(1) The Board of Investment Trustees is established to manage the trust under this Article.
(2) The Board continues until abolished by law.
(1) The Board has 13 trustees.
(2) The County Executive must appoint 4 voting, ex officio members of the Board, subject to County Council confirmation as members, who serve indefinitely while each holds the respective office. These ex officio trustees should be:
(A) the Director of Management and Budget;
(B) the Director of Finance;
(C) the Director of Human Resources; and
(D) the Executive Director of the Office of the County Council.
(3) The County Executive must appoint 3 voting certified employee organization representatives, subject to County Council confirmation, as members of the Board, who serve indefinitely while each remains the designee of the certified employee representative. These trustees must not vote on any matter involving the County deferred compensation plan. These trustees should be:
(A) one representative nominated by the employee organizations certified as the representative of the Office, Professional, and Technical (OPT) and Service, Labor and Trades (SLT) bargaining units; and
(B) one representative nominated by the employee organization certified as the representative for the fire and rescue employee unit; and
(C) one representative nominated by the employee organization certified as the representative for the police employee bargaining unit under Article V.
(4) The following 6 trustees must be appointed by the Executive and confirmed by the Council:
(A) An active County employee who is a vested member of the retirement system and the Merit System, and not a member of a collective bargaining unit. A 3-year term for this trustee ends on March 1 of every third year after the trustee is confirmed by the Council.
(B) A retired County employee who is a member of the retirement system. Before appointing this trustee, the Executive must consider, and should select from, a list of 3 to 5 individuals recommended by the Montgomery County Retired Employees’ Association. The Executive must notify the Council when nominating an individual not recommended by the Association. A 3-year term for this trustee ends on March 1 of every third year after the trustee is confirmed by the Council.
(C) Two persons recommended by the Council who are knowledgeable in pensions, investments, or financial matters. A 3-year term for these trustees ends on March 1 of every third year after each trustee is confirmed by the Council.
(D) Two individuals knowledgeable in pensions, investments, or financial matters. Before nominating these trustees, the Executive must consider, and should select from, individuals recommended by citizens or countywide citizens’ groups. An individual recommended by a citizens’ group need not be a member of the group. The Executive must notify the Council when nominating an individual not recommended by a citizens’ group. A 3-year term for these trustees ends on March 1 of every third year after each trustee is confirmed by the Council.
(5) A trustee appointed under paragraph (4) continues to serve after the trustee’s term ends until the Council confirms a successor, but the term for each position is not affected by any holdover. A trustee who, after appointment and before the end of a term, is no longer qualified for the trustee’s position is removed from the Board by operation of law.
(6) The Executive must not appoint as a trustee any person who furnishes, or is employed by a firm that furnishes, to pension funds and other institutional investors the kind of investment services purchased by the Board.
(1) A trustee may be automatically removed for missing meetings as described in Section
2-148(b).
(2) A vacancy on the Board must be filled for the unexpired term in the same manner as the previous trustee was appointed.
(d) Compensation. The trustees must serve without compensation from any source for service rendered to the Board, except that an active employee trustee may receive administrative leave to serve on the Board. The Board must reimburse trustees for any expense approved by the Board. A trustee must not receive reimbursement for expenses from any other source.
(e) Acceptance of trust. Within 10 days after the Council confirms a trustee, the trustee must certify in writing to the Chief Administrative Officer that the trustee accepts the trust and will administer the affairs of the trust with care, skill, prudence, and diligence.
(1) The Board must establish written policies to administer and invest the funds created by this Article and to transact the business of the trust and the retirement system.
(2) The Board must apply the policies to all members and beneficiaries of the retirement system and must not discriminate in favor of or against any member or beneficiary of the retirement system.
(3) Any delegation of duties by the Board under Section
33-60,
33-125, or
33-145 must be specified in written policies and procedures.
(g) Officers. The Board must select a chair, vice chair, and secretary from the Board’s members.
(1) The chair must preside at meetings of the Board and may take administrative action on behalf of the Board.
(2) The vice chair must perform the duties and exercise the powers of the chair when the chair is unavailable, or the Board determines is otherwise unable to perform the duties of the chair.
(3) The secretary must record the proceedings and actions of the Board and may certify a document or action of the Board. A person may rely in good faith on the secretary’s certification as proof of the document or action.
(h) Meetings and actions.
(1) The Board must meet at least once during each calendar quarter. The chair, or 7 members of the Board, may call a meeting of the Board, in the manner and at times and places provided under the policies of the Board. The Board is a public body under the State Open Meetings Act.
(2) A. Seven trustees constitute a quorum.
B. Each trustee has one vote.
C. Seven trustees must agree for the Board to act.
(3) The Board may act without a meeting. All of the trustees must concur in writing for the Board to approve any action the Board takes without a meeting.
(4) The Board may adopt procedures consistent with this Section.
(1) The Board must keep investment accounts and records necessary to calculate the value of each retirement system fund and evaluate the experience and performance of the retirement system.
(2) The Board may designate a person to maintain the records.
(3) Accounts and records are subject to State law on public records.
(j) Removal of trustee. With the Council’s approval, the County Executive may remove a trustee for violating this Article or other good cause.
(k) Legal adviser. The County Attorney is the legal adviser to the Board.
(l) In this Section, “retirement system” means the Employees’ Retirement System, the Retirement Savings Plan, or the Deferred Compensation Plan under Article IX. (1987 L.M.C., ch. 29, § 11; 1987 L.M.C., ch. 40, § 2; 1994 L.M.C., ch. 16, § 1; 1998 L.M.C., ch. 27, § 1; , § 1; , § 1; , § 1; , § 1; , § 1; , § 1; , §1.)
Editor’s note—1998 L.M.C., ch. 27, § 2, reads as follows: “Sec. 2. Transition. A trustee serving on the Board of Investment Trustees when this Act becomes law [December 2, 1998] continues to serve in the equivalent trustee position. The term of an incumbent trustee whose term would have ended before the applicable date specified in Code Section 33-59(b)(3) as amended by this Act, is extended to the specified date.”
