Jane Howard
The county board voted October 13, 2009 to amend its investment policy so it can invest funds for longer periods of time in order to get better returns on its money.
Auditor-Treasurer Braidy Powers told the board that CDs are now yielding under 1% and money markets are yielding only around ¼%. By increasing the amount of time funds could be tied up in investments, the county could increase those interest rates to 1-2%.
State and federal payments in lieu of taxes have increased significantly, Powers told the board, and are increasing again this year. Thestate payment was adjusted for inflation, and the federal payment was adjusted after the federal land in Cook County was appraised. This gives the county more operating cash to have on hand, allowing more money to be invested in interest-bearing accounts.
Theobjectives of the county’s investment policy are as follows:
Safety:
The county’s primary
investment objective is safety,
measured by preservation of capital.
Speculation is inappropriate
under all circumstances. Volatile
instruments are to be avoided.
Liquidity:
The county’s
second investment objective is to
maintain the degree of liquidity
necessary to meet the county’s current
and long-term budget needs.
Liquidity can be met by matching
maturities to cash need and by
investing in securities with active
secondary or resale markets.
Yield:
The county’s third
investment objective is to earn
market rates of return while preserving
capital and liquidity.
The county’s investment policy was first adopted in 1990 and has been revised seven times since then.
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