Tuesday, May 31, 2016

$50,000 Report - What's new? Defined Benefit Pension Burden

Hi All,  
Please... send this on to others in the township ASAP.  Thank you. 
MEETING @ 11am..  tomorrow, Wed. June 1

Hi All,
This is it.  $50,000 was paid for the PDF report attached (sorry, cannot attach the pdf in this blog, I can email it or you can FOIA it from the township)   and the $50,000 price included a 2 hour public meeting at the township (Friday, May 20, 2016). That meeting ended at noon because Supervisor Savoie said it would.  Township offices are normally closed on that day and Savoie came to the meeting wearing his golf shirt.  Graystone Consulting was rushed through their presentation and the Trustees appeared to have more questions. Didn't matter.  Meeting ended at noon.

So... what to do about the Prudential Defined Benefit Plan...... ????

The Township Financial Sustainability Committee meets @ 11 am on June 1, 2016  to discuss the report, without Graystone Consulting in attendance and without the members of the Board of Trustees.  Oh joy.  Wonder what the predetermined outcome of this meeting will be?  I'll bet you it involves spending more money. 

A history... incomplete... but...  can't explain everything...

This current story of the Prudential Defined Benefit Pension "unsustainability"  plan  begins with READING minutes/ and board packets from study sessions:       
(I didn't list the REGULAR board of trustees meetings... but a lot of important information there ... find a treasure trove of info. in the Board Packet -972 pages- Board of Trustees from: Nov. 23, 2015)

I highly recommend watching the archived audio/video of the regular meetings .  The entire discussion and the public comments are never part of the printed minutes.  I often say the written minutes are only what they want you to know...

Use the links and read what was said in these meetings.. found in the board packets ..or on video:

1.    David Payne's Special Study Session meeting of 7/7/11  when he announced he was retiring... and while he said he is neutral on the next Supervisor,  the room was full of Leo Savoie supporters ...  the "appointed" one.

2.    Corinne Khederian is appointed Trustee to replace Leo Savoie / now Supervisor    Sept?, 2011

3.    February 9, 2012  Special Study Session: Fiduciary Review.....   Trustee Brian Kepes/  ABSENT

4.    November 13, 2012   Special Study Session:  Fiduciary Review  ...  newly appointed Trustee Corinne Khederian/   ABSENT

5.     April 22, 2013   Special Study Session:  Defined Benefit Plan & Pension Obligation     ABSENT AGAIN.... newly appointed Trustee Corinne Khederian

6.    May 13, 2013  Special Study Session:   Defined Benefit Plan & Pension Obligation


7.   June 26, 2013   Town Hall meeting  minutes/  before Bonds purchased

8.   July 9, 2013   Town Hall meeting  round 2/ before Bonds purchased

9.    November 11, 2013  Special Study Session:  Fiduciary Review and Recommended Investment Allocation of Pension Obligation Bonds Proceeds

10.    January 30, 2014  Special Study Session: Defined Benefit Cost and Comparisons      ABSENT:  Trustees  Neal Barnett and Corinne Khederian



11.   August 7, 2014   Special Study Session:  Fiduciary Review   ABSENT:  Supervisor Leo Savoie


12.   September 15, 2014  Special Study Session:  Public Act 347  Pay to play.. etc

13.   December 2, 2014  Special Study Session:  Defined Benefit Plan Sustainability Year 1 Review    ABSENT:  Trustee Brian Kepes   1 hour late:  Trustee Corinne Khederian

14.   March 10, 2015  Special Study Session:  Presentation by Prudential RE:  Defined Benefit Pension Plan & chart w/ retiree to date monthly benefit/  ABSENT:  C.Khederian

15.   May 28, 2015  Special Study Session:  Appoint Financial Sustainability Candidates/    
Came late 15 min:  Brian Kepes     and Came later 35 min.:   Corinne Khederian


16.   July 14, 2015  Special Study Session:  Fiduciary Review/  meeting included the Financial Sustainability committee members:  ABSENT:  Ken Hudson  (FSC member)

17.   November 9, 2015  REGULAR meeting of the Board of Trustees
The meeting where the vote to hire which company will do financial sustainability report:   ABSENT:  Supervisor Leo Savoie,           
ABSENT :   Trustee:  C. Khederian,  and Finance Director: Jason Theis,  a member of the Financial Sustainability Committee
    
18.   February 22, 2016   Special Study Session:   Fiduciary Review/  meeting included the Financial Sustainability committee members

19.   May 20, 2016   Special Study Session:   $50,000 report by Graystone Consulting ( a division of Morgan Stanley)  about the DB Pension Plan/  ABSENT:  C. Khederian AGAIN
 

20.  FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE        MINUTES 

      Financial Sustainability Committee Meeting Minutes October 06, 2015

     Financial Sustainability Committee Meeting Minutes September 09, 2015
       ABSENT:   Supervisor Leo Savoie and Finance Director Jason Theis/ @interviews of the    companies bidding to do the financial sustainability  study and report

     Financial Sustainability Committee Meeting Minutes July 14, 2015

    Financial Sustainability Committee Meeting Minutes February 24, 2015


21.  FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE  PACKETS     PACKETS
 
      Financial Sustainability Committee Packet October 28, 2015

      Financial Sustainability Committee Packet October 06, 2015

      Financial Sustainability Committee Packet September 09, 2015

      Financial Sustainability Committee Packet July 14, 2015

      Financial Sustainability Committee Packet February 24, 2015


My opinions:
As you can plainly see:  Trustees Brian Kepes and Corinne Khederian  missed some very important meetings.   This is just the STUDY session meetings missed.  There are many more.
Do NOT elect them again. 

Corinne Khederian should not be a Trustee....  she has missed WAY TOO MANY meetings since late 2011.  She just doesn't understand some things.

Brian Kepes, currently a Trustee,  is running for Treasurer on the Aug. 2 ballot... but is NOT qualified.  Do NOT vote for him.   Plus, if you could actually hear his questions and comments when he attends the meetings.. you would know what I am talking about. 

I attend almost all of these Bloomfield Township meetings.  The township refuses to audio/video all the public meetings... they just do the Board of Trustees.. and archive those meetings.  The audio of other public meetings can be erased after the minutes are approved.  The evidence of what REALLY was said is lost.      Savoie claims transparency... but is not found under his leadership. 
I am the "watchdog".   I attend the meetings and witness what is happening.  Thus my "Hi All" email notices morphed into my BloomfieldTownshipHappenings  blog in 2011.  My blog can be found on The Oakland Press website:  news/blogs.


 FYI:
Supervisor Savoie and Finance Director Jason Theis  did NOT attend the meeting for the scheduled interviews for the candidates for this $50,000  study.  They were no shows for the interviews.  ( See the 3 proposals submitted in the Financials Sustainability Committee PACKET from 9/9/2015. )
Unbelievable!  The Supervisor and the Finance Director on the committee hiring for a $50,000 study and they don't meet and interview the companies that submitted the RFP's !   

Neither man showed up at the regular Board of Trustees meeting either where Supervisor Savoie had a vote on which company was awarded the $50,000  job.  I was at the interviews and I thought Asset Strategies, Inc.  was clearly the best choice to hire.  However, another pre-determined outcome.

Now.... by not showing up at the Board of Trustees meeting( 11/9/15)... Savoie did not have to recuse himself from the vote and make that public knowledge that the company hired:  Graystone Consulting, a Business of Morgan Stanley, that the Executive Director  is a member of OHCC (Oakland Hills Country Club).... as is Supervisor Savoie and another FSC member, Ken Hudson.    

However,... why didn't the Finance Director, Jason Theis show up? Orders from Savoie?   Theis is a member of this Financial Sustainability Committee and he was the only one assigned to follow up on references for the 3 companies.  That night (11/9/15) the trustees may have wanted to ask Theis some questions before they voted.   So, why wasn't Theis at the meeting?   Well, my theory is he is just the puppet... and Savoie wasn't there to control the strings.  My opinion.  Oh, and the other reason.... a predetermined outcome...  as usual.

http://bloomfieldtwpmi.minutesondemand.com
for the agendas
for minutes of regular and study session Board of Trustees meetings
for the board packets of the regular and study session meetings
for other committees and boards/  ie;  Financial Sustainability Committee

http://www.bloomfieldtwp.org/Services/cable/Videos/BoardOfTrusteeMeetings.asp
 the audio-video of the regular board of trustees meetings archived on the web-site... tell the REAL STORY...and  you can hear public comments and much more

http://bloomfieldtwphappenings.blogspot.com/
my blog.... archived blogs from 2011- to the present.    Go to the right side column... use the drop down menu  for each year and month...  read !  learn !  

Marcia

REMEMBER TO VOTE AUGUST 2, 2016    ...... the November election is TOO LATE to vote... for this township local election.... because no Democrats or others filed for the positions  so..... the winners in August ... are the next township leadership.  We need to get this right in August!

My picks for a better township government:

David Thomas for Supervisor
Susie Kern for Clerk
Dan Devine for Treasurer

Trustees    Vote for these 4
Jeff Axt
Kirk Brannock
David Buckley
Dani Walsh

   
      

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