MINUTES
HULL CONTRIBUTORY RETIREMENT BOARD MEETING
July 30, 2003
The regular meeting of the Hull Contributory Retirement Board, duly posted to be held in the Selectmen's Meeting Room Meeting Room, Town Hall, Hull, MA on the above date was called to order at 9:00 a.m. Present were Maurice Murphy, Chairman, Members Leonard Colten, Ann MacNaughton, Chris McCabe and James Yacobucci, and Retirement Administrator Marcia Bohinc.
The Board read and attested to the minutes of the June 25, 2003 board meeting without correction.
The Board signed all bill warrants for July 2003.
The Board signed the contributory payroll for June 2003.
It was noted for the record that the meeting was being audio recorded.
Jim Yacobucci made a motion to approved Judith Greenberg's Superannuation Retirement, option B, with a retirement date of June 30, 2003. Chris McCabe seconded the motion and the board voted unanimously.
J. Yacobucci made a motion to approved Robert Tompkins' Superannuation Retirement, option C, with a retirement date of May 31, 2003. Lenny Colten seconded the motion and the board voted unanimously.
The Board approved the new member application for Ann R. MacNaughton.
Application for Disability Retirement:
A motion was made by Maurice Murphy to not approve the Application for Disability Retirement for Highway Department employee Gary K. Taylor. C. McCabe seconded the motion.
Discussion:
PERAC issued the Review of Medical Panel Certificate on June 23, 2003. The Regional Medical Panel physicians were David Krohn, M.D., Robert A. Levine, M.D., and Dewitt C. Brown, M.D. The examination was performed on Thursday, June 5, 2003. The Panel made the following findings:
1. Is the member mentally or physically incapable of performing the essential duties of his or her job as described in the current job description? - YES
2. Is the said incapacity likely to be permanent? - YES
3. Is said incapacity such as might be the natural and proximate result of the personal injury sustained or hazard undergone on account of which retirement is claimed? - YES
All three physicians signed the Majority Opinion.
Minutes
Upon discussion, C. McCabe directed the Board to two specific statements made by the panel:
- Mr. Taylor "clearly has not reached a medical end result, since he is only three and a half months following his surgery." And,
- ..since so little time has elapsed since his surgery, there is some possibility that he would be able to return to his job without restrictions."
Given PERAC's definition of permanency, along with the written physician statements, the Board agreed that there was sufficient confusion in the report to request clarification from the physicians.
M. Murphy withdrew his motion to not approve the application; C. McCabe withdrew his second.
L. Colten made a motion to write to the Medical Panel requesting clarification. It was seconded by C. McCabe and voted unanimously. Specifically, the Board is requesting
- what is a typical recovery period for Mr. Taylor's type of surgery (minimum/maximum time)
- has Mr. Taylor experienced a typical recovery, or is he on track to a typical recovery
- is there any other information available to determine if the surgery will ultimately prove to be successful
- is it appropriate for the disability process to be taking place now, given the unknown result of the surgery
- what specific information draws the Panel to the conclusion that Mr. Taylor is disabled
- if Mr. Taylor is not at a medical end, why does the report state "his incapacity is likely to be permanent"
- and how great is the possibility Mr. Taylor could return to his job
Conclusion:
The Board will wait for clarification from the Medical Panel before they proceed with the vote to accept or deny Mr. Taylor's Application for Disability.
There was insufficient information at this time regarding police officer David S Leary's Application for Disability Retirement to vote to continue the process. This will be continued until the next meeting.
The Board reviewed without discussion the year-to-date trial balance and cash accounts' reconciliation.
Investments:
The following investment materials were provided to the Board:
- Appropriation allocation - based on the May 31, 2003 asset balances, the appropriation was invested so that the resulting total asset allocation
would be 50% PRIT, 25% SSgA, 25% Freedom Capital.
- Investment policy at SSgA: Tactical Asset Allocation Account (fundamental investment approach), using the Global Balanced Management
process, with a benchmark allocation of:
40% S&P 500 Index (Large Cap Domestic Equities)
40% Lehman Aggregate Index (Fixed Income)
10% Russell 200 Index (Small Cap Domestic Equities)
10% EAFE (International Equities The actual investment deviates from the benchmarks due to market conditions and the portfolio manager- Fund Performance through June 30, 2003
- SSgA and PRIT performance updates
- Sample Report of an Asset Allocation Study from OFI Institutional Asset Management.
OFI offered to perform an asset allocation study free of charge and without obligation for the Hull Retirement System. J Yacobucci made a motion to accept this offer, L. Colten seconded and the board voted unanimously. Marcia Bohinc will provide OFI with the required asset information and investment strategy.
- Summary of Investments Held - 1983 - 1987, Funding History - 1989 - 2002, and funding percents and relevant information for retirement
systems of similar size. This information was in response to C. McCabe's request for information on the funding history of the Hull Retirement
system to better understand the current funding position.
- J. Yacobucci reiterated the Board's need for an investment consultant.
In preparation for Police Chief Donald Brooker's upcoming retirement, C. McCabe made a motion to forward the Chief's employment contract with the Selectmen to the Board's legal counsel to determine the Chief's regular compensation for retirement purposes.
Ann MacNaughton seconded the motion. Voted yes - M. Murphy, A. MacNaughton, C. McCabe and J. Yacobucci, voted no - L. Colten.
C. McCabe made a motion, seconded by J. Yacobucci and voted by all to inform the Chief of the vote to forward the Chief's information to counsel.
The Board is still waiting on the outcome of the MACRS meeting regarding fiduciary insurance. M. Bohinc has been in contact with John Murphy at MACRS and will provide an update at the next meeting. M. Murphy believes that moving all the assets to PRIT will be the only answer.
The Board voted to not attend a Hedge Fund Educational Seminar & Lunch sponsored by OFI Institutional Asset Management on Tuesday August 5, 2003 at the Westin Copley Place, Boston.
The Board asked for an update on receiving the fiscal year 2002 appropriation from the Hull Housing Authority. After discussions with the senior actuary at PERAC, M. Bohinc sent Acting HHA Director Paul Daley a letter detailing how the appropriation and allocation to the HHA was determined, and the HHA's obligation to remit the full amount. As of this date, there has been no response. C. McCabe suggested sending a letter to State Representative Garrett J. Bradley and State Senator Robert L. Hedlund asking for their help with getting an allocation in the supplemental budget process. M. Bohinc will continue to follow-up.
- FY2003 appropriation of $16,577 remains unpaid
- Member deductions due as of December 31, 2002 of $111.79 - Paid
- No member deductions have been received for 2003 - P. Daley is working on a list of deductions and will forward a check
- FY2004 appropriation is $10,033 - has been budgeted and will be paid
L. Colten made inquiries regarding locked storage space for retirement files in response to PERAC memo #19/2003 - Privacy and Security of Boards' Records, Documents and Communications. To date, he has not found available space. C. McCabe does not think storage outside of Town Hall is necessary.
The Board was provided the following information on retiree John Clasby regarding a vote made in the June Board Meeting to review Mr. Clasby's retirement.
- Letter from Joseph Connarton, Executive Director PERAC, dated January 23, 2001
- Hull Contributory Retirement Board Meeting Minutes dated July 18, 2001
- Article 22 from 2000 Annual Report, Town of Hull
The Board read all informational mail:
- Memo from Ralph White - Re: Local ERI on Governor's Desk
- PERAC Memo #21/2003 - Repeal of G.L. c. 32, § 5(1)(e) Spousal retirement provision
- PERAC Memo #22/2003 - Retirement Board Travel Regulations (Hull Retirement Board's Supplemental Travel Regulations included for review)
- PERAC Memo #23/2003 - Tobacco Company List
- Various news items from Pensions & Investments - July 7 and July 21, 2003
- Various Investment Information
- The Babson Staff Letter - June 27, 2003
- The Babson Staff Letter - July 11, 2003
- Segal Bulletin - June 2003
- Corporate Governance Bulletin - Third Quarter 2003
The next regular Board Meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, August 27, 2003 at 9:00 a.m. in the Selectmen's Meeting Room.
The Hull Contributory Retirement Board meeting adjourned at 10:39 a.m.
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