Andrew Friedman; Richard Holmes Others Present: Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Endri Kume Topics of Discussion: Mr. Cohen called the meeting to order at 7:05PM. Open Session for topics not reasonably anticipated 48 hours in advance of the meeting Not any. Meeting Notes Mr.Cohen made a friendly amendment and moved with a motion to approve the meeting notes of 3/22/18 as amended. On a motion by Mr.Cohen,seconded by Ms.Kleveis the Minutes of the 03/22/18 meeting notes were approved,as amended,by a vote of 4-0. Review Portfolio.Discuss investment changes Mr.Cohen asked Mr.Daly to provide a portfolio review and if there were any changes at this time.Mr.Daly informed the commissioners that we had completed 6 purchases over 6 months from the sale of SPDR that was made in the month of January. There were two bonds that were called during the month of April,Philips Electronics and Rio Tinto Financial USA. Mr.Daly shared that he had been in contact with the Mr.Gregory Lee,the broker,and is actively looking to find suitable replacement for the two bonds that were called. Mr. Daly provided an overview of the market and the financial environment. He mentioned that due to the recent activity related to tariffs increase on aluminum and steel and Federal Reserve decision to allow inflation to run above 2%the 10 year Treasury fell to 2.97%while the 30 year Treasury bond was lower at 3.12%. Mr. Daly also noted that the Small Cap index outperformed S&P.Mr. Daly noted that our strategy is for the long run and should not be affected by the recent fluctuation of the market.GE is still the worst performer of the portfolio.There are talks that they will cut the dividend but it is not confirmed yet.In recent news GE was going to merge the Transportation Division and hopefully cut some cost.We are still in a hold position for GE and all the Commissioners agree on holding GE. Mr.Kume informed the Commissioners that Wells Fargo was on the news again. More specifically they had agreed to pay$480M to settle claims it mislead shareholders about the fake-accounts scandal.Mr.Kume indicated that he Gage 1 1 rou.m.m Town of Reading 0x Meeting Minutes 'a�P�IN[OPr� wanted to just inform the Commissioners of what is going on with the institution that the Commissioners have$9M with and is managing the funds. On a separate note Mr. Kume had asked Mr.Lee,the broker,on fees that the Trust Funds pay for their portfolio.The below response was received directly from Mr. Lee: For XXXX-XX77 and XXXX-XX28 there are NO costs of any kind EXCEPT if a bond is purchased(or sold). A mark-up is built into the bond and it is not listed anywhere separately so I cannot provide. Interestingly Wells Fargo Advisors is changing this THIS MONTH. On all future bond purchases it will list the mark-up on the trade confirmation. Please note that the yields 1 quote you are always NET of any mark-up. For XXXX-XX21 the same applies for the bonds. This account also does equity trades,typically purchasing/selling SPY. This account is hard-coded for a 75%discount on all equity trade commissions. The exact charge can vary depending on the quantity and price of security bought&sold but the same 75%discount always applies. Mr. Krone reported that he had received a letter from the Reading Scholarship Foundation.The letter thanked the Commissioners for the recent contribution and continuous support that they had provided through the years.Mr.Name also noted that he had signed off on the marketing material for the Parker Loan application and would expect applications to coming in during the summer months. Mr.Cohen asked Mr.Kume to reach out to the Library Director and provide her with all the documentation that we have for the library trust funds.Ms. Klepeis indicated that in the past funds were used to some extent however in the recent years we had seen no activity. Reading Response Program Ms.Klepeis gave her liaison report.Ms.Klepeis informed the board that Ms.Jane Burns had inquire if the Commissioners will consider to fund or support a program related to Mental Health but she had submitted no formal proposal at this point. Without a formal proposal the Commissioners agreed that they couldn't make a decision until they see the full details of the program. Ms.Klepeis asked Mr. Kume on the status update for the MassTran contract.A draft copy was shared and reviewed from all the Commissioners present.There were only two changes made to the draft outlined below: 1. Under the`Requirement"section the following was removed: a. Be able to make approximately 80 trips per month for the Reading Response Program. 2. The`Tax Certification Clause was edited as noted below in italic: a. Pursuant to M.G.L.c.62C, §49A,I MassTran certifies under the penalties of perjury that,to my the best knowledge and belief of undersigned General Manager,MASSTRAN has filed all stale tax returns,and paid all state taxes,reported all employees and contractors,and withheld and remitted state and federal taxes and child support,all as required by Federal and State statute. On a motion by Ms.Klepeis,second by Mr.Daly,the draft contract was accepted as presented and amended at the meeting,by a vote of 4-0. Ms. Klepeis noted that the Reading Response Program spending had cooled down from the previous months.The available budget at$40K might cover all the expenses however it might not be enough considering two more months of expenses.In such event Ms.Klepeis noted that the Commissioners will have to call an emergency meeting to vote on a budget amendment.Ms.Klepeis suggested an increasing of the budget from$40K to$50K for MassTran. On a motion by Ms.Klepeis,second by Mr.Daly,the MassTran budget was increase from$40K to$50K effective immediately-by a vote of 4-0. Page 2 P Town of Reading 0{� Meeting Minutes �,�P'IMOPr� Next Meeting Next meeting was scheduled for September 13' ,2018 with a backup date of October I lµ,2018. On a motion by Mr. Daly seconded by Ms Kleoeis the Commissioners voted to adjourn its meeting,at 8:10 P.M.by a vote of 40. Respectfully submitted, Secretary Page 1 3 :ossw-o.