MINUTES ARE PUBLISHED AS APPROVED AT THE NEXT MEETING.
6/09/2010
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF PERG MAY 12, 2010
The regular meeting was called to order by the President, Ed Carlson, at 1:30 p.m. All officers were present. There were 39 members present.
Current officers are: Ed Carlson, president; Bob LaFlamme, vice president; Agnes Vogel, treasurer; and Paula Savela, secretary.
April 14, 2010 Minutes
Minutes were approved as read.
Treasurer’s Report
Treasurer’s report was approved as read.
Correspondence
President Carlson said he is still receiving correspondence from AFSCME and Steve Regenstreif. He said he recently received a letter stating we owe $26.00 for treasurer expenses. He did not respond to the correspondence and will not pay the bill.
President Carlson said he received correspondence pertaining to those on Medicare. He asked how many members would like a copy of the Medicare information he received. He will bring about 25 copies of the information to the next meeting.
President Carlson stated he received a letter from PERG secretary Paula Savela informing him that she will resign as secretary after the fall officer election. President Carlson asked that those interested in the position, female or male, please let him know as soon as possible so Secretary Savela can pass necessary information on to whoever will be the next secretary.
Vice President LaFlamme and Pat Alexander thanked secretary Savela for serving as secretary.
Other Business
Pat Alexander gave an update on the retiree health insurance lawsuit. He said nothing much has transpired since the last meeting and we are still waiting to hear from the Appeals Court regarding a hearing date and time. He stated that at this time our treasury is in good shape and approximately 260 people have contributed out of a mailing of about 800 retirees.
PERG member, Joyce, asked why this process is taking so long. Pat said that the Appeals Court has about 600 cases to hear so it could take many months before our case is presented.
President Carlson said the PERG annual picnic will be held on July 14 at Chambers Grove Park. He asked for input regarding the food for the picnic, how much we should charge for the meal. Members stated they would like the same type of food menu as last year. The members present agreed that each member attending the picnic would pay $8.00 for the meal.
President Carlson said that last year many members who said they would be attending the picnic did not attend. Food was ordered and paid for 118 members and only 67 members showed up. There was a lot of food left over.
Members present decided that this year’s picnic should be paid in advance to Treasurer Vogel by June 15th.
Dick Smith said he would post information on the PERG website regarding the picnic and will request that those members who plan to attend the picnic send a check to Treasurer Vogel.
President Carlson asked Secretary Savela to send a letter to State Representative Mary Murphy asking her to speak at our June 9th meeting. A copy of the letter sent to Mary Murphy is attached to these minutes.
There was a discussion regarding a 22% discount on prescriptions from CVS. John Edwards said he would check to see if those with insurance coverage are still eligible for the extra 22% discount. Pat Alexander said that he is now paying about $100 more per month for his prescriptions, which means this year he is paying about $1,200 a year more for prescriptions.
A member present suggested that we contact Sr. Coalition member Buddy Robinson and ask him to address our group regarding Medicare.
Dawn Hulmer, PERA officer, was present at our meeting. Marty Mehling asked Dawn if the PERA Board has a current plan in place. Dawn said this would be discussed at a meeting tomorrow.
The $5 drawing winner was Ed Carlson
Meeting adjourned at 2:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Paula Savela Secretary, Public Employees Retirement Group (PERG)
5/12/2010 MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF PERG APRIL 14, 2010
The regular meeting was called to order by Vice President, Bob LaFlamme at 1:30 p.m. Treasurer Vogel and Secretary Savela were present. President Carlson was out of town. There were 41 members present.
March 10, 2010 Minutes
Minutes were approved as read.
Treasurer’s Report
Treasurer’s report was approved as read
Committee Reports
Pat Alexander gave a brief update on the status of the retiree health insurance lawsuit. He said as of today there has been no response from the Appeals Court. Pat commented that there has been a very good response to the March 12th letter sent to retirees. The letter gave an update on our Class Action Lawsuit, and there was a request for a contribution to go toward our continuing legal expenses. Pat stated that approximately 220 people have responded thus far. He said a large number of contributions have come from PERG members who attend our meetings. He said it is uncertain how much money will be needed in the future, and said that a follow-up contribution letter will be sent to encourage those who have not contributed to do their share.
Eli Miletich commended Pat for all the work he has done and thanked other committee members as well.
Pat Alexander commented that the Mayor is still attempting to change our health care benefits and that he takes advantage of every opportunity to get credit for saving the city money.
John Edwards, retired firefighter, gave an update on the current lawsuit against PERA regarding retiree reduced benefits and repayment of money to PERA. He said that the judge is retiring on June 8 so he expects some type of decision before then.
Dawn Hulmer, PERA representative, was present at our meeting. There was a heated discussion between retirees and Dawn regarding cuts in PERA benefits.
Other Business
Eli Miletich referred to an article in the News Tribune editorial section last week, where almost one-half page was written by our mayor. He said that the mayor went into all his accomplishments. Eli said that he feels the mayor is spending a lot of time on P.R. and not on important city issues.
Motion: Eli made a motion to send a resolution to the news media from city retirees, stating retiree concerns about Mayor Ness’s unrelenting public relations efforts to sway public opinion in ways unfavorable to retirees, etc.
There was discussion regarding the wording of the resolution but after an effort to amend one word of the resolution, the amendment failed 13 to 15.
Motion seconded and carried to send the resolution to the news media as originally worded.
A copy of the resolution and letter to news media is attached to these minutes.
Pat Alexander thanked vice president LaFlamme for conducting a fair meeting.
The $5 drawing winner was Karen Schramm.
Meeting adjourned at 2:30 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Paula Savela Secretary, Public Employees Retirement Group (PERG)
4/14/2010 MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF PERG MARCH 10, 2010
The regular meeting was called to order by the President, Ed Carlson, at 1:30 p.m. Officers present were President Carlson, Treasurer Vogel and Secretary Savela were present. Vice President LaFlamme was not present. There were 43 members present. Vice President LaFlamme is recuperating from surgery.
February 10, 2010 Minutes Minutes were approved as read. Treasurer’s Report Treasurer’s report was approved as read. New Business Pat Alexander gave a brief update regarding the City of Duluth Retirees’ health insurance lawsuit. He stated that new documents regarding our case were filed with the court system on February 4th. The City has 36 days to respond regarding our documents. Don Bye and Shelley Marquardt then can respond to the City’s opinions. Then a date will need to be set for our case to go before the Minnesota Court of Appeals. Pat said that Don Bye had surgery three weeks ago, and Shelley Marquardt will be our lead attorney. Pat stated that there will be an updated status letter sent to all class members and other retirees who support us. The letter also will ask for an additional donation of $100 to reinforce our currently nearly depleted legal fund. Eli Miletich read a resolution he composed that referred to PELRA negotiation guidelines as far as negotiations for wages, benefits, etc. The resolution referred to changes sought after by politicians, which will have an affect on current employees as well as retirees. Motion: Eli moved that this resolution be accepted and sent to all five City bargaining units and to the City Council. Motion seconded and carried. A copy of that resolution accompanied with a cover letter, is attached to these minutes. Marty Mehling encouraged members to write a letter to PERA requesting that our benefits not be reduced further. Fred Crandall said he sent a letter to AARP regarding this. Dick Smith said he received 20 copies of the current drug formularies from ClearScript. He invited those who do not have a computer to take a copy. Our guest speakers were Michelle Campbell and Patrick Mullen from Minnesota Power. Each of them spoke regarding services; future rate increases, reasons for the rate increases, and then took questions and interacted with our group. President Carlson will not be at the April meeting. The $5 drawing winner was Karen Schramm. Meeting adjourned at 2:37 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Paula Savela
Secretary, Public Employees Retirement Group (PERG)
3/10/2010 MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF PERG FEBRUARY 10, 2010
The regular meeting was called to order by the President, Ed Carlson, at 1:30 p.m. All officers were present. There were 36 members present.
Current officers are: Ed Carlson, president; Bob LaFlamme, vice president; Agnes Vogel, treasurer; and Paula Savela, secretary.
January 13, 2010 Minutes
Minutes were approved as read.
Treasurer’s Report
Treasurer’s report was approved as read.
Correspondence
Secretary Savela read a letter sent to President Carlson from Mary Most Vanek. The letter stated that she plans to address our PERA issues and concerns from PERG members at our meeting today.
Eli Miletich expressed his appreciation of the PERG officers.
New Business
Fred Crandall said he received a renewal card in the mail from AFSCME. President Carlson said he and many other PERG members have also received an AFSCME membership renewal card even though we no longer are affiliated with AFSCME.
Mary Most Vanek, PERA Executive Director was present to address our members. Also present were PERA board members, Dawn Hulmer and Tom Marshall.
Mary Vanek informed our group that Tom Marshall has been elected PERA board president, beginning in March.
Mary handed out to all present, a PERA six-page information document titled PERA Plans’ Funding Status, 2010 Legislative Session. Mary detailed each page of the document. After Mary’s presentation, members had numerous questions for Mary, and a heated back and forth discussion took place.
Mary suggested that our group contact Mr. Howard Bicker, Executive Director, MN State Board of Investment, to address us and answer questions at a future meeting. (Address: Howard J. Bicker, Executive Director, MN State Board of Investment, 60 Empire Drive – Ste. 355, St. Paul MN 55103).
Bob LaFlamme stated that he used to get much more information in the PERA monthly publication showing current PERA financial figures. Mary Vanek said current financial figures would be included in the next PERA publication.
Members voiced concern regarding current information. Dawn Hulmer said that all information is online. She suggested that the PERG secretary print information from the PERA website and bring it to the monthly meeting.
In closing, Patrick Alexander requested that Mary Vanek make PERA aware of the many concerns of PERG members, at the next PERA meeting.
Old Business
Pat Alexander updated PERG members regarding the status of the City retiree health care issue. He sent around two copies of what will presented to the Court of Appeals. Pat also referred to a three-section, 600 page court document, detailing each of our 13 court appearances.
Pat informed members that there will be a letter sent to retirees asking for a final contribution toward legal and other expenses incurred during our lawsuit.
Eli Miletich commended Pat Alexander for his excellent job of getting in touch with and arranging meetings for the health insurance ad hoc committee.
The $5 drawing winner was John Prouty.
Meeting adjourned at 3:10 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Paula Savela Secretary, Public Employees Retirement Group (PERG)
2/10/2010 MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF PERG JANUARY 13, 2010
The regular meeting was called to order by the President, Ed Carlson, at 1:30 p.m. All officers were present. There were 44 members present.
Current officers are: Ed Carlson, president; Bob LaFlamme, vice president; Agnes Vogel, treasurer; and Paula Savela, secretary.
November 11, 2009 Minutes
Minutes were approved as read.
Treasurer’s Report
Treasurer’s report was approved as read
New Business
President Carlson reported that Pat Alexander had planned to attend the meeting today but was in the emergency room most of the morning. He is now home but did not feel up to attending our meeting.
On behalf of Pat Alexander, Vice President LaFlamme reported on the retiree health insurance lawsuit. He stated that the ad hoc committee met last week with attorney Shelly Marquardt who is attorney Don Bye’s assistant. Shelly said that we are on the road to having our appeal regarding the judge’s decision in our lawsuit. Hopefully in the next 30 days we will have a definite timeframe.
There was a discussion regarding the insurance Plan 3A insurance that the City put into place for all retirees on January 1, 2010. Retirees are concerned about the high co-pay for non-generic drugs, which can be up to $100 per prescription.
Ed Carlson said he received a letter from Mary Most Vanek stating that she was unable to attend our meeting today, because she is attending a previously scheduled meeting for PERA.
Eli Miletich made the following motion:
Motion: It was moved, seconded and approved that we send another letter to Mary Most Vanek inviting her to address our group in February, and that a copy of the letter be sent to the Board of Directors of PERA.
Marty Mehling said that the active PERA fund has always been lower than 90%, and he feels that we will never see PERA ever getting to 90%. He stated that there will be a bill by next month and he will bring the information to our next meeting. He also will send the information to Dick Smith so he can post it on the retiree website.
There was discussion about having retirees individually sending a letter to PERA stating their concerns regarding the yearly lowering and eventual elimination of an annual PERA raise. Marty Mehling said he would type a sample letter to PERA for our next meeting. Then each retiree can use it as an example for writing their own letter and sending it to PERA.
President Carlson asked Dick Smith to order 50 more new member applications.
Bob LaFlamme introduced John “Rusty” Edwards, who is a retired firefighter, and recently joined PERG. John addressed our group regarding the current PERA issue that many retirees are facing. He said a state audit in 2001 questioned city deferred comp payments made to employees. The city viewed the money as salary, but the state disagrees and considers the money as a benefit. Because from 1997 to 2008 the money put into the employees deferred comp went toward their earning amount, now retirees have been informed that they need to pay back money to PERA, and also have taken a cut in their monthly benefit from PERA.
John said that he is part of a group of about 20 people who have hired an attorney to fight the city regarding this issue. He said the committee hopes to restore everyone’s pension to the point it was previously. He stated that the committee is accepting donations and input from retirees.
Motion: Eli Miletich moved that PERG donate $500 toward the expenses incurred in this fight with the city. The motion was seconded and carried.
The $5 drawing winner was Dale Smith
Meeting adjourned at 2:30 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Paula Savela Secretary, Public Employees Retirement Group (PERG)
1/13/2010 MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF PERG NOVEMBER 11, 2009
The regular meeting was called to order by the President, Ed Carlson, at 1:30 p.m. All officers were present. There were 43 members present.
Current officers are: Ed Carlson, president; Bob LaFlamme, vice president; Agnes Vogel, treasurer; and Paula Savela, secretary.
October 14, 2009 Minutes
Minutes were approved as read.
Treasurer’s Report
Treasurer’s report was approved as read. Pat Alexander thanked the treasurer for the extra work she has done this past month.
New Business
President Carlson introduced our speaker, Nicole Schneider who represents American Income Life Insurance Company. Ms. Schneider explained a no-cost health care service for seniors. Although many no-cost benefits were offered, American Income Life Insurance would require a mailing list of all PERG members.
After Ms. Schneider left there was discussion regarding the no- cost services offered.
Motion: It was moved, seconded and carried not to give American Income Life Insurance Company a mailing list of PERG members.
Other Business
The annual holiday luncheon was discussed.
Motion: It was moved, seconded and carried that each PERG member be charged $8.00 for the meal. It was also moved, seconded and carried to charge nonmembers $8.00 for the meal.
Pat Alexander informed our group that there would be a special meeting regarding the City health insurance issue. The meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, November 24th at 1:00 at the Copper Top Church. A letter will be sent to approximately 700 retirees informing them of the meeting. Pat requested that five people volunteer work at sign-in tables. Several members volunteered to help out. Pat also mentioned getting as many retirees as possible to join our PERG group and attend monthly meetings, as there is strength in numbers.
Pat Alexander stated that prior to today’s PERG meeting the retiree health care ad hoc committee met with active union officers. Officers from the Fire, Police, and Basic attended the meeting. The Supervisor’s union declined to attend and said a letter will be sent to us instead. Pat said that at some point the unions would be sent a resolution asking them to contribute to the retiree health care security fund.
Pat said that there will be an appeal process to the state appeals court. Three judges will participate in the court hearing.
Pat welcomed recent city retiree, Claudia Johnson, as a new member of the retiree health care ad hoc committee.
The $5 drawing winner was Dick LeDoux.
Meeting adjourned at 2:30 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Paula Savela Secretary, Public Employees Retirement Group (PERG)
11/11/2009 MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF PERG OCTOBER 14, 2009
The regular meeting was called to order by the President, Ed Carlson, at 1:30 p.m. All officers were present. There were 50 members present.
Current officers are: Ed Carlson, president; Bob LaFlamme, vice president; Agnes Vogel, treasurer; and Paula Savela, secretary.
September 9, 2009 Minutes
Minutes were approved as read.
Treasurer’s Report
Treasurer’s report was approved as read.
Correspondence
President Carlson said the only correspondence he received was a note from AFSCME urging retiree presidents to send a letter to the editor of our local newspaper asking for health care coverage that’s fair and affordable for every American, including retirees.
New Business
President Carlson noted that a PERG membership letter will be sent within the next week. Pat Alexander read the annual membership drive letter. He said there is strength in numbers and he hopes that besides having current members renew their membership for 2010 that we get many new members.
President Carlson and Eli Miletich thanked Pat Alexander, Bob and Kathy Winkler, and Dick Smith for their work on the membership letter and getting it mailed to retirees.
Other Business
Tom Marshall, PERA Representative spoke to our group. He stated that a newsletter will be coming out soon from PERA. He said that although retirees will get a 2-1/2% raise in 2010, there will be proposed Legislation for 2011 and 2012, asking that there be no raise those two years. Tom said there will be a proposal to have a 1-1/2% raise in 2013. Tom said active employees will also receive a hit from this. They will have contribution increases in an attempt to make the pension fund stable .
Retirees expressed strong feelings and opposition regarding the proposed Legislation.
President Carlson asked retiree, Jerry Veillet who in the past was the head of Building Inspections, if it was legal for a building inspector to ask to see every room in his house. President Carlson also asked if he could have refused to let the inspector inside his home. Jerry said that a person can refuse to let an inspector into their home, but then the inspector can guess and put any value on the home, and you would wish you had let him into your home. If you do not let the inspector into your home they will assume all kinds of things.
Maureen Booth, candidate for Duluth School Board, addressed our group and expressed reasons why we should support her candidacy and vote for her.
Eli Miletich made a motion that our group support her candidacy. Motion seconded and carried.
President Carlson said that in November our telephone committee will call and invite members to our annual Christmas luncheon to be held the second Wednesday in December. Members will be informed that in order to attend the luncheon it will be necessary to send a check to treasurer Agnes Vogel in advance of the luncheon.
The $5 drawing winner was Dale Mellesmoen.
Meeting adjourned at 2:25 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Paula Savela Secretary, Public Employees Retirement Group (PERG)
10/14/2009
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF PERG SEPTEMBER 9, 2009
The regular meeting was called to order by the President, Ed Carlson, at 1:30 p.m. All officers were present.
Current officers are: Ed Carlson, president; Bob LaFlamme, vice president; Agnes Vogel, treasurer; and Paula Savela, secretary.
June 10, 2009 Minutes
Minutes were approved
Treasurer’s Report
Treasurer’s report was approved as read.
New Business
President Carlson said members had been called to find out if they would be attending the July picnic at Chambers Grove. After the response, he ordered food for 108 people, and only 56 people showed up. There was a lot of food left over and the caterer had to be paid enough to cover the food. President Carlson stated that money for those who plan to attend the annual Christmas luncheon that is held the second Wednesday in December will be collected in advance, at our November meeting. He said that up to 125 people can be served at the Elks Club on Haines Road.
Other Business
Don Bye, attorney representing the City of Duluth retirees regarding the health insurance issue, was present to address our group.
He gave an update on the most recent court hearing and briefed members regarding the current status of the case.
Eli Miletich read the proposed new constitution and bylaws for PERG. Pat Alexander thanked Eli for drafting the constitution.
Motion: It was moved, seconded and carried to approve the constitution and bylaws for PERG.
Eli Miletich handed Secretary Savela a copy of the approved constitution and bylaws, and asked her to make copies to be handed out to members present at the October meeting.
It was mentioned that the annual membership dues for 2010 in the amount of $15, will begin being collected in November.
Pat Alexander mentioned that there was a recent mailing to approximately 1,300 City of Duluth retirees regarding the health insurance issue.
Vice President LaFlamme expressed that he is saddened by the recent transfer of Chris Jensen Nursing Home from St. Louis County to a private organization
Eli Miletich said he received four separate Summer 2009 newsletters from PERA. The titles of the newsletters were: The PERA Deferral, PERA Guardian, The PERA Benefit, and The PERAgraph. He stated that most of the information was repeated in each newsletter. Eli said he feels that this is a waste of material, staff time and money, especially at the current time when they are holding yearly increases in benefits at 2.5%
Motion: Eli moved that a letter be sent to the Executive Director and Board members of PERA. Motion seconded and carried.
Secretary Savela sent a letter to Executive Director, Mary Most Vanek, and also a copy to PERA Board members. A copy of that letter is attached to these minutes.
Tom Kasper, who is running for an At-Large position on the Duluth School Board, addressed our members. Tom spoke regarding his views and reasons for running for the School Board at-large position.
Motion: Eli Miletich moved that a letter be sent to Tom Kasper stating that our group supports his candidacy. Motion seconded and carried.
Secretary Savela sent a letter to Tom Kasper stating that we support him in his effort. A copy of that letter is attached to these minutes.
President Carlson noted that every person who belongs to this group will be sent a letter with a card requesting that they pay their annual dues.
The $5 drawing winner was Don Henkel.
Meeting adjourned at 2:45 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Paula Savela Secretary, Public Employees Retirement Group (PERG)
9/09/2009 MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF PERG, JUNE 10, 2009
The regular meeting was called to order by President, Ed Carlson, at 1:30 p.m. All Officers were present. There were 40 members present. Current officers are: Ed Carlson, president; Bob LaFlamme, vice president; Agnes Vogel, treasurer; and Paula Savela, secretary.
May 13, 2009 Minutes
Minutes were approved as read.
Treasurer’s Report
The treasurer read her report regarding the past month’s transactions.
A member asked if the money for AFSCME that is currently being held in escrow is included in the report.
Treasurer Vogel said yes, the money being held in escrow was included in her report.
Eli Miletich suggested that the $30 paid monthly to the president, treasurer and secretary be listed as a stipend for expenses.
Pat Alexander thanked officers for taking charge, going to the credit union and making the necessary changes to our checking account.
Correspondence
Secretary Savela read from two pieces of correspondence received. The first was an e-mail she received from City of Duluth PERA representative, Dawn Hulmer, regarding PERA corrections being made for Duluth retirees and active employees. Those retirees who have concerns should call Dawn at the Treasurer’s office in City Hall. A copy of the e-mail from Dawn is attached to these minutes.
The second article received was a copy of a letter addressed to Gerald McEntee, President, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. The letter was sent from our president, Ed Carlson. The letter addresses the MAPERA unanimous decision to disaffiliate as a chapter of AFSCME. A copy of that letter is attached to these minutes.
New Business
President Carlson said he has heard nothing from Steve Regenstreif or John Westmoreland since the executive board meeting which they requested and that took place at the AFSCME office in Duluth on April 30th. President Carlson reported that Vice President LaFlamme was not permitted to enter the meeting. President Carlson refused to attend the meeting and also refused to sign a document that he was repeatedly asked to sign. He said that he found out that the document he refused to sign was one stating that he was resigning as president of our retiree organization.
Other Business
President Carlson reminded members of our annual picnic at Chambers Grove, which will be held on Wednesday, July 8th. After discussion a motion was made to charge members $5 for the lunch. The motion was seconded and carried. Nonmembers will be charged the full price of the meal.
Eli Miletich went over bylaws changes that have been made to comply with our retiree group reorganization.
Pat Alexander informed members that the City of Duluth retiree insurance lawsuit has a court date of June 23. He invited retirees to attend the court proceeding.
President Carlson said that he invited Roger Reinert to the July 8th picnic. He asked that a letter be sent to Mary Murphy inviting her to attend the picnic. He also asked that a letter be sent to Northern Communities Credit Union requesting a monetary donation for the picnic for prize money drawings.
Eli Miletich said a News Tribune article stated that St. Louis County is considering closing Chris Jensen Nursing Home. Also it has been stated that assisted living services to St. Louis County facilities such as Tri Towers, will be discontinued.
Motion: Eli Miletich moved that a letter be sent to St. Louis County Board members urging them to move with caution regarding closing nursing home facilities and eliminating help to assisted living facilities in St. Louis County.
Motion seconded and carried. A copy of the letter is attached to these minutes.
The $5 drawing winner was Fred Crandall.
Meeting adjourned at 2:15 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Paula Savela Secretary |