Paul Boyer's speech to STRS Board November 15, 2007

Good morning, Dr. Asbury, Board members, retired teachers and guests. As you know, I am Paul Boyer of Lima, Allen County, 18 years of teaching, retired in 1985, speaking for myself and the Allen County Retired Teachers Association.

I want to speak specifically of Dr. Leone's motion for language to require enforcement of existing Board policies that are designed to restrict the ability of the STRS executive Director to establish, on his own, STRS employee compensation and fringe benefits without formal Board approval.

When Dr. Leone made his motion in the October Board meeting, rather than allowing it to come to a vote, another Board member, who is not elected but is sitting in as the representative of a state officer, made a substitute motion to table the motion, and this passed, effectively cutting off debate on the motion. This motion to table was not too surprising, as this Board member has not really been very positive in his actions over the past few years.

When are you Board members going to WAKE UP and realize that ORC 3307.15 states: "The Board and other fiduciaries shall discharge their duties with respect to the funds "solely" in the interest of the participants and beneficiaries; for the 'exclusive' purpose of providing benefits to participants and their beneficiaries and defraying reasonable expenses to participants and their beneficiaries and defraying reasonable expenses of administering the system." I have reminded you numerous times about this wording and if you do not understand it, then you have no business sitting on this board.

You, the Board members, are the fiduciaries, and I do not see anywhere that the law has given the Executive Director or any other employee the powers of a "fiduciary." In other words, you have absolutely no power to delegate to any employee the right to spend this money without your prior approval. We, the retired teachers, who now have banded together as CORE, have fought this for the last four years or more, and we are getting tired of you Board members allowing OUR money to be spent for items before you have approved them. Furthermore, it is absolutely ridiculous to approve any large expenditure of money to pay for any contract or expenditure by any employee without your having the information on that expenditure in writing before you. You cannot vote on "hearsay;" it must be in writing.

For instance, I refer to the decision to pay the private legal fees of STRS employees and the payment of $93,000 in cash severance pay and free health insurance for laid off employees. Where was the Board's vote on these expenditures and others?

I am sure that all of you Board members knew what your responsibilities would be when you decided to run for election to the Board. Now, how about living up to those responsibilities and vote in favor of Dr. Leone's motion when it comes up again? Remember, we do have the power to see that you are not re-elected to the Board.