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HomeMy WebLinkAbout20082490.tiff RESOLUTION RE: CREATION OF WELD COUNTY OTHER POST-EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS (OPEB) TRUST AND APPOINTMENT OF THE WELD COUNTY RETIREMENT BOARD TO SERVE AS THE WELD COUNTY OPEB BOARD WHEREAS, the Board of County Commissioners of Weld County, Colorado, pursuant to Colorado statute and the Weld County Home Rule Charter, is vested with the authority of administering the affairs of Weld County, Colorado, and WHEREAS, by Resolution#982317, adopted November 30, 1998; amended by Resolution #2002-3198, adopted December 16, 2002; amended by Resolution #2005-2825, adopted September 21, 2005; and amended by Resolution#2008-2489,adopted September 15, 2008, the County has established an "Other Post-Employment Benefits Plan"(OPEB Plan)that provides for certain post-employment benefits, including retiree medical benefits but excluding pension benefits (collectively referred to as "OPEB Benefits"), for eligible retirees of the County, their spouses and dependents (collectively"Retirees"), and WHEREAS, the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) has issued Statement 43 (GASB 43)and Statement 45 (GASB 45), which establish standards for accounting and financial reporting for state and local governmental employers that offer OPEB Benefits to their retirees, and WHEREAS, among other things, GASB 43 and GASB 45 require Weld County to account for its unfunded actuarial accrued liability, i.e., the present value of OPEB Benefits earned, but not funded, and amortized over a period not to exceed thirty(30) years, and WHEREAS, the Board wishes, pursuant to Section 115 of the Internal Revenue Code, including any rules and regulations established therewith, to provide for an irrevocable trust to be known as the Weld County Other Post-Employment Benefits (OPEB) Trust ("the Trust Fund"), which will be an entity separate from the County for the exclusive purpose of providing funds to pay for OPEB Benefits,with the intent that: (i)the income of the Trust Fund will be exempt from federal and state income tax(under Internal Revenue Code ["Code"] Section 115, with respect to federal income tax), (ii)transfers to the Trust Fund will not be taxable to The Retirees, (iii)the Trust Fund will qualify as a trust for purposes of GASB 43 pursuant to Paragraph 4 of GASB 43, and (iv) all assets of the Trust Fund are and will be irrevocably dedicated to, and shall be used for the exclusive purpose of providing for payments of OPEB Benefits and for paying expenses of administering the Trust Fund, and shall be legally protected from creditors of the County, and WHEREAS, the Trust Fund, either in whole or in part, shall not be used for, nor shall any of the income or other assets held under the terms of the OPEB Trust Fund Agreement ("the Agreement"), be used for purposes other than the payment of OPEB Benefits to or on behalf of The Retirees under the OPEB Plan, or the expenses incident thereto or expenses of the Trust Fund, and WHEREAS, the provision of OPEB Benefits to Retirees is an essential governmental function and an integral part of the exempt activities of the County, and WHEREAS, the County calculates and records the expenses and liabilities of OPEB Benefits pursuant to GASB 43 and GASB 45, and 2008-2490 AC0005 CREATION OF WELD COUNTY OTHER POST-EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS(OPEB)TRUST AND APPOINTMENT OF THE WELD COUNTY RETIREMENT BOARD TO SERVE AS THE WELD COUNTY OPEB BOARD PAGE 2 WHEREAS, the Board also wishes to establish a OPEB Board of Trustees (the OPEB Board)to oversee the Trust Fund and to enter into the Agreement with the Trustee for the Trustee to thereby hold and administer the Trust Fund, pursuant to the terms of the Agreement. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of County Commissioners of Weld County that, pursuant to the authority granted to the Board by Federal and State statutes and regulations, the Trust Fund shall be, and hereby is, created and established for Weld County to fund certain retiree benefits pursuant to the terms of the previously established OPEB Plan for the benefit of eligible County employees, retirees, their spouses, and dependents. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED by the Board that, immediately upon the enactment of this Resolution, the Weld County Retirement Board shall additionally serve and be referred to as the "OPEB Board,"for the purposes of administering the Trust Fund.The members of the OPEB Board shall serve without compensation. The Weld County Treasurer shall serve as the Chairman of the OPEB Board. The other four members of the OPEB Board shall serve terms coextensive with their respective terms as members of the Weld County Retirement Board. The OPEB Board shall perform the duties set forth in the Agreement, as amended from time to time, relating to the management of the assets held in the Trust Fund. The County Treasurer shall have the care and custody of all such funds and shall have the power,with the approval of the OPEB Board, to invest such funds in securities legal for investment for trust funds. The OPEB Board may engage a financial institution or financial advisor to assist the County Treasurer in the investment of the Trust Fund. The above and foregoing Resolution was, on motion duly made and seconded, adopted by the following vote on the 15th day of September, A.D., 2008. BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ELD COUNTY, COLORADO ATTEST: aegilibi r� ��kL` ✓ 1161 tatAkrs, " H. Jerke, Chair Weld County Clerk to the Boa t;;;? ����pp SED ,/atl t;;;? . �ert. M.yj_n, Pro-Tem BY: /� �.�.a� Dep Cler the Board Willi F. Garcia APP A : d„, G�� David E. Long ounty torney r q1 fps Douglas ademacher Date of signature: I 2008-2490 AC0005 Hello