Fire Pension Board

MINUTES CITY OF DEKALB DeKalb Firefighters Pension Fund October 10, 2019 The Board of Trustees of the DeKalb Firefighters Pension Fund held a Meeting on October 10, 2019, in the Haish Conference Room at 200 S. Fourth St., DeKalb, Illinois. Pat Eriksen, President of the Board called the meeting to order at 8:08 AM. ROLL CALL President Pat Eriksen called the roll. Members of the DeKalb Firefighters Pension Fund present were Pat Eriksen, Jeff McMaster, Chris Ziola, Bill Kalal, and Ray Krueger. No members were absent. Also present were Investment Manager Craig Larsen, Assistant City Manager Ray Munch, and Recording Secretary Natalie Nelson. Pension Board Attorney Cary Collins arrived at 8:09 AM. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA – ADDITIONS / DELETIONS Chris Ziola motioned to approve the agenda, Bill Kalal seconded the motion, and the motion passed by unanimous voice vote. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION Assistant City Manager Ray Munch was present. He had no comments at this time. Investment Manager Craig Larsen would present during New Business. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Chris Ziola motioned to approve the minutes from regular meeting held July 24, 2019, Bill Kalal seconded the motion, and the motion passed by unanimous voice vote. OLD BUSINESS 1. Seminars None. DeKalb Firefighters Pension Fund October 10, 2019 Page 2 of 4 NEW BUSINESS 1. Investment Manager Report Craig Larsen presented the quarterly report. He reported the cash balance is sufficient and did not recommend reallocating the cash balance. He discussed how national and international issues may affect the stock market and investment growth. He noted that the third quarter experienced no growth, but year-to-date is positive. Mr. Larsen discussed the ongoing discussions about Illinois fire and police pension consolidation. He stated his firm would continue to provide its current services to the DeKalb fire pension, and no assets would be transferred without a clear plan in place, which could take some time. Cary Collins questioned if Lauterbach & Amen supports pension consolidation. He reported upon meetings of the coalition of labor unions held in Springfield. The intended effect of consolidating pension funds is to lower costs. He discussed the modified role local pension boards will assume and some of the proposed policy and procedure changes. Mr. Collins recommended taking no actions yet, as labor union coalition meetings were meant to develop recommendations for the Governor to consider. He reported preparation of petitions is underway in case objection to legislation is necessary. Local and state government officials, organizations, and lobbyists have expressed both support and opposition for consolidating pensions. He reported that on November 1, the Professional Firefighters Conference will include discussion of the proposed legislation. Mr. Collins also announced he will be teaching at an 8-hour Ethics Training on November 22 in West Dundee. He also announced a general training opportunity on December 6 at Poplar Creek Country Club. Mr. Larsen brought the discussion back to the quarterly report and noted the fees on the last page are very competitive and likely the lowest possible. He also reported upon how decreases in communities’ EAVs and population and how aging populations affect pension funding. Bill Kalal stated he did not support state controlling the money in the fire pension. He said that this proposed temporary situation may become permanent. Chris Ziola agreed that the state does not have a good track record managing money, and consolidation would cause the role of the DeKalb fire pension board to become primarily administrative, and firefighters early in their careers would be more affected than those nearing retirement. DeKalb Firefighters Pension Fund October 10, 2019 Page 3 of 4 Pat Eriksen reported DeKalb Firefighters Local 1236 union representatives have expressed its supportive of the consolidation, but the DeKalb fire pension board disagrees. 2. Required Investment Transactions None. 3. Approval of Financial Transactions and Financial Reports Chris Ziola motioned to approve the financial transactions and report as presented, Ray Krueger seconded the motion. A roll call vote was taken. Aye votes were cast by McMaster, Krueger, Kalal, Ziola, and Eriksen. No opposing votes were cast. The motion passed. 4. Review and Update Asset Allocation None. 5. Accounts Payable – Review of Invoices and Expenses None. 6. New Members A new hire will occur after the new year. 7. 2018 Municipal Compliance Report Natalie Nelson will forward a copy of the signed report to Assistant City Manager Ray Munch. Ray Munch left the meeting at 8:48 AM. 8. Approve Jeff Jossendal Military Buy Back Purchase and Acknowledge Hire Date Pat Eriksen reported the financial transaction has been complete, but the date will change from January 2020 to March 2020. 9. Request for Benefits Pat Eriksen reported that Firefighter Sean Freeman has begun preliminary inquiries regarding retiring within the next three to six months. 10. Military Service Time Buyback None. DeKalb Firefighters Pension Fund October 10, 2019 Page 4 of 4 11. Discussion of Topics for Next Meeting Agenda a. Schedule Special Meeting to Approve Jeff Jossendal retirement information This meeting was not scheduled. However, the 2020 meeting dates were set to occur at 8:00 AM as follows: January 9, 2020 April 9, 2020 July 9, 2020 October 8, 2020 The meeting location will be City Hall until it is no longer available. ADJOURNMENT Chris Ziola motioned to adjourn, Bill Kalal seconded the motion, and the motioned passed by unanimous voice vote. The meeting adjourned at 9:12 AM. The next regular meeting of the DeKalb Firefighters Pension Board will be Thursday, January 9, 2020, at 8:00 AM, location to be announced at a later time. Natalie Nelson, Recording Secretary Minutes approved by DeKalb Firefighters Pension Board on January 9, 2020.