About SCERA

SCERA Background

The Sonoma County Employees’ Retirement Association (SCERA) is a public employee retirement system that was established by the County of Sonoma on January 1, 1946. SCERA is administered by the Board of Retirement ("Board") to provide retirement, disability, death, and survivor benefits for its employees’ under the California State Government Code, Section 31450 et.seq. (County Employees’ Retirement Law of 1937).

SCERA was established on January 1, 1946, to provide retirement allowances and other benefits to the safety and general members employed by Sonoma County and four other participating agencies as listed below:

Sonoma County Water Agency
Valley of the Moon Fire District
Community Development Commission
Sonoma County Transportation Authority

SCERA is governed by the California Constitution, the County Employees’ Retirement Law of 1937, and the bylaws, procedures and policies adopted by the SCERA Board. The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors may also adopt resolutions, as permitted by the County Employees Retirement Law of 1937, which may affect benefits of SCERA members.

Governance

The Sonoma County Employees’ Retirement Association Board of Retirement is responsible for establishing policies governing the administration of the retirement plan, making benefit determinations and managing the investment of the system’s assets. The day-to-day management of SCERA is delegated to an Administrator appointed by the Board.

The SCERA Board of Retirement is a nine member Board, four of whom are appointed by the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, four of whom are elected by SCERA’s membership, and the County Treasurer (Meet Your Retirement Board). Board members, with the exception of the County Treasurer, serve three-year terms in office with no term limits.

The system is managed by a nine member Board of Retirement and an Alternate Retiree member. Representation on the Board is as follows:

Members Representing Elected or
Appointed by:
First (ex-officio)
Member and Public Representatives
California Law
Second and Third
General Members
General Members
Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Ninth
Public Representatives
Board of Supervisors
Seventh
Law Enforcement and Fire Suppression Members
Safety Members
Eighth and Eighth Alternate
Retired Members
Retired Members

Regular Board of Retirement meetings are held on the third Thursday of each month at 8:30 am at the Board Conference Room, 433 Aviation Boulevard, Suite 100, Santa Rosa, California. Meetings are open to the public. Requests of the Board should be submitted in writing to the Board Secretary, Retirement Administrator Gary Bei, at the Retirement Office. View the current board agendas and minutes from the most recent meetings.

There are two standing committees that meet on a monthly basis the Investment Committee and the Disability Committee. Additionally, there is an Administrative/Benefits Committee, which meets on an adhoc basis as necessary. A fourth committee was added as a result of Governance Review in 2004 - Audit Committee. It meets 2-3 times per year. The meeting dates and times may vary, so please consult the (Calendar of Events).

Meet your SCERA Board of Retirement

Gerald Allen

Gerald "Jerry" Allen
Elected by General Members

Jerry Allen is a Social Services Supervisor II with the Human Services Department who came to work for Sonoma County in 1992. Jerry, first elected in September of 2003, is serving on the Audit and Disability Committees and is Chairman of the Investment Committee.



Alfred A. Alys

Alfred A. Alys
Appointed by the Board of Supervisors

Alfred Alys is the retired Chief Executive Officer of Northbay Savings Bank headquartered in Petaluma, California. He currently serves as a board member on the Sonoma County Open Space Commission, also. First appointed to the Retirement Board in 1978, Al serves on the Investment and Audit Committees.



Michael A. Chrystal

Michael A. Chrystal
Retiree, Elected by Retired Members

Mike Chrystal retired from a long public service career with Marin County (six years) and Sonoma County (over 30 years) in September of 2004. He served over four years as the County Administrator. Mr. Chrystal served the retiree membership as the first Alternate Retiree Trustee, appointed by the Retirement Board in February 2006. In the fall of 2006 he was elected without opposition by the retired members to complete the term of retiring member Robert Nissen. He is serving on the Administrative/Benefits, Audit and Disability Committees.



Rod Dole

Rod Dole
Auditor/Controller-Treasurer/Tax Collector
Ex-Officio Trustee

The Treasurer/Tax Collector position carries with it the responsibility of serving as a member of the Retirement Board. In the summer of 2006, this elected position was combined with the elected Auditor/Controller position in the continuing efforts to streamline County government. Rod Dole began his new role in this combined position upon the retirement of Tom Ford. Mr. Dole has been the Auditor/Controller since 1986 and with the County for over 30 years. He serves on the Investment Committee and is Chairman of the Audit Committee.



Tom Ford

Tom Ford
Alternate Retiree, Elected by Retired Members

Elected without opposition in the fall of 2006 to complete Mike Chrystal’s term, Tom Ford is returning to the Retirement Board. He served as the Ex-Officio member for over six years as the Treasurer/Tax Collector until his retirement in September 2006. Mr. Ford brings with him a long background of financial experience in commercial banking as well as over 25 years service in the office of the County Treasurer. He serves on the Administrative/Benefits, Audit and Disability Committees.



Greg Jahn

Greg Jahn
Appointed by the Board of Supervisors

Greg Jahn is the former SCERA Assistant Retirement Administrator who has a distinguished history in the local finance/banking industry. He is currently Senior Investment Manager at Exchange Bank. Greg has been on the Board since January 2003 and serves as a member of the Investment and Audit Committees.



John Pels

John Pels
Elected by the Active Safety Members

John Pels, a 27-year veteran of the County Sheriffs Department and a Correctional Sergeant at the Sonoma County Correctional facility, was first elected to represent the safety members of the County in 1997. John is Chair of the Retirement Board and currently serves on the Administrative/Benefits and Disability Committees.



Tim Smith

Tim Smith
Appointed by the Board of Supervisors

Tim Smith began his public service career in 1979 when he served as Administrative Assistant to then Assemblyman Doug Bosco. He was first elected to the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors for the 3rd District in 1988. He is currently serving his fourth term as Supervisor. He was appointed by the Board of Supervisors in January of 2006 to complete the term of the former Retirement Board Trustee John Scharer and was recently reappointed to a full three year term. Supervisor Smith is serving on the Administrative/Benefits and Disability Committees.



Sharon Stockham

Sharon Stockham
Appointed by the Board of Supervisors

Sharon Stockham is the retired Vice President of Human Resources at Exchange Bank in Santa Rosa. Sharon was first appointed to the Retirement Board in 1994. She currently serves as Chair of the Disability Committee and also serves on the Administrative/Benefits Committee.



Mark Walsh

Mark Walsh
Elected by General Members

Mark Walsh was re-elected to the SCERA Board effective January 1, 2005. He had previously served from 1992-1995. He is Director of the Information Systems Department and is serving on the Investment Committee and is Chair of the Administrative/Benefits Committee.



Funding

SCERA’s funding objective is to meet long-term benefit promises by retaining a well-funded plan status as well as to obtain optimum returns consistent with the assumption of prudent risk. As a result, employer contributions remain approximately level as a percent of member payroll. The greater the level of overall plan funding, the larger the ratio of assets accumulated to the actuarial accrued liability and the greater the level of investment potential.

Pursuant to provisions in the County Employees Retirement Law of 1937, SCERA engages an independent actuarial firm to perform actuarial valuations of the system annually. Additionally, every three years, a triennial experience study of the members of SCERA is completed. The economic and non-economic assumptions are updated at the time each triennial valuation is performed. Triennial valuations serve as the basis for changes in member and employer contribution rates necessary to properly fund the system. The most recent triennial valuation, which was completed by Gabriel Roeder Smith & Company (GRS), was performed as of December 31, 2005. The recommendations from the 2005 study were incorporated into the 2006 valuation.  As of the most recent valuation of December 31, 2006, the funded ratio (the ratio of system assets to system liabilities) was 90.8%.

Investments

The Board of Retirement has exclusive control of all investments of the retirement system and is responsible for the establishment of investment objectives, strategies and policies. The Board is authorized to invest in any form or type of investment deemed prudent in the informed opinion of the Board. Members of the Board serve in a fiduciary capacity and must discharge their duties with respect to SCERA and the investment portfolio. The assets of SCERA are exclusively managed by external professional investment management firms (a listing of all investment professionals who provide services to SCERA can be found clicking here: (List of Professional Consultants). The investment staff closely monitors the activity of these managers and assists the Board with implementation of investment policies and long-term investment strategies. establish the investment program goals, asset allocation policies, performance objectives, investment management policies and risk controls. A summary of the most recent asset allocation can be found in the News & Reference Page - Investment Portfolio Asset Allocation section.
(See Investment Plan Policy and Guidelines.)

For the year ended December 31, 2006, SCERA investments provided annualized rate of returns over the last year of 14.6%, last three-year and five-year periods of 11.8% and 9.0% respectively.  The rate for the 10 year period is 8.6%.  Current Investment Performance can be viewed in the News & Reference Page - Investment Performance Updates section.

Summary of Investment Policies

The County Employees Retirement Law of 1937 (Law) authorizes the Board of Retirement with exclusive control over the investment of SCERA’s investment portfolio. The Law allows for the Board to invest, or delegate the authority to invest the investment portfolio through the purchase, holding, or sale of any form or type of investment, financial instrument or financial transaction when prudent in the informed opinion of the Board.

Additionally, the Law requires that the Board and its officers and employees shall discharge their duties with respect to SCERA and the investment portfolio as follows:

  • Solely in the interest of, and for the exclusive purposes for providing benefits to, participants and their beneficiaries and defraying reasonable expenses of administering SCERA.
  • With the care, skill, prudence, and diligence under the circumstances then prevailing that a prudent person acting in a like capacity and familiar with these matters would use in the conduct of an enterprise of a like character and with like aims.
  • Shall diversify the investment portfolio to minimize the risk of loss and to maximize the rate of return, unless under the circumstances it is clearly prudent not to do so.

Industry Concentrations of Portfolio Assets

The Board of Trustees’ policies and guidelines enable the portfolio to develop into numerous asset classes and to take advantage of professional investment managers with diverse management’s styles. The result is a well-diversified portfolio.

Summary of Investment Objectives
The Retirement Board has adopted an Investment Policy Statement, which reflects the Board’s policy for the management of SCERA’s investments. The Board is responsible for overseeing the investment activities for SCERA. This includes, but is not limited to, selecting acceptable asset classes; defining allowable ranges of holdings by asset class and by individual investment managers as a percent of assets; defining acceptable securities within each class; and establishing investment performance expectations. The Board will make revisions to this Investment Policy as necessary.

The Board has adopted a long-term investment horizon such that the chances and duration of investment losses are carefully weighed against the long term potential for appreciation of assets. The assets of SCERA will be invested in a manner that provides the safeguards and diversity that a prudent investor would adhere to. All transactions undertaken on behalf of the SCERA will be in the sole interest of the participants.

SCERA’s primary investment objective is to exceed the long-run actuarial assumption for return on assets. The risk to be assumed must be considered appropriate for the return anticipated and consistent with the total diversification of the fund.

An integral part of the overall Investment Policy is the strategic asset allocation policy. This allocation mix is designed to provide an optimal mix of asset categories with return expectations that reflect expected risk. This emphasizes a maximum diversification of the portfolio that protects the fund from declines that a particular asset class may experience in a given period.

Summary of Proxy Voting Guidelines and Procedures
Voting of proxy ballots shall be in accordance with SCERA’s Investment Policy Statement. The investment managers shall review each proxy ballot and vote them in a manner that preserves and enhances shareholder value. Each investment manager shall keep accurate written records of all proxy votes and, at least annually, provide a detailed report to the Investment Committee, documenting all votes.

List of Professional Consultants

Consulting Services Investment Managers

Actuary
The Segal Company

Auditors
Brown Armstrong, Certified Public Accountants

Custodian
State Street Bank & Trust Co.

Data Processing
Sonoma County Information Systems

Integrated Pension System
Levi, Ray & Shoup, Inc.

L.R. Wechsler, Ltd.

Investment Consultants
Ennis Knupp & Associates

Legal Counsel
Neil Baker
Robert A. Blum of Hanson, Bridget, Marcus, Vlahos, Rudy LLP
County Counsel, Sonoma County
Michael Merrill of Merrill, Arnone & Jones, LLP
Patrick M.K. Richardson, Esq.

Enhanced Core Fixed Income
Reams Asset Management Company
Western Asset Management

U.S. Broad Mandate Equity
Jacobs Levy Equity Management

Large Cap Value Equity
Dodge & Cox

Large Cap Growth Equity
INTECH
Turner Investment Partners

Small Cap Value Equity
Systematic Financial Management

Small Cap Growth Equity
State Street Global Advisors

International Equity
Capital Guardian Trust Company
State Street Global Advisors
Templeton Investment Counsel

Global Equity
Grantham, Mayo, Van Otterloo & Co.

Real Estate
Blackrock Realty
RREEF
UBS Realty Investors