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Agenda Day One

Agenda Day One

SUNDAY, SEPT. 21st, 2008 • MAIN CONFERENCE

12:00 Registration for Main Conference
1:00 Chairmen’s Welcome

Robbie ROBERTSON, Professional Firefighters of Georgia (Retired)
Ed LUJAN, Fire and Police Pension Association of Colorado (Retired)
1:15 Influencing the Legislative Process To Protect Your Plan

Are defined benefit plans going the way of Corporate America? With a shaky economy and declining revenue streams, many Trustees are finding it is up to them to advocate sustaining their DB plan. This presentation will explore potential strategies for handling the debate.
  • How do you handle the sponsor vs. member tug of war?
  • What do you do when your DB plan is under attack?
  • How do you communicate to politicians, taxpayers and the media that your DB plan is a cost-effective, proven and stable method to retain qualified firefighters and police officers?
  • How do you convey to stakeholders, given current market conditions, that a DC plan is not the answer to funding issues?
  • How to create a task force to find solutions to unfunded liabilities

Moderator:
Gerald GARRETT, Oklahoma Firefighters Pension

Panelists:
Bill BLYTHE, National Society of Institutional Investment Professionals (TEXAS)
Ralph JOHNSON, El Paso Fire & Policemen Pension (TEXAS)
David LANG, Professional Fire Fighters of New Hampshire
Bill RUBIN, City of Philadelphia Board of Pensions (PENNSYLVANIA)
2:00 Improving the Decision Making Structure of the Board through a Self-Governance Model and Dual-Board Strategy

Veteran Trustees would agree that clear board decision-making is critical to the success of a Fund. Hear how one of the leading Pension Funds streamlined the decision-making process to ensure that both the Sponsors and the Trustees are meeting their responsibilities to Members.
  • Gain greater accountability on benefit and contribution decisions through a Sponsor Corporation structure
  • Take control of plan design by transferring governance from municipality to Plan Administration Sponsor
  • Stabilize contribution rates through equal representation of sponsor and members on the Board
  • Understand the impact of the new governance structure on Plan
Bruce MILLER, Police Association of Ontario (CANADA)
Fred LEBLANC, Ontario Professional Firefighters (CANADA)
2:30 KEYNOTE ADDRESS: "What is Ahead for Business and Pension Fund Investors?"

Dr. William Freund is the Chief Economist Emeritus of the New York Stock Exchange where he served as the chief economist for 18 years. He is currently a professor of economics and director of the Freund Center for the Study of Securities Markets at Pace University’s School of Business in New York City. He is the author of Investment Fundamentals and People and Productivity. As a respected global economic forecaster, Bill Freund is as famous for his wit and humor as he is for his unstinting examination of the domestic and global economic environment. A long-time Wall Street observer and an expert on productivity, the markets and globalization, Bill Freund will transform today’s political and economic headlines into business and investment advice Trustees can use.

Dr. William FREUND, The New York Stock Exchange
3:30 Afternoon Refreshments and Networking
4:15 TRIAL CASE STUDY - Pension Funds Push to Protect Members Benefits

Join us in an interactive session based on the trial brought by a pension board. You will come away from this session with hard-hitting and practical techniques to uphold your Pension's securities rights and to protect your Fund against securities fraud.
  • Find out how the Chicago Policeman’s Annuity Benefit Fund benefited from the highest securities litigation jury trial verdict since the passage of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1996
  • Discover the facts related to the fraud that occurred, costing the public pension systems millions of dollars of losses and the decision to go to trial to protect the members’ pension fund • Gain knowledge of how the police pension fund trustees and administrators played a significant role in the trial strategy
Jim MALONEY, Policemen’s Annuity and Benefit Fund of Chicago (ILLINOIS)
Stephen R. BASSER, Barrack, Rodos & Bacine
Jeffrey A. BARRACK, Barrack, Rodos & Bacine
5:15 NEW THIS YEAR!
Pub Talk: Get All Your Questions Answered over Draft Beer Round Tables

Meet your fellow Trustees and find out what they are doing to resolve some of the biggest problems facing Police & Fire Pensions today. This ice-breaking session is designed to allow for maximum interaction between Trustees to brainstorm creative ways of solving Pension Funds toughest problems. From D.R.O.P. Plans, to Health Care Benefits, there is no limit to the solutions you will find interacting with your peers.

Beer Table Lead:
John PELS, Sonoma County Employees Retirement System (CALIFORNIA)

Signs ups for key topics will be at registration. Your fellow Trustees have stepped forward to head conversations on the following subject areas:

D.R.O.P Plans: Pete MORIN, Austin Police Retirement System (TEXAS)
Health Care: Jay SMITH, Orlando Police Pension Board (FLORIDA)
Hedge Funds: Joe ALEJANDRO, New York Police Department (NEW YORK)
Infrastructure Investment: Jim MALONEY, Policemen’s Annuity and Benefit Fund of Chicago (ILLINOIS)
Solutions to Unfunded Liabilities: David LANG, Professional Fire Fighters of New Hampshire
6:30 Day One Concludes