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Record of Proceedings

Montgomery County Retirement Board Meeting - January 28, 2026

Board of Commissioners — Wednesday, January 28, 2026
BodyMontgomery County, Pennsylvania
SessionBoard of Commissioners
DateWednesday, January 28, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 16:15

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it
0:08

22nd.

0:09

Look at me.

0:10

2026 retirement board meeting.

0:15

Notes the presence of, I think Commissioner McKeeja is coming online.

0:20

That's what he said.

0:21

Okay.

0:22

Note the presence of the entire retirement board.

0:27

Treasurer Sallas to lead us in the fledge.

0:31

Pledge allegiance to the flag and basic America and to the republic for which he stands one nation under God and the visible liberty for all.

0:44

Oh my next let's just go ahead and get started.

0:54

Is there any public comment?

0:55

All right.

0:57

I'd like to make a motion to approve the October 29th, 2025 uh meeting minutes.

1:03

Is there a second?

1:05

Second by first deputy landower.

1:07

Any board comment?

1:09

Hearing none, all in favor.

1:12

Aye.

1:12

Motion uh mission carries.

1:15

So Kathy Kathy.

1:18

Can I call you?

1:19

Yeah, okay.

1:20

All right, come on up.

1:21

Do you guys have a presentation?

1:24

I do.

1:24

Yep, I do.

1:26

Yeah.

1:26

Do you have a copy?

1:28

Okay.

1:30

Okay.

1:33

Yeah, there's a there's a two over there.

1:35

Is Commissioner McKiza jump like started?

1:48

Great.

1:48

Well, good afternoon.

1:49

Great to see everyone.

1:51

So if you could start with the executive summary, I wanted to start off and congratulate all of you on the great work that you've done in 2025.

1:58

And I want to congratulate on you on the success of the retirement plan.

2:02

You can see that the plan earned 16.45%.

2:07

So it's the best return since 2019.

2:10

So really, really strong year.

2:11

It's interesting to think when we started the year and we went through April through July, and here we are today with record highs.

2:17

So congratulations on that.

2:19

You can see the market values here.

2:20

I have the market value as of the end of last year, 652 million.

2:25

Um, and then we ended the year at 752 million.

2:28

Strong quarter as well.

2:30

The portfolio is up 2.56%.

2:33

I do have yesterday's market value if you're interested.

2:36

Uh we had a couple couple bumpy days.

2:38

Uh markets rallied yesterday and back again today.

2:41

But yesterday's market value, which is not on here, is 761 million 614,000.

2:46

So we continue to um continue to hit new highs within the plan.

2:50

So that's great news.

2:51

And obviously, your contribution within the plan as well as the strong earnings uh really help support that market value.

2:58

You can see year-to-date gains at the top here, 106.00 for the 2025 calendar year.

3:04

And when we look at, I'm just going to hit the high points.

3:06

I know you guys had a very long meeting this morning.

3:08

So high points are equity were equities were a huge contributor.

3:12

Uh U.S.

3:13

equities had a strong year, uh really led by artificial intelligence and the mic seven.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Pension System█████████████████████████████████████████████80%
Procedural███████████20%
Summary of Proceedings

Montgomery County Retirement Board Meeting - January 28, 2026

The Montgomery County Retirement Board convened on January 28, 2026, to approve prior meeting minutes, review 2025 investment performance, and receive notification of pension forfeiture actions against two former employees convicted of theft. No public comments were made.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of October 29, 2025 Meeting Minutes: Motion made and seconded; unanimously approved.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No members of the public offered comments.

Discussion Items

  • Investment Performance Update (2025): Kathy presented the retirement plan’s 2025 results, reporting a 16.45% gross return, the best since 2019. The portfolio market value ended the year at $752 million, rising to approximately $761.6 million as of the day before the meeting. Equities, especially international and emerging markets, contributed strongly. Fixed income and alternatives also performed well. Commissioners discussed the impact of the negative 2022 return (–15%) on the fund’s 80% funding threshold, which currently prevents a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for retirees. It was noted that another two years of strong returns may be needed to surpass that threshold and enable a COLA increase. Kathy highlighted supportive monetary and fiscal policy tailwinds for 2026.
  • Criminal Proceeding Mandating Pension Forfeiture: The board was notified that two former county employees, Patricia Altusa and Lisa Schopper, were convicted of theft of government funds. Under Pennsylvania’s Public Employees Pension Forfeiture Act (Act 140 of 1978), their pension benefits are forfeited. They will receive a return of their own contributions, subject to restitution. No board vote was required; notification to the individuals will occur the following week.

Key Outcomes

  • Minutes of October 29, 2025, approved unanimously.
  • Investment performance update received; no formal action taken.
  • Pension forfeiture update accepted; no vote needed.
  • Meeting adjourned.

Meeting Transcript

22nd. Look at me. 2026 retirement board meeting. Notes the presence of, I think Commissioner McKeeja is coming online. That's what he said. Okay. Note the presence of the entire retirement board. Treasurer Sallas to lead us in the fledge. Pledge allegiance to the flag and basic America and to the republic for which he stands one nation under God and the visible liberty for all. Oh my next let's just go ahead and get started. Is there any public comment? All right. I'd like to make a motion to approve the October 29th, 2025 uh meeting minutes. Is there a second? Second by first deputy landower. Any board comment? Hearing none, all in favor. Aye. Motion uh mission carries. So Kathy Kathy. Can I call you? Yeah, okay. All right, come on up. Do you guys have a presentation? I do. Yep, I do. Yeah. Do you have a copy? Okay. Okay. Yeah, there's a there's a two over there. Is Commissioner McKiza jump like started? Great. Well, good afternoon. Great to see everyone. So if you could start with the executive summary, I wanted to start off and congratulate all of you on the great work that you've done in 2025. And I want to congratulate on you on the success of the retirement plan. You can see that the plan earned 16.45%. So it's the best return since 2019. So really, really strong year. It's interesting to think when we started the year and we went through April through July, and here we are today with record highs. So congratulations on that. You can see the market values here. I have the market value as of the end of last year, 652 million. Um, and then we ended the year at 752 million. Strong quarter as well. The portfolio is up 2.56%. I do have yesterday's market value if you're interested. Uh we had a couple couple bumpy days. Uh markets rallied yesterday and back again today.

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