Rio Rancho Investment Advisory Board Meeting - March 11, 2026

This regular meeting of the City of Rio Rancho Investment Advisory Board (IAB) convened at 6:00 PM on March 11, 2026, in the City Council Chambers. The board reviewed the performance of the city's Permanent Fund, operating portfolios, and bond proceeds; revised the Permanent Fund Investment Policy Statement; and recommended the use of the 2026 Permanent Fund distribution. All votes were unanimous.

Consent Calendar

• Approved the minutes of the November 19, 2025 regular meeting without discussion.

Selection of Chair and Vice-Chair

• Chair: Kelly Wainwright was re-elected as Chair by unanimous vote (4-0 after quorum).
• Vice-Chair: Ron Baker was re-elected as Vice-Chair by unanimous vote (4-0).

Review and Input on Permanent Fund Performance

• Deanne Woodring (GPA advisor) presented a detailed review of the Permanent Fund's performance. The fund started with a $10 million seed in January 2023; additional contributions included $2,000 (not $2 million, as corrected) in 2023 and $1 million in 2024. Total earnings since inception were approximately $4.7 million: $1.583 million (2023), $1.253 million (2024), and $2.057 million (2025). The fund's market value reached $15.896 million at year-end 2025.
• The portfolio is invested in U.S. equities, international equities (MSCI international), real estate, and fixed income. International equities outperformed (31% year-to-date in 2025), while real estate lagged (2.3%). The target allocation under current policy is 39% domestic equity, 21% international equity, 5% real assets (not yet formalized in policy), and 40% fixed income. Actual allocations were close to targets. Ms. Woodring recommended adding a formal real asset target of 5% and establishing rebalancing ranges.
• Board members asked no questions of Ms. Woodring.

Review and Input on Core and Liquidity Portfolios Performance

• Deanne Woodring also reviewed the operating and bond proceed portfolios managed by GPA. The city's total operating investment portfolio had a market value of $282 million at year-end 2025. The core portfolio was yielding approximately 4%, with a total return of 5.61% for 2025 (outperforming the benchmark of 5.44%). Unrealized gains were $2 million due to declining interest rates. The portfolio is primarily in U.S. Treasuries (64%) with some agencies and a high-grade corporate fund. Earnings for the fiscal year-to-date were $5.7 million, projected to reach about $10 million by fiscal year-end. The city maintains about $50 million in overnight repo and money market liquidity.

Permanent Fund Investment Policy Statement Revision

• Director Yara noted that Deanne Woodring had proposed minor changes to the Permanent Fund Investment Policy Statement: correcting terminology (e.g., referring to SIC as investment advisor, not manager of external funds), adding a 5% target for real return/real estate assets, and clarifying performance tracking using SIC's consultant data.
• The board unanimously approved the proposed changes.

Recommended Uses of the 2026 Permanent Fund Distribution

• The 2025 earnings on the Permanent Fund totaled $2.057 million. Per city ordinance, 50% ($1,028,605) is available for distribution each year. The board considered whether to recommend reinvesting this amount back into the Permanent Fund or using it for capital projects.
• Staff recommendation: Reinvest the entire $1,028,605 back into the Permanent Fund, citing a healthy general fund and adequate capital funding.
• Discussion: Member Baker proposed creating a separate cash component ("Portfolio B") within the Permanent Fund to serve as a rainy-day reserve, allowing the city to access past earnings in lean years without pulling from the volatile equity market. He suggested that this fund be limited to safe, liquid investments like money markets. This idea generated significant discussion about feasibility, ordinance constraints, and accounting complexity. Director Yara noted that a similar effect could be achieved by adding a cash allocation within the existing Permanent Fund structure, but Member Baker preferred a distinct account with its own investment guidelines to avoid triggering restrictions on withdrawing past earnings. The board decided to table further exploration of this concept until the next meeting, after staff can research legal and operational requirements.
• Vote: A motion to follow staff recommendation and reinvest the $1,028,605 distribution back into the Permanent Fund passed unanimously (4-0). The board also agreed to investigate the possibility of creating a separate liquidity account within the Permanent Fund in the coming months.

Public Forum

• No members of the public spoke.

Key Outcomes

• Unanimous approval of November 19, 2025 minutes.
• Unanimous re-election of Chair Wainwright and Vice-Chair Baker.
• Unanimous approval of Permanent Fund Investment Policy Statement revisions.
• Unanimous recommendation to reinvest the entire 2026 Permanent Fund distribution ($1,028,605) into the Permanent Fund.
• Future agenda item: Discussion and modeling of a separate cash/liquidity component within the Permanent Fund, to be brought back at the next quarterly meeting.