MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
August 7, 2013
CALL TO ORDER
President John Jacobsen called the meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Los Angeles Firemen’s Relief Association to order at 10:59 a.m.
ROLL CALL
MEMBERS PRESENT:
- John Jacobsen, President
- Juan Albarran, Vice President
- Andrew Kuljis, Secretary
- Trustee James Coburn
- Trustee Robert Steinbacher
- Trustee Gene Bednarchik
- Trustee Steven Domanski
- Trustee Jeff Cawdrey
- Trustee Chris Hart
- Trustee Steve Ruda
- Trustee Francisco Hernandez
- Trustee Steve Berkery
- Trustee Barry Hedberg – Pension
- Trustee David Lowe – Pension
- Trustee Tim Larson – Pension
- David Ned Smith – Executive Director
- Controller – Todd Layfer
MEMBERS ABSENT:
- Trustee Michael Overholser (Excused)
- Trustee Doak Smith (Excused)
- Trustee Steve Tufts (Excused)
- Trustee David Ortiz (Excused)
- Trustee Rick Godinez (Excused)
- Trustee Mark Akahoshi (Excused)
- Trustee Craig White (Excused)
- Trustee Chris Stine (Excused)
- Trustee David Peters (Excused)
GUESTS:
- Bob Olsen, L.A. Retired Fire & Police
- Lee Kebler, L.A. Retired Fire & Police
- David Wagner, Grapevine Editor
INVOCATION & Flag Salute
Tim Larson led the invocation. David Lowe led the flag salute.
RATIFICATION OF MINUTES
John Jacobsen entertained a motion to ratify and dispense with the reading of the minutes of the Board of Trustees meeting held July 10, 2013. Tim Larson so moved. David Lowe seconded. There was no further discussion or objections.
Motion carried to ratify and dispense with the reading of the minutes of the Board of Trustees held July 10, 2013.
INVESTMENT REPORT
Jacobsen stated that Garth Flint and Mike Breller of Beacon Pointe would present the quarterly overview and performance for the LAFRA portfolio.
Garth Flint reviewed the market outlook with the Board, manager performance and proposed changes to the portfolio. He referred to the asset classes and how they performed in the various years. He stated that the year to year change in performance is why you diversify and why rebalancing is important to keep the desired allocation. He mentioned that commodities and emerging markets have been struggling for the past couple of years. He stated that hedge funds have underperformed in the last five to six years and indicated that they feel there is opportunity for future growth in these three areas. He reviewed the Allocation and Performance of the portfolio and indicated that they prefer to look at the 5 and 7 year numbers. He stated that the portfolio has outperformed the asset allocation index.
Steinbacher presented the following motions;
The committee recommends and I so move to terminate Cohen & Steers and replace them with Wedgewood. There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to terminate Cohen & Steers and replace them with Wedgewood.
The committee recommends and I so move to sell 50% of the PIMCO Total Return and allocate 25% to Franklin Global and 25% to PIMCO Unconstrained fund. There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to sell 50% of the PIMCO Total Return and allocate 25% to Franklin Global and 25% to PIMCO Unconstrained fund.
The committee recommends and I so move to increase the Alternative Assets Class target by 2% and offset with a 1% reduction in each of the U.S. & International Equities. There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to increase the Alternative target by 2% and offset with a 1% reduction in each of the U.S. & International Equities.
The committee recommends and I so move to reduce the Small Cap allocation by 3% and increase the Emerging Market allocation by 3%. There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to reduce the Small Cap allocation by 3% and increase the Emerging Market allocation by 3%.
The committee recommends and I so move to terminate Gresham (Commodity) and add proceeds to the PIMCO Commodity Real Return fund. There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to terminate Gresham and add proceeds to the PIMCO Commodity Real Return fund.
PRESIDENT REPORT
1) Jacobsen indicated that this was the month of the year that By-laws require nomination of officers for the year 2014.
David Lowe motioned to nominate Juan Albarran for President for the year 2014. Robert Steinbacher seconded. There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to nominate Juan Albarran for President.
Frank Hernandez motioned to nominate Robert Steinbacher for Vice President for the year 2014. Jeff Cawdrey seconded. There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to nominate Robert Steinbacher for Vice President.
Jacobsen stated that the By-laws require that nomination remain open until the September Board meeting at which time these officers will be officially elected.
2) Jacobsen stated that they had met with AIMS claims management yesterday and discussed what the Relief hopes to achieve with this new working relationship. AIMS will be processing worker’s comp claims from now on. He mentioned that so far, their claims manager has responded on a timely manner and has worked on resolving any issues. He also indicated that they have been able to recoup a substantial amount of the outstanding claims from the City.
VICE PRESIDENT REPORT
1) Juan Albarran reported on the status of an injured member and those that have recently passed away.
Steve Ruda asked if there was something prepared or in place for when members are injured out of the country. Juan Albarran stated that they first thing family members should do is to notify the U.S. Embassy in whatever country. He indicated that the consulate would know how to work with an international carrier.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT
1) David Smith referred to the Hope for Firefighters event and indicated that so far, the net income was approximately $98K. He stated that they have met with the Hope Committee and have already discussed and set the pricing for next year. This allows preparation of marketing material for sponsorships.
3) David Smith mentioned that the new launch date for the website is August 19th. He stated that the planning is going well.
4) David Smith referred to the FRITS conversion and stated that the consultant is on schedule and on budget. He indicated that they will launch by spring of next year.
ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEE REPORT
Robert Steinbacher presented the following motions.
The committee recommends and I so move to pay the usual and customary bills in the amount of $974,589.84. There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to pay the usual and customary bills in the amount of $974,589.84.
The committee recommends and I so move to pay the professional fees in the amount of $48,146.11. There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to pay the professional fees in the amount of $48,146.11.
The committee recommends and I so move to approve up to $2K for the Wounded Warrior Project and purchase a table for $550 for the banquet. There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to approve up to $2K for the Wounded Warrior Project and purchase a table for $550 for the banquet.
MEDICAL COMMITTEE REPORT
Barry Hedberg presented the following motion.
The committee recommends and I so move to accept the applications to the Medical Plan. There was no discussion and no objections.
Motion carried to accept all applications to the Medical Plan.
RELIEF COMMITTEE REPORT
James Coburn presented the following motion.
The committee recommends and I so move to pay:
The Sick & Injury benefits in the amount of $6,366.60
The Estate Planning benefit in the amount of $3,300,
The Relief Death Benefits in the amount of $27,000.
There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to pay the above Relief benefits.
James Coburn read the names of members who recently passed and asked for a moment of silence from the Board.
MEMORIALS
Andrew W. Suich
Frank P. Arguello
John A. Higgins
John A. Briffett
Edwald H. Hoglund
William L. Yanez
ASSISTANCE COMMITTEE
James Coburn presented the following motions.
The committee recommends and I so move to accept the donations in the amount of $3,950.67 to the Widows, Orphans & Disabled Firemen’s Fund. There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to accept the donations in the amount of $3,950.67 to the Widows, Orphans & Disabled Firemen’s Fund.
The committee recommends and I so move to approve the financial assistance applications for surviving spouses, active and retired members. There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to approve the financial assistance applications for surviving spouses, active and retired members.
EMERGENCY ADVANCEMENTS
James Coburn presented the following motion.
The committee recommends and I so move to approve the emergency advancement applications for active and retired members. There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to approve the emergency advancement applications for active and retired members.
The committee recommends and I so move to approve a member advancement of $35K for a medical procedure and hold as an abeyance. There was no discussion or objections.
Motion carried to approve a member advancement of $35K for a medical procedure and hold it as an abeyance.
GRAPEVINE/WESBITE REPORT
Chris Hart stated that they have developed a new fee structure for advertisements. Dave Wagner stated that they will increase fees across the board at 10%. He also indicated that they will eliminate black and white ads and make them in color. He stated that they will wait until January 2014 to make those changes. Jacobsen indicated that he has gotten a few member complaints about the size of the print. He asked them to increase the size for easier reading.
BY-LAW COMMITTEE REPORT
David Lowe presented the following motion.
The committee recommends and I so move to accept the proposed by-law changes. David Smith stated that they will make these changes regardless of a white ballot election for Trustee openings. There was no further discussion or objections.
Motion carried to accept the proposed by-law changes.
SETTING OF DATES
1) Estate Planning Seminar, Warner Center Marriott – August 14th
2) IFEBP Wharton School of Investments – September 9th – 12th
3) Craig Alder Charity Golf Tourn. – September 9th
4) Over the Line Tournament – September 11th
5) Colorado Springs Memorial – September 21st
6) LAFD Invitational Golf Tournament – September 23rd
7) California Firefighters Memorial, Sacramento – October 5th
8) LAFD Fallen Firefighter Memorial – October 12th
9) LAFD Car Show – October 13th
10) IFEBP Annual Conference – October 20th – 23rd
11) LAFRA Open House – December 7th
RETIREMENT DINNERS
1) Thomas Somers – August 13th Knollwood Country Club
2) Bradley Grossman – August 21st Ports O’Call
3) Jay Freeman – August 24th Jay’s Backyard
4) Mike O’Gorman – September 14th Elk’s Lodge #966
5) Dennis Waters – October 25th Odyssey Restaurant
6) David Yamahata – October 26th Japanese American National Museum
ADJOURNMENT
John Jacobsen entertained a motion to adjourn. Tim Larson so moved. Jeff Cawdrey seconded. There was no discussion and no objections.
Motion carried to adjourn. The Board of Trustees meeting adjourned at 12:47 pm.
John Jacobsen, President