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Investing in Our Chicago 90-DAY ACTION PLAN IMPACT REPORT
Treasurer Kurt A. Summers Jr.
City of Chicago March 4th, 2015
Treasurer Summers is Chicago’s financial
steward – an independently elected official
accountable to all 2.7 million Chicagoans.
His office has the ability and the responsibility
to positively impact the lives of all Chicago
residents. Treasurer Summers serves the
City’s residents, businesses, and employees
in three functions: as an investor, banker, and advocate.
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INVESTOR
As Chicago’s investor, Treasurer Summers leverages the City’s portfolio to
increase investment in Chicago and foster job creation in every community.
Treasurer Summers manages the City’s approximately $7 billion investment
portfolio and is charged with appropriately balancing risk, returns, and
liquidity needs for funding the City’s day-to-day operations. Additionally,
Treasurer Summers serves on five pension boards with nearly $25 billion
under management.
BANKER
As Chicago’s banker, Treasurer Summers works to identify opportunities to
provide better services to the City and its agencies that save taxpayer dollars
– leaving more money for schools, economic development and public safety.
By mandate, Treasurer Summers receives all money belonging to the City,
and is responsible for maintaining records and accounts and providing
reports on the state of the City’s finances. Treasurer Summers also serves as
ex officio School Treasurer of the Board of Education of the City of Chicago.
ADVOCATE
As Chicago’s advocate, Treasurer Summers works to empower young
people, workers and small business owners with the tools they need for
financial strength and success.
Treasurer Summers leads numerous programs that conduct financial educa-
tion, expand community outreach and promote small business growth. Trea-
surer Summers believes these programs must be expanded over the next
four years in order to strengthen the financial integrity of our City.
Upon taking the oath of office 90 days ago, Treasurer Summers launched a
comprehensive plan to identify potential opportunities to better serve
the people of Chicago. The plan included 15 initiatives that would act as the
foundational roadmap helping Treasurer Summers achieve his vision for
the Treasurer’s office over the next four years. It also committed Treasurer
Summers to concrete actions that would have an immediate and direct
impact towards each of these goals over the next 90 days.
To guide the plan’s implementation and ensure each neighborhood’s
concerns would be addressed, Treasurer Summers visited all of Chicago’s
77 communities in just 77 days. By the time his tour had concluded,
Treasurer Summers had met with and listened to more than a thousand
residents, business owners, and community organizations about the
specific challenges facing Chicago and how the Treasurer’s Office can
better serve these needs. This feedback has been incorporated into
each initiative of the 90-Day Plan, and due to resounding support across
the city, an additional 16th initiative has been added.
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O F F I C E O F T H E C I T Y T R E A S U R E R | C I T Y O F C H I C AG O 7
• Increasing investment in Our Chicago
• Protecting our local pension funds
• Providing financial education and empowerment
• Enhancing city and sister agency services
• Committing to financial accountability and transparency
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Before taking action on each of these 16 initiatives, Treasurer Summers
and his team first had to identify the city’s current status quo and review
national best practices to determine where Chicago could improve
and innovate. This follow-up report lays out our goals and reports on the
progress we have made so far for each initiative.
This report is organized by each initiative which have been placed in
five overarching categories:
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INCORPORATING COMMUNITY FEEDBACK FROM THE 77 IN 77 INTO THE 90-DAY ACTION PLAN
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• Throughout the 77 in 77 tour, we identified 247 different deliverables from
which communities would like to see action from the City Treasurer’s office.
– 75% of these deliverables couldbedirectlyincorporatedintooneof
the15initiativeslaidoutinthe90-Dayplan.
• The two initiatives that had by far the most popular support during
the 77 in 77 visits were:
– Initiative3:Encouragingfinancialinstitutionstoinvestinourcommunity.
– Initiative11:EnhanceChicago’sattractivenesstosmallbusiness.
• 70 out of 77 communities made some mention of a desire for increased
transparency and scorecards regarding financial information from banks,
the City, and the Treasurer’s office.
• Due to overwhelming support for comprehensive community economic
development plans, Treasurer Summers has added this deliverable as a
16th initiative to his plan.
BriefDescription Count Comprehensive Community Plan 24
Vacant Properties 10
Need for Affordable Housing 7
Grant Anticipation Notes 5
Need Grocery Store 5
Partner with Neighboring Suburbs 3
Storefront Rebate Program 3
CAPS Program 2
BriefDescription Count
Need Hospital 2
Parking Issues 2
Need Community Library 1
Elected School Board 1
Grant Money for Lincoln Park Zoo 1
Streamline Social Security 1
Job Creation 1
Strengthen Relationship between 1
Hospitality and Retail
InitiativeNo. Count 1 22
2 2
3 46
4 0
5 1
6 5
7 19
8 17
9 1
10 1
11 36
12 4
13 2
14 19
15 3
Other 69
TOTAL 247
Breakdown of Deliverables by Initiative (below/right)
Breakdown of Other Deliverables
50
40
30
20
10
01 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
77 Communities in 77 Days
UpontakingofficeonDecember1st,TreasurerSummersembarkedon
theambitiousprojectofvisitingall77Chicagocommunitiesinjust
77days.FromtheEnglewoodtoEdisonPark,RogersParktoRoseland,
TreasurerSummerstravelledthroughoutalloftheCity’sneighborhoodsto
meetdirectlywithsmallbusinessesowners,advocacygroupsandcom-
munityleaders.Hereceivedtheirfeedbackregardingthecurrentfinancial
challengestheyfaceandpotentialopportunitiesforfuturecollaboration.
OVERVIEW
Increasing investment in Our Chicago
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Action
Progress Several managers have suggested that due to our pre-existing relationships with both local
entrepreneurs and investment managers, the Treasurer’s office could play a central role in
connecting capital with those who need it. Treasurer Summers will take the lead in identifying
exciting, up-and-coming entrepreneurs and growing businesses based in Chicago and
showcasing them to managers.
The Treasurer’s office will also highlight successful start-up accelerators, innovation centers
and industry clusters as well as any upcoming planned developments to make sure investment
managers are fully aware of the City’s economic development efforts. In the 3rd quarter
of FY 2015, Treasurer Summers will host representatives from the nation’s largest pension
funds and banks as well as leading investors and managers in the private debt, private equity,
hedge fund, and real estate investment industries for a conference in Chicago.
ENGAGE INVESTMENT MANAGERS TO IDENTIFY APPROACH ON EVALUATIONS
OF LOCAL INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES
FUTURE SNAPSHOT
INITIATIVE No.1
Encourage investment in responsible and fiscally prudent local opportunities.
SupporteconomicgrowthbylaunchingaChicagoTargetedInvestment
Programthathighlightslocalentrepreneursandprojectsbyleveragingour
collectiveinvestmentscale.
StatusQuo
Today, neither the Treasurer’s office nor any of our
11 local pension funds, who together with other
local pools of capital manage more than $50 billion in
assets, have any explicit mandate to invest capital in
Chicago-based entrepreneurs or businesses. As a result,
opportunities to invest directly back into our city’s
neighborhoods have long been overlooked and even
avoided. In February of 2015, when the Montclare Senior
Residences of Avalon Park opened in the 8th Ward,
few were aware that the construction was funded in
part by investments from Chicago’s own Laborers’
Retirement Board Employees’ Annuity and Benefit Fund.
This is the type of investment in our community we
should all expect.
BestPractices
To determine how we can best leverage our collective
assets to identify and pursue strong investment
opportunities right here in Chicago, the Treasurer’s
office undertook a national review of targeted
investment programs in other cities and states that
already invest capital back in their own regions
successfully. The Treasurer’s office has identified
several models that we believe can inform
the foundation of Chicago’s Target Investment
Program including:
1. CalPERSforCaliforniaInitiative
2. NewYorkStateCommonRetirementFund–Instate
PrivateEquityInvestmentProgram
3. NewYorkCityEconomicallyTargetedInvestmentProgram
4.Michigan21stCenturyInvestmentFund
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
By law, every state-sponsored retirement fund in Illinois is already required to submit a
report detailing their Illinois-based investments. Using these reports as a starting point,
Treasurer Summers will work with all local pension funds to gather similar data at the
City-level. These metrics will be used to measure each fund’s investments in Chicago-
based companies and projects broken down by individual investment manager.
Treasurer Summers and his staff have started vetting over a dozen potential enhancements
to Chicago’s investment policy that would further diversify the City’s portfolio while
also reinvesting assets right back into our neighborhoods. In particular, the Treasurer is
interested in exploring options that would extend the duration of the City’s current portfolio
while maintaining credit quality. Once completed, Treasurer Summers will use this review
to identify opportunities to enhance to our current investment policy. Potential investments
may include longer-dated instruments, yield-cos and infrastructure-linked securities.
Inflation and rate-protected security options are also being considered for incorporation.
DEVELOP METRICS FOR RETIREMENT FUNDS TO MEASURE LOCAL
INVESTMENT COMMITMENTS
LOOK FOR DIRECT INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES WITHIN THE TREASURER’S
OFFICE AND LOCAL RETIREMENT PLANS
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
Withover$50billioninassetscombined,theTreasurer’s
office,ourlocalpensionfundsandotherlocalpools
ofcapitalareinaprimepositiontoleadthewayonthis
initiative.Asaninvestor,TreasurerSummersknows
thatChicago–thethirdlargestmarketofthelargest
economyintheworld–isfullofstronginvestment
opportunitiesjustwaitingtobeidentifiedandpursued.
As an advocate, Treasurer Summers is committed to
bringing long-desired capital back to our
neighborhoods and in the process support business
creation and stimulate job growth.
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FUTURE SNAPSHOT
INITIATIVE No.2
Actively seek to invest in City and sister agency debt.
Enhancethecurrentmunicipaldebtportfoliotoprovideadditional
capacitytotheCityanditssisteragencies.
StatusQuo
With a few exceptions, Chicago’s current investment
policy allows the Treasurer to invest in debt
offerings issued by both the City of Chicago and
most of our sister agencies. However, despite
the fact that such investments are legally permitted,
our municipal debt portfolio today contains no
City of Chicago or sister agency bonds. Investing in
the city’s debt would provide better returns,
help support local authorities like the CTA, and
generate more funding for our schools, parks,
and transportation system.
BestPractices
Before looking into opportunities that target city
and sister agency bonds, our investment portfolio
managers compared the city’s current investment
policy with the best practice guidelines outlined
by the Government Finance Officers Association
(GFOA) and the California Debt and Investment
Advisory Commission (CDIAC). The review was a
critical step to ensure that we are investing our
assets in the best securities possible to maximize
returns while effectively mitigating risk
and maintaining our required levels of liquidity.
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
Treasurer Summers’ investment management team has compiled a complete inventory of
all City and sister agency debt issuances over the last five years. This includes the
initial price, spread, rating changes, and total returns. Using that data, the Treasurer’s
team then searched for tranches that fit the current cash flow, duration/maturity,
and rating parameters set out in the City’s investment policy to identify any recent
missed opportunities. In order to prepare for future offerings, the investment management
team has also reached out to the City of Chicago Department of Finance and sister
agencies to identify indicative bond issuances in the next few years for the Treasurer
to consider as potential investments.
The Treasurer’s investment management team has carefully examined the City of Chicago
Municipal Code, City of Chicago Investment Policy, Illinois State Pension Code and
Guidelines for the City of Chicago Reserves Portfolio (Skyway & Parking Meters) and
identified the verbiage changes required to allow for more flexibility to increase our
investments in City and sister agency debt.
ENGAGE CITY & AGENCY CFOS AND CITY COUNCIL TO REVIEW
PAST AND FUTURE OFFERINGS.
REVIEW AND CREATE INVESTMENT POLICIES AND PARAMETERS.
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
Treasurer Summers will seek to improve the
Municipal Code and Investment Policy by allowing
the City’s investment portfolio to take advantage
of market opportunities that exist in city and sister
agency debt offerings. TreasurerSummersand
hisinvestmentmanagementteamhavealsostarted
exploringotheropportunitiestobuypoolsoflocal
government-backedsecuritiesandquasi-public
agencybonds,IncreasinginvestmentinCityand
sisteragencydebtplaysanimportantrolein
TreasurerSummers’greatervisionofincreasing
investmentsinOurChicago.
BOND EXAMPLE 1
Cook County of Illinois G.O.,Taxable Municipal
BOND EXAMPLE 2
Chicago O’Hare Airport Ser A Ref, AMT Taxable Municipal
BOND EXAMPLE 3
Chicago Park District Ser B-Ref, Tax Exempt Municipal
Issued: 2012
2.03% 11/15/18
Current Ratings: AA/A1/A+
Price at issuance: 100
Current market value: 97.451
Annualized Return: 0.62%
Issued: 9/12/12
5.00% 1/1/18
Current Ratings: A-/A2/A-
Price at issuance: 114.911
Current market value: 110.431
Annualized Return: 2.52%
Issued: 9/1/13
4.00% 1/1/18
Current Ratings: AA=/A3/AA-
Price at issuance: 108.333
Current market value: 107.716
Annualized Return: 2.98%
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INITIATIVE No.3
Encourage financial institutions to invest in our communities and entrepreneurs.
Increaselocalinvestmentbypromotingbusinessesandentrepreneurs
andensuringtransparencyandaccountabilityonlocalinvestment
practicesforfinancialinstitutionsthatdobusinesswiththeCity.
StatusQuo
Access to capital remains one of the biggest concerns
for entrepreneurs and small businesses all over
Chicago. However, the city does not currently leverage
its relationship with its municipal depositories to hold
local banks to a higher standard when it comes to
allocating capital in the neighborhoods where they
are located.
BestPractices
Treasurer Summers’ team has reviewed the best
practices for responsible local banking and
community investment as established by the
National Community Reinvestment Coalition
(NCRC) and compared them with those currently
in place in Chicago. Other innovative ideas
from several other cities including New York,
Philadelphia, Seattle, Boston, Los Angeles, and
Cleveland have also been examined.
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
FUTURE SNAPSHOT
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
In February, Treasurer Summers hosted a meeting of dozens of community investment
partners in order to brainstorm innovative solutions to increase accountability of our
City’s commercial banking in their lending practices to local businesses and entrepreneurs.
We have created a set of deliverables from this working group to address issues of:
• Bankaccountability,transparencyandeaseinreporting
• Growthinaccesstocapitalwithinneighborhoods
• Borrowerreferralandstreamliningofunderwritingprocesses
• Governmentroleindirectlendingorcreditenhancementtoborrowers
• Municipalordinancereviewforthosepoliciesthatmayunknowinglycreatebarriers
toneighborhoodlending
• Solutionsforcommercialandmultifamilyvacancieswhichaddressexistingbankloans
andforeclosureprocess
• Bank-ledpurchasingofsmallloanpoolswhichcanprovideadditionalcapacityforassist
agenciesandcapitalaccesscenterstounderwritemoreloans
Treasurer Summers will hold similar meetings on a regular basis to ensure these community
investment partners remain part of discussion on how we set new standards for holding
local banks accountable to their neighbors.
Using feedback from these meetings combined with best practices, the Treasurer’s office
will create a set of standards and metrics by which to judge the efforts that municipal
depositories make to reinvest in their communities.
ANNOUNCE A COMMITTEE OF COMMUNITY LENDERS, BANKS, INVESTORS,
AND SMALL BUSINESSES TO REVIEW OPPORTUNITIES AND POOL RESOURCES.
DEVELOP COMMUNITY INVESTMENT CRITERIA FOR REGULAR FINANCIAL
REPORTING AND DECISION-MAKING.
Withpublicdesireforcapitalaccesscontinuingto
grow,TreasurerSummerswillworkwiththeMayor,
theComptroller,andtheCity’sChiefFinancialOfficer
tocontemplaterevisions to the municipal
depositories ordinance which would require all
banks who hope to work with the City to have
greater accountability to small businesses and
entrepreneurs located in their communities.
Protecting our local pension funds
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INITIATIVE No.4
Promote collaboration across local retirement plans to achieve significant savings by securing lower investment fees.
Reducefeeschargedtolocalpublicpensionfundsanddeferred
compensationplansbypoolingpurchasingpoweronoverlapping
investmentsacrossfundstohelpprotectthelong-termfunding
forparticipantsandannuitantsandprotecttaxpayers.
StatusQuo
Since their inception, the city’s 11 public employee
pension funds have been treated separately when
negotiating contracts with investment managers. This
has allowed investment managers to charge different
fees to each fund causing some to pay substantially
more than others. As a result, our local pension funds
do not currently receive any benefits that their collective
size and scale should command, and retirees are
subject to higher investment fees across the board.
BestPractices
Seeing a prime opportunity for collaboration be-
tween these funds, the Treasurer’s team conducted
interviews and launched a thorough review of other
cities that have already worked to successfully pool
the purchasing power of their local pension funds.
Pension funds in New York City, Los Angeles, and
Atlanta have achieved meaningful savings by using
aggregate pricing.
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
FUTURE SNAPSHOT
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
Treasurer Summers has introduced a joint resolution to each of Chicago’s 11 funds that
proposes they partner with each other and the Treasurer to share information regarding
how much they pay investment managers and work together to reduce those fees.
This first of its kind data-sharing clearinghouse will be used to renegotiate better contracts
for each fund and could help achieve substantial savings on the $144 million in fees
they pay investment managers annually.
Longer-term success requires continued coordination and information sharing
The Treasurer’s team analyzed each fund to discover that of the 236 unique investment
managers across all funds, 80 percent have overlapping investments and the top
23 managers receive more then half of all investment fees. Many investment managers
that hold overlapping investments in our local funds have already reached out to
Treasurer Summers to offer their recommendations on the best opportunities to
negotiate lower fees.
REQUEST AND CONSOLIDATE INVESTMENT DATA ACROSS FUNDS
AND BEGIN ANALYZING SPECIFIC OPPORTUNITIES.
MEET WITH INVESTMENT MANAGERS THAT HAVE OVERLAPPING
INVESTMENTS FROM LOCAL FUNDS.
Thejointresolutionregardingaggregatedinvestment
feesisaconcreteexampleofrealcollaboration
occurringtodayamongourlocalretirementplans.Once
thenecessaryinfrastructuretosharethisimportant
dataisinplace,Treasurer Summers will have
collaborated with pension funds and investment
managers to save our local pension plans over
a potential $1 billion over the course of their lifetimes.
MUNICIPALWORKING
GROUP REPORTS
PUBLIC REPORTS
CTA HEALTH
POLICE PARK
LABOR COOK
TEACHERS FP
CTA MWRD
MUNICIPAL
CLEARINGHOUSE
FUND
XXX
XXX
XXX
...
AUM
XXX
XXX
XXX
...
FEES
XXX
XXX
XXX
...
A B
C> >
Total of $144M in investment management fees paid each year across the plans
40
30
20
10
0
25
15
10
5
80
60
40
20
0
Ave
rag
e f
ee
s (b
ps)
An
nu
al in
ve
stm
en
t m
an
ag
em
en
t fe
es
($M
)
MUNI POLICE LABOR FIRE TEACHERS CTA RETIRE
CTA HEALTH
PARK COOK COUNTY
FOREST PRESERVE
WATER RECLAM.
CITY OF CHICAGO SISTER AGENCIES COOK COUNTY OTHER
38
11
4 31
5
27
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INITIATIVE No.5
Develop the best practice approach to identify and invest in emerging investment managers.
Gainaccesstoawiderbreadthofqualifiedinvestmentmanagersand
deliveragainstourfiduciaryobligationinanefforttoachieve
superiorrisk-adjustedreturnsbyfosteringthegrowthofsmall-,
women-,minority-anddisabled-ownedmanagers.
StatusQuo
While the State of Illinois has one of the most
progressive, transparent and actively managed
emerging manager policies and programs in the
country, the various local pension plans maintain
disparate policies, targets and practices with
respect to this issue.
BestPractices
A number of public and private plans across the U.S.
have leading programs and practices regarding this
universe of investment managers. Treasurer Summers
has conducted individual interviews with over
25 leading plans across the country. These include, but
are not limited to, New York City, Texas TRS, State
of Maryland, DC Retirement Board and State of
Illinois TRS. A summary of these findings are below.
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
FUTURE SNAPSHOT
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
Treasurer Summers’ team has created an emerging manager best practice database
which will be available and updated on a quarterly basis. Treasurer Summers will
hold annual reviews with leading contemporary plans and will also participate in
industry-leading discussions, conferences and research exercises. For best practice
sharing and manager identification, the Treasurer’s Office will partner with relevant
industry organizations including NASP, NAA, NAIC, AAIM and the Capital Access
Partnership and report findings and recommendations on an annual basis. Treasurer
Summers will also invite emerging managers to Chicago’s annual investment conference.
Treasurer Summers has begun to collect this data across all local funds will provide
updates in our upcoming quarterly and annual reports. This information will also
be provided to industry and trade associations to benefit their respective members.
MONITOR AND RECOMMEND LOCAL AND NATIONAL BEST PRACTICES
ACROSS LOCAL FUNDS.
MAINTAIN AND DISTRIBUTE ACCURATE INFORMATION REGARDING CURRENT
ALLOCATIONS TO MINORITY AND WOMEN-OWNED BUSINESS ENTERPRISE
AND EMERGING MANAGERS.
Treasurer Summers seeks to encourage meaningful
diversity across all local plans by engaging and
supporting emerging managers. Centralizingbest
practiceswillhelpprospectiveemergingmanagers
lookingtodobusinesswithlocalplans.
Plan AUM EM AUM Unique Best Practice EM Mandate Target % Dedicated Staff
DCRB $6.3 Billion $607 Million Requires consultants to have X 8%
EM finalists in every search.
Alternative is watchlist.
NY Common $181.7 Billion $400 Million Created alternatives, X 10% X
seeding program
Texas TRS $115.7 Billion $12 Billion Largest EM Program X 10% X
Dedicated EM Consultant
State of MD $42 Billion $11 Billion First State EM program X 25%
in the U.S.
NYC $164 Billion $13 Billion Large mandates, X 6-7% X
graduated manager program
IL TRS $44.5 Billion $7 Billion Collaborative investments, X 15% X
seeding program, graduated
manager program
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INITIATIVE No.6
Work to ensure the long-term security of our pension funds.
Positionourlocalpensionfundstoemployabestpracticeapproachto
collaboration,ideageneration,informationsharing,resourceefficiency
andfinancialstewardshipinanefforttoprotectthelong-termfiduciary
interestsoftheplans,theirparticipantsandretirees.
StatusQuo
Traditionally, local plans have not collaborated around
issues such as sharing best practices, leveraging
common resources and efficiencies, benefit policies
and investment strategies. The funds have also
lacked transparency around their collective financial
status and performance. By pursuing more collabora-
tive efforts, there could be a significant impact on the
security of each individual plan.
BestPractices
Treasurer Summers’ team has surveyed multiple infor-
mation-sharing models from industry associations which
employ more developed practices, including those from
the National Council of Public Employee Retirement
Systems (NCPERS) and the National Association of State
Retirement Administrators (NASRA). In addition to
implementing these best practices, Treasurer Summers
plans to work with the investment managers who serve
our local pension funds to gain insight which can be ap-
plied to enhance all local investment strategies.
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
FUTURE SNAPSHOT
Action
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
Progress
The Treasurer’s Office has examined the FY 2015 operating budgets for the four pension funds
where the Treasurer serves as a voting board member and identified opportunities in which
these funds would benefit from collaboration. By sharing information regarding their expenses,
each fund could identify where they are overspending in comparison with other local funds.
This information could then be used to negotiate lower contracts in the future allowing our
local pension funds to achieve significant savings in fees and other operating expenses.
Treasurer Summers has met with State Treasurer Frerichs and the chairs of the pension
committees in both houses of the Illinois General Assembly. These meetings helped
to identify shared challenges that currently affect our state, county, and city pension
funds and ways the funds could collaborate on a larger scale. In the coming months,
Treasurer Summers will continue these discussions as well as engage the Illinois Public
Pension Fund Association (IPPFA) and leaders of the state plans to explore tangible
opportunities to leverage some of the best practices and compelling financial
opportunities that we’ve analyzed over our first 90 days in office.
The first-of-its-kind clearinghouse among the 11 funds proposed in Initiative 4 will not
only allow them to easily share important information, but also serve as a catalyst for
increased collaboration between funds, especially regarding financial analysis. Once
established, this clearinghouse will prove that working together will benefit each fund
on daily basis but also when it comes to problem-solving on future issues.
IDENTIFY SHARED OPPORTUNITIES ACROSS PENSION BOARDS ON WHICH
THE TREASURER SERVES.
ENGAGE STATE OF ILLINOIS ELECTED AND LEGISLATIVE OFFICIALS IN AN OPEN
DIALOGUE ON THE FINANCIAL HEALTH OF LOCAL PENSION FUNDS.
PROVIDE INDEPENDENT FINANCIAL ANALYSIS AND REPORTING
ON PENSION REFORM ACTIVITIES.
TreasurerSummerswillcontinuetofostercoordination
betweenourlocalpensionplanstofindevery
sensibleopportunitytopreserveandprotecttheir
long-termviabilityandreducethecollectivemagnitude
ofourunfundedliabilities.Whilenoneofthese
solutionswilleliminatetheneedforsoundstructural
reformandappropriatecontributionstowardfunding
long-termobligations,every effort to promote
collaboration between pension funds places us one
step closer to solving this pervasive fiscal challenge.
Providing financial education and empowerment
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FUTURE SNAPSHOT
INITIATIVE No.7
Expand financial education efforts to reach more youth and adults and empower our workers and retirees.
Increaseaccesstofinancialeducationandincreasethefinancialcapability
andempowermentofChicagoansbyprovidingeducation,trainingandre-
sourcestomoreadults,workers,andretirees.
StatusQuo
While we know that many valuable financial education
programs exist in Chicago, there has not been an effort
to assess the scope and impact of financial education
services in the city. Similarly, there has not been
an effort to bring together and coordinate financial
education programs so as to ensure all Chicagoans
have access to high-quality financial education.
BestPractices
To understand how the Treasurer’s office can make
financial education more accessible in Chicago,
Treasurer Summers reviewed several financial education
efforts in other cities and met with leading practitioners
in the financial empowerment field. The Treasurer’s
office has identified several models that can inform
our efforts to widely expand access to financial
education in Chicago:
1. SanFranciscoMoneySmartNetwork
2. NewYorkCity’sFinancialEmpowermentCenters
3. NewYorkCity’sFinancialEducationNetworkDirectory
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
Treasurer Summers’ financial education team has conducted an inventory of over 135 financial
education providers in Chicago, collaborating with the Cities for Financial Empowerment
Fund and Chicago Public Schools to begin centralizing financial education services and
resources. The Treasurer has also solicited a wide variety of corporations, financial
institutions, non-profits, and city agencies.
Treasurer Summers convened city agencies to develop a plan to make financial education accessi-
ble to all Chicagoans. The working committee has met twice already, and includes leadership from
Mayor Emanuel’s Office, Chicago Public Schools, and the President’s Advisory Council for Finan-
cial Capability for Young Americans. On March 3rd, Treasurer Summers went to the White House
to formally present this group’s vision of Chicago’s comprehensive financial education strategy.
LEAD EFFORTS TO CONVENE SISTER AGENCIES AND NON-PROFITS TO
INVENTORY AND ASSESS EXISTING FINANCIAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS.
CREATE A COLLABORATIVE CITY-WIDE EFFORT, INCLUDING THE CIVIC
COMMUNITY AND LABOR UNIONS, TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT STRATEGIES
FOCUSED ON EACH STAKEHOLDER GROUP.
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
Treasurer Summers will continue to better coordinate
and centralize all financial empowerment providers,
funders, and volunteers in the city, so that all Chicago
youth, adults, working families, and retirees have
access to high-quality financial education. Treasurer
Summers’visionofprovidingmeaningfulfinancial
educationtoallChicagoanscanserveasa
modelthroughoutIllinoisandtheentirecountry.
Graphical Representation of Financial Education Network
Receives – coordinated priorities – system-wide transparency & performance – efficient service delivery / high ROI
Provides – $ resources – human capitol – best practices – curriculum
* Inclusive of both CPS and non-CPS educational institutions as well as City Colleges and of Chicago and other local universities
** Financial Planning will also include college financial aid and education around Illinois 529 plans
*** This also includes education around the pending implementation of the Illinois Secure Choice Act
STAKEHOLDER ENTITIES FINANCIAL EDUCATION NETWORK ISSUE AREAS
Non-profit Organizations Youth/Student Financial Edu.*
Government AgenciesAdult Financial Edu.
Financial Planning**
Philanthropic Organizations
Credit Building
Retirement Planning***Subject Matter Experts
(e.g. Academic)
Volunteers
Tax Assistance
Financial Product Fraud & Abuse
Regular Stakeholder Meetings
__
Online Information / Resource Finding Portal
__
$ Resource Solicitation __
Common Prioritization of Approved
(FEN)
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INITIATIVE No.8
Provide residents with access to safe and responsible financial offerings.
Connectunder-orun-bankedresidentstoresponsiblefinancialservices
andimprovethequalityoflifeformoreChicagoansbydevelopingnew,
tailoredservices.
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
FUTURE SNAPSHOT
Action
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
Progress
Realizing that most Chicagoans either have not heard of the Bank On program or are unclear
on its benefits, the Treasurer’s office has embarked on an effort to rebrand and establish
new marketing partnerships. To increase this program’s accessibility, Treasurer Summers has
already installed a new Bank Locator tool on the Bank On website making it easier to identify
affordable checking accounts. In addition, recognizing that many Chicagoans use prepaid cards
in lieu of checking accounts, Treasurer Summers is working with Bank On Chicago members
to establish criteria for safe and affordable prepaid cards, which will make it easier for
Chicagoans to identify non-predatory products.
Treasurer Summers has wasted no time in adding new members to the Bank On network.
Since taking office, two new community banks, North Side Community Federal Credit
Union and First Midwest Bank, and one new community organization, the Spanish Coali-
tion for Housing, have joined Bank On Chicago. The Treasurer’s office is currently in talks
with two more community banks who are also considering joining the Bank On network
and has started identifying many more community partners to make sure that information
about Bank On Chicago is made available at all critical social service delivery points.
At the quarterly Bank On Chicago Meeting in January, Treasurer Summers’ financial
education team presented a proposal and got consensus from Bank On Chicago
members to issue a new criteria for safe and affordable checking accounts and prepaid
cards. Treasurer Summers is also working with One Summer Chicago, the city’s summer
youth employment program, to connect more youth with safe and affordable check-
ing accounts and encourage them to enroll in direct deposit as a means of avoiding
check-cashing fees.
AUGMENT THE EXISTING BANK ON CHICAGO PROGRAM.
EXPANDING THE EXISTING BANK ON CHICAGO NETWORK.
REVIEW NEW PRODUCT OFFERINGS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH COMMERCIAL BANKS,
EMPLOYERS, ADVOCACY GROUPS, AND CITY AGENCIES.
Althoughaugmentingandexpandingtheexisting
BankOnChicagoprogramaregoodfirststeps,
TreasurerSummers’visionfortheBankOnnetwork
doesnotstopthere.Treasurer Summers hopes
that in the near future, every interaction any Chicagoan
has with the City of Chicago, its sister agencies,
or relevant state agencies provides them with the
opportunity to sign up for responsible financial services.
Tomakethisgoalareality,TreasurerSummersand
hisfinancialservicesteamhavealreadyhostedseveral
preliminarydiscussionswithanumberofpotential
partneragenciesregardingincreasedaccesstoBank
Onservices,andwillcontinuethisdialoguetoforge
newpartnerships.
StatusQuo
Data suggests that 25 percent of Chicagoans have a
bank account but still use check cashing or payday
loans, meaning that they overpay to access their own
money. Additionally 16 percent of Chicago families
do not have a savings or bank account at all—a level that
is twice the national rate. Treasurer Summers’ financial
education team has conducted a gap analysis of the
existing Bank On Chicago program and identified
that lacking product relevancy has led to low levels
of participation from major financial institutions and
smaller community banks.
BestPractices
In addition to evaluating the weaknesses of the current
Bank On Chicago program, the Treasurer’s financial
services team evaluated the model practices outlined
by the Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED)
and consulted with the Office of San Francisco City
Treasurer José Cisneros, who leads the nation’s most
successful Bank On program.
Enhancing city and sister agency services
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INITIATIVE No.9
Rationalize banking and transaction fees.
Savetaxpayerdollarsbyrenegotiatingbankingandotherfinancialservices
contractsandeliminatingunnecessarycosts.Awell-managedbanking
relationshipbenefitseveryoneinvolved—thegovernment,thebank,and
mostimportantly,thetaxpayersandconstituents.
StatusQuo
A treasury management review of all banking
relationships has not been conducted in over
a decade. Several disparate accounts, transactions
and fees exist across the City of Chicago’s operations.
A preliminary review of banking relationships within
the Treasurer’s office has already led to a savings of
$100,000, which enables $30,000,000 to be rede-
ployed into return-bearing securities.
BestPractices
Treasurer Summers and his staff have performed an
extensive national review of best practices for stream-
lined banking relationships and transaction fee reduction.
Based on discussions and review of information from
GFOA and other city treasurers across the US,
we have determined the following best practices:
• RegularRequestforProposals(RFP)orbankingreview
scheduleinplace(e.g.,everyfiveyears).
• Bankmonitoringsysteminplaceforpricing,financial
condition,andcollateralization.
• Regularin-personmeetingswiththebank’srelationship
manager(e.g.,quarterly).
• Ongoingdisseminationofnewproductinformationfrombank.
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
FUTURE SNAPSHOT
Our best practice review of approaches to conducting this type of analysis suggests that
there must be a refreshed banking services program including:
• AnunderlyingbankingservicesRFP
• Bankingservicesproposal
• Bankcontract
Based on the national best practice review performed for this initiative, we’ve determined the steps
necessary for a productive revision of banking services relationships and RFP. They are as follows:
• Hostavendorconference.
• Useareasonabletimeframeforformulatingresponses.
• Useevaluationcriteriathatlookatlineitemcosts,butalsovaluesthebenefitsofnewtechnology.
• Requireservicelevelagreements.
• Requireabankingtransitionschedule.
• Clearlydefinetheselectionprocessbeforethebidsareopened.
• Giveeveryoneareasonableopt-out.
• Requireongoingandperiodicrelationshipreviews.Reviewswillbeamaximumintervalof
oneyearandwillbeaveryformalprocess.
Successfully rationalizing banking relationships will require the review of all relationships
that currently exist across the system. Prior to the execution of the RFP, the Treasurer’s
office will meet with the City Comptroller and all relevant counterparts at various depart-
ments and sister agencies.
ISSUE A BANKING SERVICES RFP.
ENGAGE CITY DEPARTMENTS AND SISTER AGENCIES TO ASSESS
VARIOUS FINANCIAL SERVICES RELATIONSHIPS.
CONDUCT AN ANALYSIS OF CURRENT BANKING AND TRANSACTION FEES
AND CONTRACTS.
Effectively managing banking relationships can
save a government time, money, and unwanted
surprises, but it requires an investment of time
and effort on the front-end and ongoing oversight.
Successfulexecutionofthisinitiativecanleadto
$500,000-$1,000,000ayearinfeesavingsandan
increment$50+millionincapitalthatcanberede-
ployedintointerest-bearingsecurities.
Action
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
Progress
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FUTURE SNAPSHOT
INITIATIVE No.10
Explore opportunities to provide financial services to local governments and agencies.
Reducecostsbyleveragingcurrentcapabilities(e.g.trading,banking,
advisory)toeliminateduplicationandevaluatenewopportunities
toaccesseconomiesofscale.
StatusQuoandBestPractices
Today, Treasurer Summers’ investment team manages
the day-to-day operations of the Chicago Park
District’s investment portfolio currently valued at over
$135 million. Each year, this partnership saves the
Park District over $250,000 in management fees,
personnel, and other costs. When compared to their
old investment strategy earns the Park District at
least an additional $250,000 in returns on their
investments annually. Most importantly, this agreement
enables both parties to focus all their assets and
attention directly on fulfilling their core missions.
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
Building upon the success of the current shared services relationship with the Park District,
Treasurer Summers has launched the City Treasurer’s Office (CTO) Advantage program to
propose similar partnerships with other local government agencies. By using the CTO
Advantage program and leaving the day-to-day management of their portfolios to the Treasurer’s
investment management team, partner agencies would be able to increase the returns of
their investments while also saving on management fees, personnel, and other benefits
of CTO-Advantage are listed below:
Treasurer Summers will soon present
proposals for CTO Advantage shared
services partnerships to multiple City and
sister agencies for their consideration.
Treasurer Summers and his staff have
already held productive conversations
with many agencies to review their
investment guidelines and current asset
allocation strategies in order to recom-
mend potential partnerships that would
address their specific timetables and
cash flow needs.
CONVENE CITY, SISTER AGENCY, AND OTHER LOCAL GOVERNMENT FINANCIAL
OFFICIALS TO DISCUSS CAPABILITIES AND OPPORTUNITIES TO COLLABORATE.
ISSUE RECOMMENDATIONS ON COLLABORATIVE OPPORTUNITIES.
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
Movingforward,TreasurerSummershopestocontinue
consultingwithallsisteragenciesregardingtheir
currentinvestmentguidelinesandassetallocation
strategyto identify opportunities where the CTO
Advantage program can make an immediate impact,
by utilizing our portfolio manager’s expertise and
economy of scale to provide a cost effective invest-
ment management platform. Overthecoming
months,TreasurerSummerswillcontinuetoseek
outanyopportunitytobuilduponandreplicatethe
provensuccessofsharedservicespartnershipswith
newCTOAdvantagepartners.
Chicago Park District Net Earnings FY2014
Benefits of CTO Advantage Proposals AnnualNetEarnings
$250,000
$200,000
$150,000
$100,000
$50,000
0
0.25%
0.20%
0.15%
0.10%
0.05%
0.00%
BEFORE SHARED
SERVICES
CURRENT SCENARIO
PREDICTED WITH
3RD PARTY MANAGER
CTO ADVANTAGE SCENARIO 1
AFTER CTO
SHARED SERVICES
CTO ADVANTAGE SCENARIO 2
INVESTMENT POLICY CONSULTATION AND REVIEW MUNICIPAL DEPOSITORY BANKS
LEVERAGED CUSTODY RELATIONSHIP FIXED-INCOME INVESTMENTS
LEVERAGED MONEY MARKET PORTAL SAVINGS ON INVESTMENT FEES
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INITIATIVE No.11
Enhance Chicago’s attractiveness to small businesses.
TheCityTreasurer’sOfficeisfocusedonacceleratingjobcreationby
helpingreducethechallengestostartorexpandabusinessinChicago.
StatusQuo
Currently, the City of Chicago, small business centers,
neighborhood chambers and local small business
advocacy groups (public and private) provide a wide-
range of support services to small business owners.
Treasurer Summers examined these various resources
and prioritized the current challenges and opportunities
for value creation for small business owners.
BestPractices
Treasurer Summers’ staff reviewed the best practices
as outlined by the National League of Cities, U.S.
Chamber of Commerce, U.S. Small Business Association,
and the U.S. Conference of Mayors as well as public-
private partnerships in New York City, Cleveland,
Boston and Atlanta to understand the most effective
ways to streamline support services for small businesses.
These best practices include:
• Market Understanding: Developappropriatelyalignedresourcesfor
businessesfaceateachstageoftheirdevelopment.
• Value Proposition: Provideleadership,advocacy,opencommunication,
andstreamlinedregulationforamorevibrantsmallbusinessenvironment.
• External Partnerships: Workwithexternalorganizationsthathave
technicalexpertise,marketing,businessplanningandresources.
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
FUTURE SNAPSHOT
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
This inventory indicated that there are significant gaps at the neighborhoodlevelfor
support services and capacity building for small businesses such as tax planning,
marketing, financial management, legal, technological development, and second-stage
funding to stimulate business growth.
Treasurer Summers has developed the “4 Cs for Small Business” identifying the four major
areas – capital, capacity, cost, and clients – where the City Treasurer’s office can help small
businesses grow.
Capital: ByleveragingtheCity’srelationshipswithcommercialbanks,outsideinvestorsandother
financialpartnerstoincreasetheirlendingcapacitytosmallbusinessaswellasincreaseaccess
tocapitalwithinChicago’sneighborhoodsbysupportingthegrowthoftheCapitalAccessCenters
sponsoredbyMayorEmanuelandTreasurerSummers.
Capacity: ContinuetoworkwithexistingcapacitybuildingeffortsinChicago’sentrepreneurialarena
inordertohelpsustainandgrowsmallbusinesses.Theseeffortscanbeenhancedbyproviding
low-costorfreebusinessconsulting,analysisandworkproductthroughpartnershipswithlocal
educationalinstitutionsandMBAprograms,neighborhoodinnovationcenterslikeBLUE1647,local
non-profitslikeSunshineEnterprises,aswellasnationalorganizationslikeHourlyNerdandStartup.com.
Cost: ByleveragingthecollectivepurchasingpoweroftheCityofChicagoandotherlocalgovernments
tohelpreducethecostofbuyinggoodsandservicesforsmallbusinesses.Similareffortssuchas
WorldBusinessChicago’s(WBC)ChicagoAnchorsforaStrongEconomy(CASE)initiativehavereduced
thecostofdoingbusinessandhaveallowforincreasedfocusonhowtogrowtheirbusinessinChicago.
Client: BysupportingnewpartnershipssuchasIllinoisScienceTechnologyCoalition(ISTC)-Corporate
StartupChallengeandtheSupplyChainInnovationNetworkChicago(SINC)toincreasethe
opportunitiesforsmall-mid-sizedbusinessestoworkwithlargercorporationstoaddresstheir
currentneedswhileincreasingsmallbusinesscapacity.
CONDUCT A COMPREHENSIVE INVENTORY OF ALL EXISTING SUPPORT SERVICES
THAT CURRENTLY EXIST TO HELP SMALL BUSINESSES IN CHICAGO.
PROVIDE RECOMMENDATIONS AND DEDICATED RESOURCES TO LEVERAGE CITY
OF CHICAGO SIZE, SCALE AND RELATIONSHIPS TO LOWER TOTAL COST
OF DOING BUSINESS FOR ENTREPRENEURS.
TheCityofChicagohasstartedtomakesignificant
stridesinprovidingsupportservicesfornewandex-
istingentrepreneursthroughitsneighborhoodsmall
businesscentersandthecapitalaccesscenters.How-
ever,thereisstillapressingneedforeasieraccessto
capitalinmanyneighborhoods.Treasurer Summers
will work to streamline existing support services and
leverage their collective capacity through the 4 C’s
framework to make Chicago the best city in the country
for entrepreneurs and small business creation.
CAPITAL
CAPACITY
COST
CLIENT
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INITIATIVE No.12
Lower the cost of doing business with the City through vendor financing programs.
Identifyopportunitiestofinancesupplierpayments,reducingvendor
coststypicallypassedontotheCity.
StatusQuo
We’ve heard from several of the city’s vendors that
they would stand to benefit if we found ways to
leverage the City’s balance sheet and purchasing
power to help reduce the cost of capital and
improve payment terms for those who seek to do
business with the City. While there are already
effective programs in place that address vendor
capacity and the time to payment has decreased
significantly under Mayor Emanuel’s leadership, there
is still an opportunity to further improve our ability
to be good partners to the vendor community.
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
FUTURE SNAPSHOT
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
Treasurer Summers has begun to review various options with the City of Chicago Department
of Procurement Services, Department of Aviation, Public Building Commission and Cook
County. In addition, we have begun to test various financing options with the City’s large
financial partners, who have been receptive in reviewing solutions. Treasurer Summer’s office
is convening a working group in Q2 with each procurement official as well as various private
sector procurement professionals for their further perspective on best practices. The
charge for this working group will be to finalize a set of products available for vendors in
each of the following areas:
• Commodities • Construction • CapitalEquipment
• ProfessionalServices • Short-termcontractors
Now that a confirmed preliminary validation of the opportunity amongst departments, vendors
and financing sources has been completed, we must further refine the opportunity and struc-
turing considerations. Several vendor financing models have arisen as examples to consider:
• Directpay/vendorfinancing–reducestransactiontime/costs
• Directlending–reducescostofcapital
• Streamlinedunderwriting–reducestransactiontime/costs
• Creditenhancement–reducescostofcapital
Treasurer Summers’ team has also identified the following steps in order to begin
structuring opportunity:
• DeterminetotalspendfromaggregatecontractsthatareSMB’sandcanberenegotiated
• Estimatepotentialpricereductionandsavings
• Identifykeycontractstoprioritize
• Assesslegalresourcesneededtoexecutenewstructuringandcontractrenegotiation
• Determineprocessfornon-performance
• SolicitfinancingoptionsthroughRFI/RFP
WORK WITH CITY AND SISTER AGENCY PROCUREMENT TEAMS
TO VALIDATE OPPORTUNITY.
EVALUATE FINANCING MODELS, SIZE OF OPPORTUNITY, SAVINGS POTENTIAL,
LEGAL REQUIREMENTS AND LIABILITY LIMITATIONS.
Wehaveanopportunitytoleveragethebalancesheet
oftheCityofChicagotohelpreducethecostfor
smallbusinesseswhoprovideservicestocitygovernment
andChicagoresidents.This opportunity will result in
the ability to procure goods at a cheaper price, with
more competition and potentially a more timely and
effective service delivery model for Chicago residents.
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INITIATIVE No.13
Foster development of innovative City programs that enhance services and save tax dollars.
Encourageinnovationthatimprovesqualityoflifeandsavestaxpayer
dollarsbyenablingprojectswithapositivereturnoninvestment.
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
FUTURE SNAPSHOT
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
These discussions between the Treasurer’s office and a host of partner organizations
including WorldBusinessChicago,SmartChicagoCollaborative,1871,IllinoisScience
andTechnologyCoalition,ChicagoInnovationAwards,ChicagoInnovationExchange
andtheCenterforFinancialServicesInnovationhave highlighted Treasurer Summers’
committment to leverage new opportunities to address and create innovative
development for city government. These innovative models and technologies will help
provide more efficient and transparent service offerings for small businesses, entrepreneurs,
non-profits and residents throughout all of Chicago and for current and potential
investors and partners around the world.
As Chicago’s leading financial steward, Treasurer Summers’ primary focus is on how
to harness these innovative practices to deliver the best and most transparent
investment performance possible. Over the last 90 days, we have engaged with a
number of consultants, technology and innovation experts and financial institutions to
determine how best to deliver against this charge. By the end of 2015, we plan to
initiate a process whereby new financial and investment platforms and other innovative
social media applications will be able to compete for the ability to partner with the
Treasurer’s office to deliver state-of-the art investment and economic analysis not only
to our portfolio managers, but to all interested parties across the city.
BEGIN DISCUSSIONS WITH CITY AGENCIES, NON-PROFITS AND SERVICE PROVIDERS
TO UNDERSTAND OPPORTUNITY AREAS FOR POTENTIAL PARTNERSHIPS.
EVALUATE MODELS TO CREATE AND SUPPORT VARIOUS INVESTMENT VEHICLES.
TreasurerSummerswillremainfocusedonestablishing
andcreatinginnovativeideaswithnewpublic-
privatepartnersworkingtogether.These innovative
models will help city services and programs be more
efficient and will result in significant savings and
unprecedented transparency for Chicago residents,
businesses and taxpayers. Public-privatepartnerships
willhelpsupportincreaseinnovationforCityagencies
creatingmoreresourcesavailableforinvestmentin
educationandeconomicdevelopment.
StatusQuo
To determine the landscape of innovation and devel-
opment, the Treasurer’s office has engaged several
public and private partners within the first 90 days
of being in office to gain a better understanding of
current efforts from across the City. These efforts
span a wide-range of industry, function, and purpose,
but fundamentally can be leveraged to help and
improve current programs and services for taxpayers
of Chicago.
BestPractices
In an effort to help further foster the burgeoning civic
innovation ecosystem in Chicago, Treasurer Summers
has engaged in a national review of other exemplary
efforts that can be leveraged as we build in Chicago.
To that end, this office has interviewed and received
common best practices from the likes of Fuse Corps,
Code for America, CityCamp and the Silicon Valley
Talent Partnership.
Committing to financial accountability and transparency
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FUTURE SNAPSHOT
INITIATIVE No.14
Publicly report and review key performance metrics on a quarterly basis.
EstablishaccountabilitybytrackingtheTreasurer’sperformanceandcreate
opportunitiestocollectfeedback.
StatusQuo
In the past, the Treasurer’s office has produced one
publically available financial report each year. This
annual report has historically only contained a simple
summary of City’s investment portfolios asset
allocation strategy and brief overview of the
performance over those investments over the past
year. As an investor and banker, Treasurer Summers
believes that this current lack of transparency is
unacceptable. All Chicagoans deserve to know
more about how their tax dollars are invested, and
this information should be available to the public
on a more regular basis.
BestPractices
As the primary investment manager for the City of
Chicago, Treasurer Summers sees no reason why
his office should be allowed to be less accountable
than any other investment management firm is
to their own investors. Therefore, when identifying
best practices for future financial reports the
Treasurer’s staff focused on quarterly and annual
reports published by some of the nation’s largest
investment managers including:
1. FidelityInvestments 3.J.P.MorganAssetManagement
2. BlackRock 4.TheVanguardGroup
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
On April 15th, two weeks after the conclusion the 1st quarter of this fiscal year, a scorecard
will be posted on the Treasurer’s website tracking our progress on each of the initiatives
laid out in this report over the past three months. Each quarter, this scorecard will be updated
with the progress we have achieved and outline concrete next steps our office plans on
pursuing in the next quarter.
Treasurer Summers will begin to publish a financial report tracking the performance of
the City’s investment portfolio on a quarterly basis. The first quarterly report will be
released on April 15th and all subsequent reports will be scheduled for release two
weeks after the conclusion each quarter. In order to get direct feedback from Chicago’s
taxpayers on his performance as their investor, Treasurer Summers will also host a
quarterly “earnings call” which will follow the same schedule.
DEVELOP AND PUBLISH A SCORECARD ON THE TREASURER’S WEBSITE
CONTAINING KEY METRICS AND GOALS.
SCHEDULE THE RELEASE OF A QUARTERLY REPORT AND “EARNINGS CALL”
WHERE RESIDENTS CAN PROVIDE FEEDBACK AND ASK QUESTIONS.
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
Treasurer Summers wants you to hold him accountable,
and therefore is committed to providing the public
with the information needed to track our successes and
opportunities for future improvement. Movingforward,
TreasurerSummershopestofindnewandinnovative
waystocontinuetoincreasepublicinteractionwith
theTreasurer’sofficesothatwecanreceivemore
feedbackdirectlyfromtheresidentsofChicago.
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FUTURE SNAPSHOT
INITIATIVE No.15
Provide clear, accessible, and timely information on the City’s financial health.
Helpresidentsunderstandreal-timethehealthofthelocaleconomyandprovide
analysisandreportingoncriticalpolicyissuesanddecisions.
StatusQuo
Currently, all published materials related to our City’s
financial health are scattered across many different
locations making it very difficult for Chicago resi-
dents to get an accurate and comprehensive picture
of the health of our local economy. While a plethora
of knowledge and information exists and is published
on a regular basis, it is not synthesized into a form
that makes it easy for public consumption.
BestPractices
Two comprehensive and easily comprehendible reports
that evaluating a region’s overall economic health have
been compiled by the United States Department of the
Treasury and the office of North Carolina State Treasurer.
These reports do not contain just a quick snapshot
of a certain municipality’s investment portfolio or a few
quick examples of how their local pension funds are
performing. Instead they take all of this information
and synthesize it into a cohesive picture of how the
region’s economy looks overall. This type of transparent
financial reporting that these reports have captured
is exactly what Treasurer Summers hopes to recreate
here in Chicago.
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
Treasurer Summers’ team has started compiling all-inclusive list of all information regard-
ing Chicago’s financial health that is currently accessible to the public. Using the U.S.
Treasury Department and the state of North Carolina as an example, Treasurer Summers
hopes to consolidate all of this information into one resource that provides Chicagoans
with easily accessible and complete picture of the City’s financial health on a quarterly
basis. Treasurer Summers plans to reach out to local financial institutions, academics, and
community partners to determine the best model to display a comprehensive report on
Chicago’s financial state in a way that will benefit all of Chicago’s residents.
The Treasurer’s staff is currently working to find the best ways to present all of this
information to ensure that it is easy for all Chicagoans to comprehend. Building off of
initial guidance from the OpenGov Foundation, Treasurer Summers and his staff have
accessed the limitations of City’s current financial reporting systems and plan to explore
innovative ways to share information with the taxpayers of Chicago.
MEET WITH CITY FINANCE TEAM TO DETERMINE PROJECT SCOPE.
BEGIN ASSESSMENT OF TECHNICAL, PROCESS, AND RULE CHANGES REQUIRED
FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF A NEW REPORTING SYSTEM.
LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
Tothisend,TreasurerSummersplanstocontinue
workingalongsidetheCity’sfinanceteamtodevelopa
systemthatallowsforeasierandmoreregularaccess
toinformationregardingtheCity’sfinancialhealththat
isalreadyrequiredtobeprovidedtothepublicunder
theFreedomofInformationAct.Chicagoans deserve to
have a better understanding of the health of their local
economy, and the ability to provide a clear picture of
Chicago’s financial prospects will enable us to attract in-
creased potential investment in our city’s neighborhoods.
50 I N V E S T I N G I N O U R C H I C AG O | 9 0 - DAY AC T I O N P L A N I M PAC T R E P O R T O F F I C E O F T H E C I T Y T R E A S U R E R | C I T Y O F C H I C AG O 51
FUTURE SNAPSHOT
INITIATIVE No.16
Comprehensive community planning for economic growth and long-term neighborhood vitality.
Toprovideneighborhoodswithcomprehensivecommunityplansincluding
accesstocapital,privatesectorinvestmentandadirectconnectionto
broaderlocalandregionaleconomicplanningefforts.
StatusQuo
Today, many of Chicago’s 77 neighborhoods have
undergone community-planning exercises that seek to
strengthen the communities and develop a plan for
growth. The plans help to identify challenges, oppor-
tunities and solutions but often lack an answer for the
persistent issues of capital access, inclusion of private
sector partners, coordination of local government in-
vestment, and relationship to larger strategic planning
efforts for our local economy. The disconnect between
community needs and the provision and coordination
of capital investment has limited the level of imple-
mentation success for a number of planning exercises.
BestPractices
Consistent with the Chicago Neighborhoods Now initia-
tive, The Chicago Community Trust, The United Way,
LISC, CMAP, and World Business Chicago have devel-
oped successful templates. Outside of Chicago’s city
limits and around the country, there are other examples
that we can learn from as we seek to reinvest in our
communities and establish them as neighborhoods of
choice. One such example is the Fund for our Eco-
nomic Future in Northeast Ohio (Cleveland) which has
convened an unprecedented collection of local govern-
ments leaders, education institutions, businesses and an
active citizenry working in concert to address their
well-entrenched economic difficulties.
Action
Action
Progress
Progress
Seeing both a need and a tremendous opportunity for comprehensive economic plan-
ning in the Greater Chatham Area, Treasurer Summers initiated this work by working
with Congressman Rush, Alderman Harris and Alderman Sawyer as well as host of com-
munity leaders, corporations, consultants, World Business Chicago, the State of Illinois,
the Cook County Board President’s office and the Mayor’s office to form the Greater
Chatman Initiative.
This Initiative will:
• ConnectandaligntheresidentsandbusinessesofGreaterChathamwiththeChicago
region’snext-economygrowthopportunities;
• RevitalizeandupgradeGreaterChatham’shousing,retail,supportservicesand
othercommunityamenities;
• Createanext-economycivicinfrastructurethatconnectscommunityresidentsand
businesseswithregionalstakeholders;and
• Establishmodel,replicablecollaborationandcoordinationacrossorganizations
andprogramareas.
Treasurer Summers will provide 5 communities with $10,000 seed grants that will be
matched and/or exceeded by foundations such as The Chicago Community Trust to
support comprehensive neighborhood planning. Working alongside Mayor Emanuel’s office,
local chambers, community think tanks, and delegate agencies, the Treasurer’s office
will implement a competitive community selection process to determine 5 neighborhoods
selected.Treasurer Summers will dedicate resources from his staff to work side-by-side
with each community, their subject matter experts, their leaders and their residents to help
ensure that the resulting plan will be fully supported by the City of Chicago as well as
private industry, lenders and other capital providers.
HELP ESTABLISH THE GREATER CHATHAM INITIATIVE (GCI) AS A POTENTIAL
MODEL FOR COMPREHENSIVE NEIGHBORHOOD PLANNING.
ESTABLISH A $50,000 NEIGHBORHOOD PLANNING SEED GRANT FUND
WITH THE CHICAGO COMMUNITY TRUST.LONG TERM GOAL
90-DAY ACTIONS & PROGRESS
The comprehensive community planning initiative is
a true investment in human capital. Investment in Our
Chicago, in Our Neighborhoods, and will result in
inclusive economic growth for the City of Chicago.
Theplanswillencouragetransparencyintransportation,
utilities,landuse,recreation,businessdevelopment,
education,andhousing.Eachofthe77neighborhoods
hasthepowertodefinetheirgoalsasaspiration
throughtheircomprehensivecommunityplanand
theTreasurersofficewillserveasanadvocate.
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FUTURE PROPOSALS FOR CONSIDERATION CONCLUSION
Ingoingtoeachofthe77communities,TreasurerSummerswasinspired
bythegreatideasandproposalshereceivedeachneighborhoods’
leaders.Whilethe16initiativesoutlinedinthisplanproposeanextensive
roadmapforTreasurerSummersasheentershisfirstfullterm,itis
bynomeansacompleteandcomprehensivelist.Futureproposalsfor
considerationthatTreasurerSummershasheardfromcommunity
leadersandotherstakeholdersareincludedinthislistbelow.
Address long-term vacancies of commercial storefront
retail and investor-owned multifamily residential properties
• Establishanincentiveforpropertyownerstorentand
maintaintheirpropertiestosolvethelong-termvacancies
andsupportneighborhoodeconomicdevelopment
Invest in affordable housing
• Conductnationalresearchanddevelopplantoinvestin
moreaffordablehousingwhileworkingwithcommuni-
tiestopreservethefabricofourneighborhoods
Find financing and working capital solutions for
non-profit organization (NPO) grantees
• CreateinnovativefinancialtoolsforNPOstomanage
growth,buildandrenovatefacilities,managetiming
ofreceivablesfromgovernmentgrantsorcapital
campaigns,andbeflexibleandreadytoworkthrough
issuesforthebettermentofthecommunity.
Leverage the existing expertise of the Treasurer’s office
to provide financial advisory services, government
agencies, neighboring municipalities and NPOs
• Exploreopportunitiestobeanadvisortothecity,its
sisteragencies,andneighboringmunicipalities.
Repurpose and potentially sell city assets, equipment,
and building inventory
• Workwithnonprofitsandcommunityorganizationson
aplantodevelopanduseassetstobetterservethe
community
Develop Sister Neighborhood Program
• CreateaforumforChicago’sneighborhoodstoshare
bestpractices,leverageexpertise,anddevelopa
greatersenseofcommunityacrosstheentirecity.
Build Innovation Houses
• Leverageunderutilizedorvacantneighborhoodassets
tocreatenewcommunity-basedcentersofinnovation.
Create Mutual of Chicago
• Allowindividualstoinvesttheirowncapitalinwaysthat
benefittheirowncommunities.
Evaluate new revenue sources
• Evaluatethestreamofcashinflowsavailableforinvest-
mentbyreviewingtheirefficiency,pricingstructureand
collectionefforts.
LONG TERM GOAL
PROPOSALS
In his first 90 days as Chicago’s City Treasurer, Kurt Summers began working
to transform the Treasurer’s Office to better serve all residents in every
corner of the city. The critical first step to this transformation began in our
communities. By listening to residents, business owners and community
organizations we gained invaluable insight to what our city needs from its
banker, investor and financial advocate.
As this important work moves forward, the Treasurer asks all stakeholders to
continue having a seat at the table by contributing ideas and holding the
office accountable. By working together, the innovations from this office, driven
by the voices from Chicago’s 77 communities, will allow us to do more good for
more people.
For more information on how to partner with Treasurer Summers and to
sign up for the Office newsletter, visit chicagocitytreasurer.com.
Find all follow-up documents, reports and materials at
chicagocitytreasurer.com/impact
For the latest news from the Treasurer’s Office,
visit: chicagocitytreasurer.com/headlines-news-photos
Follow Kurt on Twitter @kurtasummers
Friend Kurt on Facebook www.facebook.com/summerschicago
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OfficeoftheCityTreasurer
CityofChicago
City Treasurer Kurt A. Summers Jr.
121 North LaSalle Street
City Hall, Room 106
Chicago, Illinois 60602
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