A meeting of the Governing Board of the Colorado Retirement Association was held on April 16, 2021, at 9:00 a.m.
The following were present at the meeting:
- Chris Felton, Board Chairman
- Paul Danley, Vice Chairman
- Darius Allen, Board Member
- Tobe Allumbaugh, Board Member
- Adam Ford, Board Member
- Jerry DiTullio, Board Member
- Terri Schafer, Board Member
- Tim Mullen, Executive Director/Chief Financial Officer
- Ed Krisor, Legal Counsel
- Lois Kruse, Office Administrator
Chris Felton, Board Chairman, called the meeting to order at 9:03 a.m.
Chris Felton asked members of the Board if they reviewed the minutes from the March 19, 2021 meeting and if there were any comments. There being none, a motion was made by Jerry DiTullio to approve the minutes as presented. Adam Ford seconded the motion and it passed unanimously.
Chris Felton introduced and welcomed new board member Terri Schafer. Terri is the Finance Director with Mile High Flood District and represents the Municipalities and Special Districts Board position.
Legislative Update:
CRA Lobbyist, Joan Green provided a legislative update.
Tim Mullen asked Joan to give a little background on herself for the benefit of the newer board members. Joan presented an overview of various bills that have been introduced for consideration in the 2021 legislative session. There are no bills that would impact Colorado Retirement Association and no FPPA bills have been introduced at this time.
Joan Green exited the meeting after concluding her presentation.
CRA Activity Update:
Tim Mullen noted a majority of meetings between CRA client service managers and employer groups are still being conducted on a virtual platform. Matt Benitez, CRA’s western slope client service manager has conducted a few in person meetings, still following all pandemic protocols.
Next, Tim noted that as of April 1st the CRA staff is in the office 60% of the time and as of September 1st, the office will return to 100%, pre-pandemic levels. CRA has various types of pandemic safety items available for staff safety and to comply with pandemic protocols.
The Salesforce Participant Service Event project has had 1,300 events recorded since the roll-out on January 11th 2021. The Salesforce Employer Service Event project will be available in the near future with staff training to follow.
South Park Ambulance District was approved to join the CRA Association at the March Board meeting. The employer is already up and running with CRA. Three separate new employee orientation events were held and the first retirement contributions were made on April 15th.
Mike Whalen and Tim Mullen met virtually with the Fremont County Sheriff to review the sheriff department’s current retirement benefits and to explore options available to enhance these benefit offerings that will help with recruitment and retention efforts.
Mike and Tim also met with the Clear Creek County Board of County Commissioners. The county would like to enhance their employee’s retirement and overall benefits package as well. Recruitment and retention appear to be driving their interest in additional benefit offerings. Employer matching into CRA’s 457 plan and wholesale annuities were discussed with the county.
Tim Mullen and Matt Benitez will be presenting to the Montezuma County Board of Commissioners. The county has two new commissioners. The presentation will introduce CRA and provide an overview of the county’s current retirement plan benefits. The presentation will also highlight differences between defined benefit and defined contribution plans, with an emphasis highlighting differences between CRA’s defined contribution plans and FPPA’s defined benefit plan structure.
Chris Felton briefed the Board on recent public safety officer activity in the metro area, more specifically the shooting in Boulder. Multiple jurisdictions and organizations assisted in this event. As part of CRA’s ongoing support with sponsorships and memberships, a motion was made by Darius Allen and seconded by Adam Ford to reallocate a portion of the CRA’s operating budget, in the amount of $5,000, by donating to and increasing a donation to the Colorado Fallen Hero’s Foundation and the Fallen Heroes Memorial, respectively. The motion passed unanimously.
Mr. Mullen outlined recent personnel changes. A client service manager and retirement services coordinator have resigned. The retirement services coordinator position has been filled with a start date of May 3rd.
Tim Mullen updated the board on the 15th annual CRA Scholarship Awards. Sixty-eight applications were received this year. This is the second year utilizing the new format where a one-time scholarship of $2,000 is given to each of the six winners.
A motion was made by Tobe Allumbaugh to approve the proposed scholarship award recipients. Jerry DiTullio seconded the motion and it passed unanimously.
Chris Felton gave a brief overview of the 2018-2021 CRA Strategic Plan. Over the last three years, various areas of the strategic focus established have been improved, completed, and redirected. It is now the time to revisit CRA’s strategic plan. The plan is to have a 2021 CRA Strategic Planning event on June 18, 2021. It is anticipated this event will follow a brief Board meeting, will be held offsite, and will be an all-day affair.
Expense Reports:
Chris Felton asked the members of the Board if there were any questions or concerns regarding the expense reports as presented. There being none, the reports were accepted.
Executive Session:
At 10:28 a.m. a motion was made by Terri Schafer and seconded by Jerry DiTullio to go into Executive Session pursuant to 24-6-402(4)(f) C.R.S for the purpose of discussion of staff personnel matters. The motion passed unanimously.
The Executive Session ended at 10:43 a.m.
Conclusion:
The public session of the CRA Board of Directors meeting resumed at 10:44 a.m. A motion was made by Chris Felton and seconded by Paul Danley to proceed as discussed in the Executive Session. The motion passed unanimously.
The next meeting of the CRA Board of Directors will be held on Friday, May 21, 2021.
There being no further business to come before the Board, Chris Felton adjourned the meeting at 10:45 a.m.
