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MINUTES OF MEETINGS PUBLISHED AS APPROVED AT THE NEXT MEETING OF A.P.E.R.G.
03/13/2024
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG
FOR NOVEMBER 8TH. 2023
The meeting was called to order by
Vice-President Wes Berntson at 12:00 p.m.
Officers present were, Vice-President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, and Trustee
Jerry Veillet.
Minutes of October 11th. 2023 meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers Report
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
New Business
We elected the same slate of officers for 2024,
all running un-opposed.
Mike Switzer
for President, Wes Berntson for Vice President, Dick
Smith for Secretary, Bud Krause for Treasurer and
Jerry Veillet for Trustee.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:40 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted, Dick Smith, Secretary, Arrowhead Public
Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
11/08/2023
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG
FOR OCTOBER 11th.
2023
The meeting was called to order by
President Mike Switzer at 12:00 p.m.
Officers present were, President Mike
Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud Krause
and Trustee Jerry Veillet.
Minutes of June 14th. 2023
meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers Report
Read by, Treasurer Bud Krause approved
as read.
Old Business
45 people signed up for the July Picnic and 40
attended.
New Business
We nominated the same slate of officers for 2024.
Mike Switzer for President, Wes Berntson for Vice
President, Dick Smith for Secretary, Bud Krause for
Treasurer and Jerry Veillet for Trustee.
We will accept any additional nominations and
have an Election of APERG Officers for 2024 at the
November 8th meeting.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:40 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted, Dick Smith, Secretary, Arrowhead Public
Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
10/11/2023
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG
FOR JUNE 14TH 2023
The meeting was called to order by
President Mike Switzer at 12:00 p.m.
Officers present were, President Mike
Switzer, Vice President Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick
Smith, Treasurer Bud Krause and Trustee Jerry
Veillet.
Minutes of March 8th, 2023 meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers Report
Read by, Treasurer Bud Krause approved
as read.
Old Business
None.
New Business
The Summer Picnic is on July 12th. The
cost is $10 per person.
After a long discussion, we voted unanimously on a
preliminary plan to return the remaining CODRESF
funds to the active APERG members that had
contributed money to the CODRESF. Bud Krause is
working on a plan to make a fair distribution to all
eligible members.
Good and Welfare
Members who have passed since we met last.
They will be missed.
Stanley Hammer
Robert Peterson
Jack Soyka
The $5 door prize winner was Paula Savela
The meeting was adjourned at 12:40 p.m.
Respectfully Submitted, Dick Smith, Secretary, Arrowhead Public
Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
06/14/2023
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG
FOR MARCH 8TH 2023
The meeting was called to order by
President Mike Switzer at 12:00 p.m.
Officers present were, President Mike
Switzer, Vice President Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick
Smith, Treasurer Bud Krause and Trustee Jerry
Veillet.
Minutes of November 9, 2022 meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers Report
Read by, Treasurer Bud Krause approved
as read. 44 people signed up and 38 people attended
the Holiday Party that was delayed until January due
to the December snow storm. 114 members have paid
dues for 2023.
Old Business
None.
New Business
It was voted to move the Holiday Party to
January. This is to allow more members to attend
without conflicts from other holiday events.
Dick Smith said that there have been no Labor
Management Insurance meetings that he has been
notified of.
Good and Welfare
Dave Mattson 84, passed away Monday February 20,
2023, at Solvay Hospice House.
The $5 door prize winner was Paula Savela.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:27 pm.
Respectfully Submitted, Dick Smith, Secretary, Arrowhead Public
Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
03/08/2023
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG
FOR NOVEMBER 9, 2022
The meeting was called to order by
President Mike Switzer at 12:00 p.m.
Officers present were, President Mike
Switzer, Vice President Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick
Smith, Treasurer Bud Krause and Trustee Jerry
Viellet.
Minutes of October 12th, 2022 meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith approved
as read.
Treasurers Report
Read by, Treasurer Bud Krause approved
as read. 44 members have signed up for the Christmas
party.
Old Business
Starting in 2023 we will have meetings or parties
on March 8th June 14th July 12th
Oct 11 November 8th and Dec 13th.
New Business
We had no additional nominations for year 2023
officers and at this meeting we voted for the same
slate of officers for 2023.
Running unopposed:
President Mike Switzer, Vice President Wes
Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, and Trustees Jerry Viellet and Fred
Crandall.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Jeff Cox and Lynn
Korhonen.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:25pm.
Respectfully Submitted, Dick Smith, Secretary, Arrowhead Public
Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
10/12/2022
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG
FOR SEPTEMBER 14th, 2022
The meeting was called to order by
President Mike Switzer at 12:00 p.m.
Officers present were, President Mike Switzer,
Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud Krause, Trustees
Jerry Veillet, and Fred Crandall.
Minutes of June 8th, 2022 meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers Report
Read by, Treasurer Bud Krause approved
as read. 44 People signed up for the picnic and 36
attended.
Old Business
Our Summer Picnic was held at the American
Legion Club on July 13th.
MN State Representative Mary Murphy was our
guest.
New Business
We discussed changing our meeting schedule
due to low attendance. We decided to drop 5
gatherings out of 11 per year. Starting in 2023 we
will have March 8th June 14th
July 12th Oct 11 November 8th
and Dec 13th.
We approved the order of 150 membership cards
from Sheldon Duluth to be mailed with 2023 dues
requests. The meeting changes were approved by those
attending and will be on the 2023 cards.
At the October meeting we will have
nominations of year 2023 officers and at the
November meeting we have additional nominations of
officers followed by elections for 2023.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes
winners were Gaylord Korhonen and Paula Savela.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:42pm.
Respectfully Submitted, Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
9/14/2022
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG
FOR JUNE 8th, 2022
The meeting was called to order by
President Mike Switzer at 12:00 p.m.
Officers present were, President Mike
Switzer, Vice President Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick
Smith, Treasurer Bud Krause, and Trustee Jerry
Veillet.
Minutes of May 11, 2022 meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers Report
Read by, Treasurer Bud Krause approved
as read. Membership stands at 134.
New Business
Dick Smith attended the meeting of the City of
Duluth Labor Management Committee on Wednesday June
1st. He obtained a copy of the financials and
discovered that that Duluth had a $200,000 expense
for cleaning up homeless encampments.
Our Summer Picnic is at the American Legion Club
at noon July 13th.
We invited MN
State Representative Mary Murphy as our guest.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Gaylord Korhonen
and Dave Mattson.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:56 pm.
Respectfully Submitted, Dick Smith, Secretary, Arrowhead Public
Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
06/08/2022
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG
FOR MAY 11th. 2022
The meeting was called to order by
President Mike Switzer at 12:00 p.m.
Officers present were, President Mike
Switzer, Vice President Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick
Smith, Treasurer Bud Krause, and Trustee Jerry
Veillet.
Minutes of April13. 2022 meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers Report
Read by, Treasurer Bud Krause approved
as read.
New Business
Wes Berntson read an email from Adam
Casillas of Fire Local 101 about the status of
arbitration over changes the City wants to make to
Medical Insurance Plan 3A. Local 101 had gone to an
arbitrator to try and prevent the City from making
adverse changes to Plan 3A. The arbitrator had
decided in favor of the City.
What this means is that for those of us
on 3a (Not yet Medicare Eligible), we are locked
into what ever the City decides the Active Employees
will receive.
Those of us on Medicare are on a plan D
supplement plan, which could be changed also.
We decided to have the APERG Summer
Picnic at the American Legion Club on July 13th.
The cost is $10 per person and is open to all
members and guests. Advance payment is due by July 1st.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Lynn Korhonen and
Dave Mattson.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:56 pm.
Respectfully Submitted, Dick Smith, Secretary, Arrowhead Public
Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
05/11/2022
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG
FOR APRIL 13th. 2022
The meeting was called to order by
President Mike Switzer at 12:00 p.m.
Officers present were, President Mike
Switzer, Vice President Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick
Smith, Treasurer Bud Krause, and Trustees Jerry
Veillet and Fred Crandall.
Minutes of March 9th. 2022 meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers Report
Read by, Treasurer Bud Krause approved
as read.
New Business
Dick Smith read a portion of an article from the
April 4th Duluth News Tribune about a record number,
around 10% of fire fighters retiring over concern
over future changes in their healthcare contract
affecting retirement.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Paula Savela and
Fred Crandall.
Eli Miletich, retired Duluth Police Chief and a
longtime member of APERG passed away on March 24th
at the age of 86.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:37 pm.
Respectfully Submitted, Dick Smith, Secretary, Arrowhead Public
Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
04/13/2022
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG
FOR MARCH 9th. 2022
The
meeting was called to order by President Mike
Switzer at 12:00 p.m.
Officers present were,
President Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, and
Trustee Jerry Veillet.
Minutes of February 9th. 2022 meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers Report
Read by, Dick Smith in Treasurer Bud
Krause’s absence, approved as read.
Two membership dues
payments received in February. Paid membership for
2022 stands at 128.
New
Business
Dick Smith read an email to our group from
Adam Casillas, President of Firefighters Local 101
to the Duluth City Council. Paraphrasing his email
he states:
On September 14, 2021, the City of Duluth
went to the press without first reaching out to the
Unions, stating to the Star Tribune that health care
costs would increase by 17% in 2023 and all years
thereafter unless changes were made to the current
plan design.
He explains that Local 101 is interested in
working with the City to negotiate a sustainable
health care plan for our members. But in return,
City representatives must use reasonable assumptions
regarding future health care costs and not
assumptions that are obviously padded in a misguided
effort to convince the Unions to agree upon drastic
and unnecessary cuts to its member’s health care.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Laura Johnson and
Gaylord Korhonen
The meeting was adjourned at 12:40 pm.
Respectfully Submitted, Dick Smith, Secretary, Arrowhead Public
Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
03/09/2022
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR FEBRUARY
9th. 2022
The meeting was
called to order by President Mike Switzer at 12:00
p.m.
Officers
present were, President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, and Trustee Jerry Veillet.
Minutes of
January 12th. 2022 meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause approved as read.
Two membership
dues payments received in February. Paid membership
for 2022 stands at 128.
New Business
Pat Alexander had suggested that we
raise the stipend for the President, Secretary and
Treasurer of APERG. The group voted to leave it as
it is for now.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Paula
Savela and Jerry Veillet.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:40 pm.
Respectfully Submitted, Dick Smith, Secretary, Arrowhead Public
Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
02/09/2022
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR JANUARY
12th. 2022
The meeting was
called to order by President Mike Switzer at 12:00
p.m.
Officers
present were, President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, and Trustee Jerry Veillet.
Minutes of
November 10th. 2021 meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause approved as read.
48 people had
signed up and paid for the Christmas Party and 30
attended.
We have 124 members paid for 2022.
New Business
PEPSA a lobbying group for PERA that
our group had formerly belonged to has dissolved due
to declining membership.
No known health insurance contract
negotiations are in progress.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Lynn
Korhonen and Gaylord Korhonen.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:20 pm.
Respectfully Submitted, Dick Smith, Secretary, Arrowhead Public
Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
01/12/2022
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR
MEETING OF APERG FOR NOVEMBER 10th. 2021
The meeting was called to
order by Vice President Wes Berntson at 12:00 p.m.
Officers present were, Vice
President Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith,
Treasurer Bud Krause, and Trustee Jerry Veillet.
President Mike Switzer is on
vacation in Florida.
Minutes of October 14th. 2021 meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers Report
Read by, Treasurer Bud Krause
approved as read.
113 members have paid their
dues for 2022 so far and 40 people have signed up
for the December 8th Christmas party.
New Business
A letter that was distributed
among the active employees from the Fire
Department’s Union L0101 was read by Dick Smith to
the group. It is a letter that is meant to be sent
to the City Administration and City Councilors
explaining the unions position on the City’s
proposal to change the health insurance coverage for
active employees. The City intends change Plan 3A to
lower their health insurance cost by raising the
amount of deductible and co-pay. These changes would
also affect retirees that have City healthcare
coverage, whether paid by the City or COBRA.
Election of Officers for 2022
It has been moved and
seconded that we elect the slate of nominated
officers for 2022.
Running unopposed:
President Mike Switzer, Vice
President Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith,
Treasurer Bud Krause, and Trustees Jerry Veillet and
Fred Crandall.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners
were Lynn Korhonen and Wes Berntson.
The meeting was adjourned at
12:37pm.
Respectfully Submitted, Dick
Smith, Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees
Retirement Group (APERG)
11/10/2021
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR OCTOBER
13TH 2021
The meeting was
called to order by President Mike Switzer at 12:00
p.m.
Officers
present were President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Treasurer Bud Krause, and Trustee
Jerry Veillet and Fred Crandall.
Minutes of
September 11th 2021 meeting
Read by, Bud Krause acting for
Secretary Dick Smith in his absence, approved as
read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause approved as read.
New Business
A discussion was held regarding new
contract proposals (primarily fire fighter) to
include a substantial pay raise in the first year,
removing health plan 3a and creating a new health
plan with higher deductibles.
Bargaining unit members were not in
favor. Fire fighters are eligible to retire at age
55, but health care would cost $1000 per month until
they are eligible for Medicare at age 65.
Pat Alexander made a motion to bring
representatives of the bargaining units to our next
meeting. Treasurer Krause suggested inviting them to
the Holiday Party in December because of a probable
higher turnout of retirees.
President Mike will contact the union
representatives and invite them to the December
Holiday Party.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Paula
Savela and Walt Peterson.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:30pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
10/13/2021
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR
SEPTEMBER 8TH 2021
The meeting was
called to order by President Mike Switzer at 12:00
p.m.
Officers
present were President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, and Trustee Jerry Veillet.
Minutes of
March 11th 2020 meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause approved as read.
New Business
Dick Smith reported that he has
received word that the City plans to have a Health
Fair at the DECC this year,
tentatively set for Monday, Oct 25 from 8am-3pm.
We voted to place an order with
Sheldon for membership cards for 2022 to be included
in the mailing for the Christmas party scheduled for
December 8th at the American Legion.
Good and Welfare
APERG Members who have passed away
since our last meeting on 03/11/2020.
Juliien Berntson
Frank Carle
Edward Carlson
Joanne Derosier
Keith Haglin
Wallace Janczak
Dennis Walkowiak
Arlene Zakula
They are greatly missed by family and
friends.
The $5 door prizes winners were Wes
Berntson and Paula Savela.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:22pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
09/08/2021
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR MARCH 11TH
2020
The meeting was
called to order by President Mike Switzer at 12:00
p.m.
Officers
present were President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, and Trustee Fred Crandall.
Minutes of
February 12th 2020 meeting
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause approved as read.
New Business
There was much discussion about Covid
19 and how it may affect us. Bud said that toilet
paper is being hoarded and that hand disinfectant is
hard to find. We are concerned whether Evergreen
will remain open or not. There is some speculation
that Covid 19 may decline during the summer months
like the flu.
Good and Welfare
We received word that past APERG
president Pat Alexander was recuperating at home
after knee replacement surgery.
The $5 door prizes winners were Dave
Mattson and Andy Smigiel.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:22pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
03/11/2020
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR FEBRUARY
12th 2020
The meeting was
called to order by President Mike Switzer at 12:00
p.m.
Officers
present were President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, and Trustee Fred Crandall.
January 8th
2019 Minutes
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause approved as read.
Membership for
2020 stands at 130.
New Business
APERG President Mike Switzer attended
the City Labor Management Healthcare Committee
meeting on January 22.
All City labor contracts expire at
the end of this year and Duluth City government will
be looking to hold down healthcare costs in 2021.
Our concern is the real possibility
of higher health care costs for retirees as our
benefit is tied to the coverage that the active
employees have and may accept in future labor
negotiations. It is important that we keep in touch
with the active union members as they enter
negotiations and remind them that they also
negotiate for the retirees.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Laura
Switzer and Dave Mattson.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:15pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
02/12/2020
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR JANUARY
8TH 2020
The meeting was
called to order by President Mike Switzer at 12:00
p.m.
Officers
present were President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, and Trustee Fred Crandall.
November 13th
2019 Minutes
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith
approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause approved as read.
APERG
Membership at end of 2019 stands at 125.
53 Members paid
for the Christmas Party and 43 attended.
New Business
Cobra Dental premiums for City
Retirees were increased in most categories.
Medicare B premiums were also
increased.
There was much discussion about
Duluth’s snowplowing response to the previous three
snowstorms and the Post Office’s ability to deliver
the mail.
Bud reminded everyone who plans to
have an 11:30am. lunch with us to call 723-3663 at
least a few days in advance of the next meeting to
reserve a spot.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were
Gaylord Korhonen and Paula Savela.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:25pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
01/08/2020
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR NOVEMBER
13TH 2019
The meeting was
called to order by President Mike Switzer at 12:00
p.m.
Officers
present were President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, Trustees Frank Carle, Jerry Veillet and Fred
Crandall.
October 9th
2019 Minutes
Read by, Secretary Dick
Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause approved as read.
Nominations of
Officers for the year 2020
Trustee Frank Carle has
decided not to run again for 2020.
Laura Johnson has agreed
to run for Trustee and was nominated.
Election of Officers for
the year 2020
By a unanimous vote we
elected Mike Switzer for President, Bud Krause for
Treasurer, Dick Smith for Secretary, Wes Berntson
for Vice President and Laura Johnson for Trustee.
Old Business
We had much
discussion once again about the CODRESF fund and we
decided we needed to wait for a legal opinion.
New Business
A resolution
was made to raise the stipend amount paid to the
President, Treasurer and Secretary of Aperg as there
had not been a stipend amount increase for many
years (probably in 2012). It was passed by a
unanimous vote.
We decided to
have meat balls and pork loin for the meat on the
menu for the Christmas party.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes
winners were Wes Berntson and Andy Smigiel.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:40pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
11/13/2019
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR OCTOBER
9th 2019
The meeting was
called to order by President Mike Switzer at 12
noon.
Officers
present were President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause and Trustees, Jerry Veillet and Fred
Crandall.
September 11th
2019 Minutes
Read by
Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
Old Business
No decision has
been made as to the disposition of the CODRESF
funds.
Nominations of
officers of APERG
Trustee Frank
Carle has decided not to run again for office.
Nominations for 2019 were made for Mike Switzer for
President, Bud Krause for Treasurer, Dick Smith for
Secretary, Wes Berntson for Vice President.
Nominations for the office of PERG trustee is still
open as of this meeting. We have three trustees who
serve three year terms who are elected by rotation
annually. Additional nominations will be accepted at
the November meeting.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prize winners were Julien
Berntson and Paula Savela
Julien Berntson’s 100th
birthday was Tuesday and we are celebrating with a
cake right after this meeting is over today.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:47pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Secretary Dick
Smith,
Arrowhead
Public Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
10/09/2019
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR
SEPTEMBER 11th 2019
The meeting was
called to order by President Mike Switzer at 12
noon.
Officers
present were President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause and Trustees, Jerry Veillet and Fred
Crandall.
June 12th
2019 Minutes
Read by
Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
There were 53
members that had signed up for the July picnic and
40 members attended.
The 2019
Membership total is at 156.
Old Business
We received a
letter from the Minnesota Citizens Federation
notifying us that they were going out of business.
APERG has been a member of that organization for
many years.
New Business
The City of
Duluth Health Fair will be on November 13th
from 8am to 3pm.
It is on the
same day as our November meeting, but there is
plenty of time to go to both.
Bud Krause said
that he had been approached by some of the trustees
as to what if anything should be done with the
remainder of the “City of Duluth Retired Employee’s
Security Fund” or CODRESF which has been sitting
idle in the credit union for the past 10 years.
There was much discussion about how to handle these
assets, such as returning the money back to the
donors. No decision has been made.
We voted to
approve the purchase of 250 membership cards for the
year 2020 to be printed by ShelDon of Duluth.
Good and Welfare
Allison Churchill age 66, a retiree
from the City of Duluth Attorney’s Office passed
away on August 19th, 2019.
Hartley Conrad age 90, a retiree and
APERG member from the City of Duluth Building
Inspections Office passed away on August 26, 2019.
The $5 door prize winners were Julie
Mockler and Dave Mattson.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:03pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Secretary Dick
Smith,
Arrowhead
Public Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
09/12/2019
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR JUNE 12th
2019
The meeting was
called to order by President Mike Switzer at 12
noon.
Officers
present were President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause and Trustee, Jerry Veillet.
The meeting was
suspended for a presentation by our guest speaker
State Representative Mary Murphy.
Mary gave us a
review of the 2019 legislative session and how it
took a one day special session to get all of the
work done. The Governor wanted State spending
increased, but the majority of the legislature was
opposed to any large spending increases.
The major
discussion points:
-
A balanced budget with enough of an increase to
match the cost of living.
-
An increase in state aid for education and
special needs.
-
Agriculture funding for drainage projects.
-
Local Government Aid to some cities to reduce
their property tax burden.
-
Next year will be a bonding year again and there
will be requests for many projects such as Old
Central High School repairs and the Northern
Lights Express that Amtrak is finally showing
some interest in.
We thanked Mary
for coming to visit with us. She has been our guest
for our June meeting for many years. We invited her
to our July picnic.
May 8th
2019 Minutes
Read by
Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
The 2019
Membership total is at 156.
Old Business
Health Partners
will be at our July picnic to answer our insurance
questions.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prize winners were
Patrick Alexander and Dave Mattson.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:00 pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Secretary Dick
Smith,
Arrowhead
Public Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
06/12/2019
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR MAY 8th
2019
The
meeting was called to order by President Mike
Switzer at 12 noon.
Officers
present were President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause and Trustee, Fred Crandall.
April 10th 2019
Minutes
Read by
Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
The 2019
Membership total is at 156.
Old Business
Dick Smith
shared some information with the group on the last
two Labor Management Committee Insurance Meetings he
attended at City Hall. Heath care costs keep
spiraling up and various scenarios were offered by a
consultant hired by the City to try and contain
rising insurance costs. Dick says that he is still
trying to get a commitment from Health Partners to
send a representative to our July picnic.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prize winners were
Patrick Alexander and Julien Berntson.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:32 pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Secretary Dick
Smith,
Arrowhead
Public Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
05/08/2019
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR APRIL 10th
2019
The meeting was
called to order by President Mike Switzer at 12
noon.
Officers
present were President Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick
Smith, Treasurer Bud Krause and Trustees Jerry
Veillet, Fred Crandall and Frank Carle.
March 13th 2019 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
The 2019
Membership total is at 156.
Old Business
Bud announced
that a caterer has been lined up for the Summer
Picnic at the Legion Club.
We passed a
motion to approve the spending for the Summer Picnic
mailing, the hiring of a caterer and the door
prizes.
Good and Welfare
Our thoughts are with APERG members
Howard and Bev Tullgren. Howard suffered a bad fall
and is in a nursing home and Bev has had a heart
attack.
The $5 door prize winners were Wanda
Brandt and Walt Peterson
The meeting was adjourned at 12:17pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Secretary Dick
Smith,
Arrowhead
Public Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
04/10/2019
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR MARCH
13th 2019
The
meeting was called to order by President Mike
Switzer at 12 noon.
Officers
present were President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause and Trustees Jerry Veillet, Fred Crandall and
Frank Carle.
February
13th 2019 Minutes
Read
by, Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
The
2019 Membership total is at 155.
Old Business
Bud Krause said
that the Summer Picnic date and Christmas Party date
has been reserved at the American Legion. We still
need to find a caterer for both events.
Good
and Welfare
The $5 door prize winners
were Sharon Alexander and Wes Berntson
The
meeting was adjourned at 1:00pm
Respectfully Submitted,
Secretary Dick
Smith,
Arrowhead
Public Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
03/14/2019
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR FEBRUARY
13th 2019
The meeting was
called to order by President Mike Switzer at 12
noon.
Officers
present were President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause and Trustees Jerry Veillet, Fred Crandall and
Frank Carle.
January 9th
2019 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
The 2019
Membership total is at 151.
Old Business
Mike Switzer
stopped in at the HR office in City Hall and got
information on his retiree term life insurance plan.
There are many
different circumstances that people retired under,
it is best that they contact HR if they are
concerned about what coverage they have.
New Business
Leroy Hendrickson, our long time
caterer passed away on January 28th. Our group needs
to find another caterer to replace him. Our next
luncheon is on July 10th.
Good and Welfare
Larry Bushy, an APERG member and
retired Duluth Fire Chief passed away on February 8th.
The $5 door prize winners were
Gaylord Korhonen and Wes Berntson
The meeting was adjourned at 1:00pm
Respectfully Submitted,
Secretary Dick
Smith,
Arrowhead
Public Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
02/13/2019
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG
FOR JANUARY 9th 2019
The meeting was
called to order by President Mike Switzer at 12
noon.
Officers
present were President Mike Switzer, Vice President
Wes Berntson, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause and Trustees Jerry Veillet, Fred Crandall and
Frank Carle.
November 14th
2018 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
The 2019
Membership total is at 145 paid members and 8
guests.
Old Business
PERA and MSRS
have announced that they are moving to 625 E Central
Entrance, the Teachers Retirement Building. They
will be open on January 24th. Access is
off of Pecan Ave.
In November we
had asked City of Duluth Human Resources to send
someone to our December Christmas Party to answer
retiree benefit questions. They were not able to
send someone at that time that was familiar with our
plans.
They instead
asked us to email them a list of questions and
concerns that we had wanted answers to. We voted to
have our retirees bring their questions and concerns
back to our next meeting. Including that we make a
request to HR for information as to the various
amounts of term life insurance coverage that each
retiree had when they retired as it has changed from
one contract to another over the many years and was
not necessarily spelled out in the labor agreement
that they retired under.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prize winners were Wanda
Brandt and Fred Crandall
The meeting was adjourned at 12:45pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Secretary Dick
Smith,
Arrowhead
Public Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
01/09/2019
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR NOVEMBER
14th 2018
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12
noon.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause and Trustees Jerry Veillet, Fred Crandall and
Frank Carle.
October 10th
2018 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
2019 Membership
total is at 92 paid members.
35 have signed
up for the Christmas party so far.
Old Business
If you plan to
go to the Christmas party, be sure to sign up by
December 1st. The cost is $10 per person.
Chicken and Pork Tenderloin is on the menu. We will
invite someone from the City Human Resources to
speak at noon.
New Business
We had some
discussion about retiree term life insurance and the
differing amounts of coverage that City retirees
have depending on the union contracts that they
retired under. Anyone with questions is advised to
contact Human Resources at the City as to their
individual coverage amount.
Nominations of
Officers of APERG
Mike Switzer
was nominated for APERG president to replace Patrick
Alexander who is retiring at the end of the year.
Wes Berntson was nominated for APERG Vice President
to replace Mike Switzer. The other officers were
nominated at the October meeting.
Election of
Officers of APERG for 2019
Mike Switzer
for President, Wes Berntson for Vice President, Dick
Smith for Secretary, Bud Krause for Treasurer and
Fred Crandall for Trustee. All were running
un-opposed and elected as a group.
Good and Welfare
Two new members have joined APERG at
today’s meeting. Julie Mockler and George Lewis,
both had retired from the City of Duluth.
The $5 door prize winners were Fred
Crandall and Julien Berntson.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:50pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Secretary Dick
Smith,
Arrowhead
Public Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
11/14/2018
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR OCTOBER
10th 2018
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12
noon.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause and Trustees Jerry Veillet, Fred Crandall and
Frank Carle.
September 12th
2018 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
2018 Membership
total is 157
New Business
There has been
a lot of dis-information going around about changes
in our Health Partners Cost Plan health insurance.
This only affects retirees that are living in the
Twin Cities area counties. This does not affect
those in the Duluth area.
Dick Smith
mentioned that if retirees want the high strength
flu vaccine that is recommended for those 65 and
over, they should either contact their doctor or
visit their pharmacy for their flu shot. There is no
charge as it is fully covered by Medicare. The City
will not be providing the high strength vaccine at
the health fair.
Nominations of
officers of APERG
President Pat
Alexander has decided not to run again for office.
Nominations for 2019 were made for Bud Krause for
Treasurer, Dick Smith for Secretary, Mike Switzer
for Vice President and Fred Crandall for Trustee.
The office of APERG President for 2019 was still
open as of this meeting. Additional nominations will
be accepted at the November meeting.
Good and Welfare
Patrick Heaslip age 90, retired from
St. Louis County Probations and Arrowhead Regional
Corrections, passed away on September 29, 2018
Retired Duluth Police officer Chris
Boerner is in an Intensive Care Unit in Peoria
Illinois after being rear ended on his motorcycle on
September 18th. We pray for his recovery from this
tragic accident.
The $5 door prize winners were Lynn
Korhonen and Gaylord Korhonen.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:55pm
Respectfully Submitted,
Secretary Dick
Smith,
Arrowhead
Public Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
10/10/2018
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR
SEPTEMBER
12th 2018
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12
noon.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause and Trustees Jerry Veillet, Fred Crandall and
Frank Carle.
June
13th 2018 Minutes
Read
by, Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
2018
Membership total is 157
At the Summer
Picnic 60 members paid and 55 attended. Doug
Anderson the Executive Director of the Public
Employees Retirement Association of Minnesota spoke
at the picnic. His presentation to us has been
available on our website, WWW.APERG.ORG since the
picnic.
New Business
Due to a
conflict with our APERG November meeting date we
voted not participate in the City of Duluth Health
Fair this year. Dick Smith will contact the City
about the conflict problem.
We voted to use
ShelDon printers once again to make our membership
cards for the year 2019.
Barcodes will
do the membership mailings again this year.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prize winners were Fred
Crandall and Mike Switzer.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:39pm
Respectfully Submitted,
Secretary Dick
Smith,
Arrowhead
Public Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
09/12/18
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR JUNE
13th 2018
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12
noon.
The meeting was
suspended for a presentation by our guest speaker
State Representative Mary Murphy.
Mary related to
us the struggle required to finally push through the
2018 Pension Bill. It was very interesting to hear
all of the behind the scenes activities at the
legislature. Somewhere around the years 2040 to 2044
all the pension plans will be at 100% funding. This
pension bill is historical in that it passed both
houses of the legislature with no opposition
whatsoever. The bill passed the Minnesota House in
the last minutes of the very end of the session.
We thanked Mary
for coming to visit our group. She spent 40 minutes
of her valuable time with us.
The meeting
then resumed after the presentation at 12:42pm.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause and Trustees Jerry Veillet and Frank Carle.
May 9th
2018 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
2018 Membership
total is 156.
New Business
We had a
discussion about charges for eye exams. A lot
depends on extenuating medical conditions that make
an eye exam necessary. We always recommend talking
to you physician and calling the insurance company
if you have questions regarding coverage.
Good and Welfare
Joyce Henkel, retired Saint Louis
County Social Worker passed away on May 16th.
age 92.
The $5 door prize winners were Laura
Johnson and Mike Switzer.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:02pm
Respectfully Submitted,
Secretary Dick
Smith,
Arrowhead
Public Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
06/13/18
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR MAY 9th
2018
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12
noon.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer and Treasurer Bud Krause, and Trustee
Frank Carle.
April 11th
2018 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
2018 Membership
total is 156
New Business
Dick Smith read
from the PERA newsletter and MPR news about
necessary changes in Minnesota Public Employee
Pensions. The crux of the matter is that there are
less and less actives paying into the plan to
support the longer living retirees.
The 2018
Pension Bill is expected to pass the legislature and
be signed by the governor as there is broader
support this year than last year.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were
Julien Berntson and Dave Mattson
The meeting was adjourned at 12:37pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Secretary Dick
Smith,
Arrowhead
Public Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
05/09/18
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR APRIL
11th 2018
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12
noon.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer and Treasurer Bud Krause, and Trustees
Fred Crandall and Jerry Veillet.
March 14th
2018 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
There are 155
paid memberships
New Business
APERG received
an email from a member advising us that there is a
House file in the tax committee at the state
legislature that offers some special income tax
treatment for Police and Fire retirees. Affected
retirees may want to keep track of its progress
through the tax committee.
The Omnibus Pension Bill of 2017 was vetoed
by the governor as he said it contained a “Poison
Pill”.
Dick Smith had
checked with Health Partners about coverage for a
new more effective shingles vaccine called
“Shingrix”. It is recommended by the CDC for all
healthy adults over 50. It is administered as two
injections two to six months apart and costs $15
each time as it is a tier 3 medication. It is
offered by most major pharmacies without a
prescription.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were
Rollie Royer and Fred Crandall
The meeting was adjourned at 12:30pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Secretary Dick
Smith,
Arrowhead Public Employees
Retirement Group (APERG)
04/11/18
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR MARCH 14th
2018
The meeting was
called to order by Treasurer Bud Krause at 12 noon,
who filled in for President Pat Alexander who had a
migraine.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer and Treasurer Bud Krause, Trustees Fred
Crandall and Jerry Veillet.
February 14th
2017 Minutes
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause were approved as read.
Secretary
Dick Smith had a scheduled medical absence.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
New Business
It was
announced that the PERA board had re-elected Kathryn
Green as Board President and Thomas Stanley as Board
Vice President at their February 8th
meeting.
Medicare will
soon be mailing out new membership cards to all
members that will no longer contain their Social
Security numbers. This has been a long time in
coming, as retirees may have been be exposed to
identity theft if the social security numbers were
miss-used or sold to third parties by anyone with
access to their medical records.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Russ
Anderson and Fred Crandall
The meeting was adjourned at 12:30pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Bud Krause,
Treasurer, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
03/14/2018
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR FEBRUARY
14th 2018
The
meeting was called to order by President Pat
Alexander at 12 noon.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Secretary Dick
Smith, Treasurer Bud Krause, Trustees Fred Crandall,
Jerry Veillet and Frank Carle.
January
10th 2017 Minutes
Read
by, Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause was approved as read.
154 Members have paid their dues for
2018.
Old Business
We voted to
have the July 11th Picnic or in this case
the July Party at the American Legion next door.
Admission will remain the same at $8 per member and
guest.
We suspended
our meeting temporarily due to a fire alarm in the
building which was cleared in a few minutes.
New
Business
It was decided
to invite Thomas Stanley, who is on the board at
PERA to speak at the July 11th Party.
Pat Alexander will send him an invitation.
Dick
Smith will invite Mary Murphy to speak at June
meeting.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes
winners were Walt Peterson and Julien Berntson.
The
meeting was adjourned at 12:38pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
02/14/2018
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR JANUARY
10th 2018
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12
noon.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, Trustees Fred Crandall and Jerry Veillet.
November 8th
2017 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith were approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause were approved as read.
There were 149
paid members as of January 1st.
Old Business
Bud Krause said
that 72 members had signed up for the Christmas
Party and that 60 attended.
New Business
Jerry Veillet
made a motion that we look into an indoor location
for the July party instead of risking bad weather,
bugs and satellite toilets at the city parks. We
decided to check into using the American Legion next
door. We will vote on Jerry’s suggestion next month.
Dick Smith
reported on the proposed legislative pension bill.
The chance of any COLA increase over 1.5% is
unlikely in our lifetime. A major problem is that in
the PERA General Retiree Plan there is only 1.5
persons working for every retiree and in the
Police/Fire Plan, it is almost 1 for 1. Dick said
that in his opinion, there is not enough money
coming in to sustain the two retirement plans over
the long run and provide for COLA increases at the
same time.
Good and Welfare
Dawn Hulmer age 64 passed away on
November 25th.
She was not
a member of APERG, but she represented our interests
for many years on the PERA board and spoke at some
of our meetings. She retired from the City
Treasurers Office in 2016.
The $5 door prizes winners were Walt
Peterson and Russ Anderson.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:31pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
01/10/2018
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR NOVEMBER
8th, 2017
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12:30
p.m.
Officers present were President Pat
Alexander, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, Trustees Fred Crandall and Frank Carle.
October 11th 2017
Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers Report
Read by, Treasurer Bud Krause approved as read.
104 members have paid for their 2018 memberships and
10 members have paid for the Christmas party so far.
Correspondence
PERA is proposing a 1.5% cap on a COLA increase
for the 2018 pension bill. As you may recall the
2017 bill was vetoed by the governor.
The
City sent us an email thanking our group for
participating in the Annual City of Duluth Health
Fair.
Election of
Officers
No additional nominations for
officers were received from the floor and so the
current slate of officers were elected for the 2018
term.
Good and
Welfare
Frank Carle gave us a report
on his recent treatment for cancer. He decided to go
to the Mayo Clinic after being seen locally. He
reported that he is clean of cancer at this time.
Spouse of Eugene Niemi, Helen Helmi Niemi, 91,
of Duluth, passed away on October 31st.
The
$5 door prizes winners were Julien Berntson and Mary
Stepanek
The meeting was adjourned at 1:04pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith, Secretary,
Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement Group (APERG)
11/08/2017
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR OCTOBER
11th, 2017
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12:30
p.m.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, Trustees Fred Crandall and Jerry Veillet.
September 13th
2017 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause approved as read. There are 171
paid members for 2017 and 21 members have paid for
2018.
Correspondence
Dick Smith read
a response from the Minnesota Public Employee
Retirees Association to the very negative Bloomberg
article that was published in the St. Paul Pioneer
Press. PERA said that the article was using funding
data from all retiree plans and did not figure in
the proposed recent funding changes in the PERA
plan.
Nomination of
Officers
All of the
current officers were nominated and plan to stand
for the Election of Officers at the next November
meeting. Nominations for officers will also occur at
the November meeting.
APERG Health
Fair Booth
Dick Smith
brought examples of a banner to display and business
cards that we plan to hand out at the fair. We had a
long discussion on the wording on the banner and the
cards.
We passed
motions to order the banner and business cards,
purchase granola treats to hand out and a gift card
to donate for a drawing.
New Business
Dick made a
report on the City LMC Insurance meeting he
attended. It was discussed that a hip or knee
replacement in Duluth far exceeds the cost of the
same procedure in the Twin Cities Metro Area. It is
not clear why that is, other than there is more
competition between the many providers in the Twin
Cites versus the few providers in Duluth.
Pat Alexander
has a 2018 membership letter ready for mailing that
announces the Nominations and Election of Officers
at the November Meeting. The upcoming health fair
and the annual Christmas Party will also be promoted
in the letter.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Dave
Mattson and Fred Crandall.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:31pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
10/11/2017
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR
SEPTEMBER 13th, 2017
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12:30
p.m.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, Trustees Fred Crandall and Jerry Veillet.
May 10th
2017 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause approved as read.
There are 171
paid members for 2017
There
were 46 people at the July picnic, which had been
moved to the First United Methodist Church due to
cold and rainy weather.
Correspondence
Pat Alexander
read a newspaper article from the St. Paul Pioneer
Press about a public pension funding crisis (their
words). They are saying that the State pension funds
are in trouble and are severely underfunded.
We decided once
again to join PEPSA which is a group that lobbies
the State pension plans as an advocate for the
retirees in the plans.
Old Business
Dick Smith gave
a report on the August 15th. City of
Duluth Insurance meeting he attended. One of the
topics brought up by CBIZ, our insurance consultant
was that the prices charged to the insurance fund by
the various pharmacies for tier one medications
varied quite a lot. Since the insured paid nothing
for the tier one medication, there is no incentive
to search for a lower cost pharmacy. No solution was
offered to incentivize the insured to find a lower
price.
After the
insurance meeting, Dick talked to Angel Hohenstein
the City Wellness Coordinator about our group having
a booth at the Bridge to Wellness Health Fair on
November 1st. The booth is free and the
only requirement is that we have a person there in
the booth during the hours of 8 am to 3 pm that the
health fair is open. She sent me an application to
bring to this meeting and fill out if we intend to
participate. Last year 1900 invitations were sent
out and around 700 people attended.
New Business
Dick Smith
suggested that we consider moving our meeting time
back 30 minutes to 12 noon in 2018. Most of us
lately have been coming to have lunch at Evergreen
from 11:30 to 12:00 and then waiting afterwards for
half an hour for the meeting to start at 12:30. By
not making a change until January 2018, we can
change the start time in our 2018 membership cards
and notify everyone in the membership and Holiday
Party letter we will mail out soon.
We voted and
approved the 12 noon meeting time for 2018.
We discussed
the chance to have a booth at the health fair and
voted to go ahead and apply for a booth. We formed a
health fair booth committee of 8 members. Jan, Pat,
Sharon, Bud, Dick, Andy, Fred and Dave. We plan to
meet soon to work out all the details.
We voted to set
an amount to fund booth give-a-ways and a door prize
donation.
Good and Welfare
Gary Waller retiree from the Duluth
Police Department and former St. Louis County
Sheriff passed away on August 15th.
Dale Mellesmoen retiree from the City
of Duluth Public Works Department passed away on
August 27th.
The $5 door prizes winners were Fred
Crandall and Jan Laine.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:42 pm
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
09/13/2017
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR MAY
10th, 2017
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12:30
p.m.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, Trustees Frank Carle and Fred Crandall.
April
12th 2017 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause approved as read.
Old Business
There was
discussion again as to the future of APERG and how
to handle finances if we should decide to disband at
some future and hopefully distant date.
We have some
ideas as to how to recruit new members that we have
not tried yet such as a mailing by PERA on our
behalf to all City and County retirees informing
them of our group. This is expensive, but may be our
best option.
New Business
We will be
giving up our June meeting space to #8 Fire Hall as
they will be remodeling in their part of the
building and will need the additional space. We
decided to not have a June meeting this year. Our
July 12th picnic at Lester Park will go
on as planned. We will notify members with the
picnic solicitation mailing about the cancellation
of the June meeting.
Dick smith gave
a report from the Insurance Labor Management meeting
he attended. A representative of CBIZ Benefits and
Insurance Services made a presentation to our group.
They act as a consultant to the City. They had
charts showing how insurance cost savings can be
obtained by encouraging the living of a healthier
lifestyle. Such as smoking cessation, more exercise,
less alcohol use and heathier eating habits. The
City has in the past offered a $75 gift card as an
incentive to employees and retirees who submit to a
health risk appraisal as there are some who are not
aware of their health risks. Only about 20% of
eligible people chose to participate in 2016. I
suggested to the group that the appraisal be opened
up to include all insurance covered dependents, not
just the active and retired members.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Dave
Mattson and Fred Crandall.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:13pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
05/10/2017
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR APRIL 12th, 2017
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12:30
p.m.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, Trustees Frank Carle, Fred Crandall and
Jerry Veillet.
March 8th
2017 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause approved as read.
Paid membership
stands at 167 with 16 gifts.
Old Business
Leroy
Hendrickson will be our caterer once again for the
upcoming July 12th picnic at Lester Park.
We will do a mailing to the membership promoting the
picnic in the near future.
We voted to
maintain the cost of attending the picnic at $8 per
person.
New Business
Dick Smith gave
a report on the City of Duluth Labor Management
Committee meeting at City Hall .
There was some
discussion afterwards at our meeting as to member’s
experiences at the local medical facilities.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Andy
Smigiel and Russ Anderson
The meeting was adjourned at 1:03 pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
04/12/2017
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR MARCH
8th, 2017
The meeting was
called to order by Secretary Dick Smith at 12:30
p.m.
Officers
present were Vice President Mike Switzer, Secretary
Dick Smith, Trustees Frank Carle, Fred Crandall and
Jerry Veillet.
President Pat
Alexander is home with the flu and Treasurer Bud
Krause is on vacation.
February 8th
2017 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
There were 2
February memberships bringing our total membership
to 165.
Old Business
Dick Smith read
an article from the PERA News explaining why they
had reported that fiscal 2016 investment returns
were low compared to current market conditions. The
reason is that the fiscal 2016 year ended last June
30th and not last December 31st
which was after the market rally. He also read an
alert from the Duluth Police Department regarding a
rash of vehicle thefts in Duluth and how vehicle
owners can prevent this from happening to
themselves.
New Business
Dick reported
on the February 21st LMC Insurance
meeting at City Hall and said that they discussed
getting more retiree involvement in City wellness
programs in the future.
There was some
discussion about credit card transaction fraud and
that a couple members or their spouses have had
fraudulent transactions placed on their credit cards
after visiting a restaurant and giving their card to
the server to take to the cash register. An employee
evidently was writing down the credit card numbers
for use at an online store later or to sell online
after the customer had left. We decided the best
safeguard is to take your card to the register
yourself or to pay cash.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Russ
Anderson and Dave Mattson.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:05pm
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
03/08/2017
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR FEBRUARY
8th, 2017
The
meeting was called to order by President Pat
Alexander at 12:30 p.m.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause and Trustees Frank Carle and Fred Crandall.
January 11th
2017 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Treasurer Bud Krause approved as read.
There were 11
January membership renewals bringing our total
membership to 163.
Old Business
There was the
usual discussion about medical billing and how you
will sometimes get bills from several different
medical associations or providers for the same
doctor or hospital visit and how important it is to
scrutinize the bills that you receive for errors. A
younger family member may be of help in some
situations.
New Business
Several members
have had computer and phone hack attempts lately. We
need to be vigilant with high tech to avoid becoming
a victim of fraud.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Andy
Smigiel and Fred Crandall.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:10pm
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
02/08/2017
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR JANUARY
11th, 2017
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12:30
p.m.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause and Trustees Frank Carle, Fred Crandall and
Jerry Veillet.
November 9th,
2016 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Secretary Bud Krause approved as read.
69 people
signed up for the Christmas Party and 59 attended.
There were 10 $10 door prizes awarded, the winners
were:
Frank Carle, Pat Carle, Jerry Veillet, Pat
Turchi, Carol Griak, Richard Gillen,
Bev Tulgren, Howard Tulgren, Mike Switzer and
Dorothy Bohlmann.
As of yearend, there were 152 paid memberships.
Old Business
Frank Carle
mentioned that the cost of his diabetic test strips
keeps increasing. We suggested that he call around
to the various pharmacies and compare prices. Since
they are an over the counter item, the prices will
vary.
New Business
We decided to
once again have this year’s Christmas party at the
American Legion Post next door to our meeting
location.
Good and Welfare
Wes Berntson is a new member of our
group.
The $5 door prizes winners were
Jerry Veillet and Fred Crandall.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:04pm
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
01/11/2017
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR NOVEMBER
9th, 2016
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12:30
p.m.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice-President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, and Trustees Fred Crandall, Frank Carle and
Jerry Veillet.
October 12th,
2016 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by
Treasurer Bud Krause, approved as read.
Old Business
Election of
Officers and Nominations
|
Pat Alexander
for President
Mike Switzer
for Vice-President
Dick Smith
for Secretary
|
Bud Krause
for Treasurer
Jerry Veillet
for Trustee
|
All nominees
for office were unopposed and so were elected
unanimously by white ballot.
New Business
There was a lot
of discussion about medical billing and medical
insurance. City retirees with billing questions
should contact the issuer of the medical bill first
and then Health Partners if they still have
questions. Employee Benefits at Human Resources may
be of help also.
There was also
was some discussion about the Cadillac Plan Tax
provision of the Affordable Care Act for retirees
who are under age 65 and not yet on Medicare.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Mike
Switzer and Dale Mellesmoen.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:17pm
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
11/09/2016
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR OCTOBER
12th, 2016
The
meeting was called to order by President Pat
Alexander at 12:30 p.m.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice-President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, and Trustees Fred Crandall and Jerry
Veillet.
September 14th,
2016 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by
Treasurer Bud Krause, approved as read.
Old Business
Dick Smith
reminded everyone of the City of Duluth Health Fair
at the DECC on November 2nd and to call
City of Duluth HR or sign up online for the
Biometric Screening to earn a $75 gift card from
Health Partners.
We received our
picnic permit for Lester Park for next July 12th.
New Business
Membership
cards for 2017 have been printed and will be mailed
out soon along with a letter announcing the next
meeting’s vote for the slate of officers for 2017
along with notice of the Christmas party on December
14th at 12:00pm at the American Legion
Post which is right next door.
Nominations for
the Election of Officers
Jerry Veillet
was nominated for Trustee for the next 3 years along
with Pat Alexander for President, Mike Switzer for
Vice-President, Dick Smith for Secretary and Bud
Krause for Treasurer. Further nominations and voting
to occur at the November 9th meeting.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Pat
Heaslip and Fred Crandall.
The meeting was adjourned at 12:56pm
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
10/12/2016
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR
SEPTEMBER 14th, 2016
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 12:30
p.m.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice-President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, and Trustee Fred Crandall.
June 8th, 2016
Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by
Treasurer Bud Krause, approved as read.
Old Business
50 people had
attended the July picnic at Lester Park.
New Business
We voted to
have the July picnic at Lester Park again next year.
Fred Crandall mentioned that property values
have gone up considerably due to re-appraisals and
zoning changes in St. Louis County and that our
property taxes will increase as a result of this.
Dick Smith said that he was told by his appraiser
that the State of Minnesota had mandated that all
the various taxing authorities update their records
and re-appraise the property values in their
districts.
Bud Krause suggested that we send a letter to
the Senior Federation asking them to oppose the
property tax increases imposed on retirees and
seniors on fixed income.
A motion was made and approved that the
President send a letter.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Pat
Heaslip and Jack Sojaka.
The
meeting was adjourned at 1:04pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
9/14/2016
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR JUNE
8th, 2016
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 1:30
p.m.
Our meeting was
suspended, so we could hear from State
Representative Mary Murphy.
Mary said that in all her 40 years at the
legislature, she has never seen a session such as
2016. Committees met as usual, but there was no
urgency in getting anything accomplished. Funding
decisions for shovel ready projects were put off
until the last week of the session. The 2016 Bonding
Bill was passed by the House at 11:40pm on the last
day of voting even though House Members did not have
a paper copy of it. The Senate amended the bill by
adding more transportation funding at 11:45 pm and
adjourned without passing it back to the House for
approval. So the Bonding Bill was not passed on to
the governor. The Tax Bill was passed by both Houses
but was vetoed by the governor as there was an “and”
that had been changed to an “or” that would could
have cost the State coffers $100 million dollars
instead of using gambling proceeds to pay for metro
stadium costs, if the Tax Bill had been approved as
it was now written. By pushing these bills to the
very end of the session, people whose job it is to
proof read these bills did not have sufficient time
to get the job done.
In summation the 2016 legislature had not
accomplished very much. There are plans for a
special legislative session in the future.
We thanked Mary
for her presentation.
We resumed our
meeting:
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Secretary Dick
Smith, Treasurer Bud Krause, Trustees Frank Carle
and Jerry Veillet.
May 11th, 2016
Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by
Treasurer Bud Krause, approved as read.
As of today 191
members have paid their dues for 2016.
Old Business
23 people have
signed up for the APERG Picnic at Lester Park in
July.
This is our
last meeting at Trinity Lodge, our next meeting in
September will be at the Evergreen Senior Center.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were
Rollie Royer and Dale Mellesmoen.
The meeting was adjourned at 2:14pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
06/08/2016
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR MAY
11th, 2016
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 1:30
p.m.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Secretary Dick
Smith, Treasurer Bud Krause, Vice President Mike
Switzer, Trustees Fred Crandall, Frank Carle and
Jerry Veillet.
April 13th,
2016 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by
Treasurer Bud Krause, approved as read.
There were 2
new memberships in March and April bringing the
total to 190.
Old Business
The executive
committee went to Evergreen Senior Center to see the
facility and try out the noon meal.
A motion was
seconded and approved to pay the $24 for the meal
expense of the committee.
New Business
A motion was
seconded and approved to pay the annual $30 dues to
the Senior Coalition for our group’s membership for
the coming year.
The executive
committee gave a report on their visit to the
Evergreen Senior Center. They liked the brightness,
newness and cleanliness of the facility and found
that the meal was quite adequate for lunch.
The meeting
room rental is $20 and would be free if 5 meals are
purchased for $20. Meals need to be reserved by
calling in a day in advance of the meeting. Lunch is
served at 11:30 and the room is available all
afternoon.
A motion was
seconded and approved to move our meeting location
starting in September the 14th. to the
Evergreen Senior Center with the meeting time moved
up to 12:30pm.
Pat Alexander
will compose a letter to be mailed out the
membership as to the new meeting location and time
change for next fall along with notification of the
July picnic in Lester Park.
A motion was
seconded and approved for Pat Alexander to send a
letter to Trinity Masonic Lodge to notify them that
we will no longer be using their facility after the
June meeting.
Frank Carle had
a question as to why his diabetic test strips went
up in price from $90 to $120. Dick Smith said that
prices can be changed at any time and that Frank
should call Health Partners and see if he could get
them cheaper from the online pharmacy instead of
locally.
Good and Welfare
Paul Modeen’s wife Patricia age 68
passed on April 30th
The $5 door prizes winners were Lynn
Korhonen and Julien Berntson.
The meeting was adjourned at 2:13pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
5/11/2016
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR APRIL
13th, 2016
The
meeting was called to order by President Pat
Alexander at 1:30 p.m.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Secretary Dick
Smith, Treasurer Bud Krause, Trustees Fred Crandall
and Jerry Veillet.
March
9th, 2016 Minutes
Read
by, Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by
Treasurer Bud Krause, approved as read.
Old Business
Pat
and Sharon Alexander checked out the Lester Park
picnic location and thought that it would work out
fine. The picnic shelter is a little smaller than
Chambers Grove but large enough for our group.
Pat said that
our caterer that we had for the last Christmas party
is available to do our July picnic for a minimum of
30 people instead of 50 that the caterer for last
years canceled picnic required.
We
discussed the menu for the July picnic and decided
on hamburgers and brats as we have had on the menu
at previous picnics.
We
voted to look into going to the American Legion for
the Christmas party as our caterer from the American
Club now works out of the Legion Club.
Bud
Krause said that we could have our monthly meetings
at the Evergreen Senior Center for $20 per month or
for free if members eat there.
We
voted to have the executive committee meet at
Evergreen for lunch at 11:15 on May 11th
to check out that location as a possible meeting
site and report back to our 1:30 meeting that same
day at Trinity Lodge.
Dick
Smith read a report to the group from the National
Institute of Retirement Security as to Women more
likely to be impoverished during retirement then men
as they are more likely to have had lower pay during
their working life and have worked less years due to
child rearing and so have less money set aside in
retirement accounts.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were
Marion Braff and Lynn Korhonen.
The meeting was adjourned at 2:10pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
4/13/2016
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FOR MARCH
9th, 2016
The
meeting was called to order by President Pat
Alexander at 1:30 p.m.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith, Treasurer Bud
Krause, Trustees Fred Crandall, Frank Carle and
Jerry Veillet.
February
10th, 2016 Minutes
Read
by, Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by
Treasurer Bud Krause, approved as read.
As of February
29th. 188
members have paid their dues for 2016.
Old Business
In
searching for a new July picnic location, Chester
Park was suggested. Dick Smith was notified by the
parks office that Chester Park does not have a
picnic shelter.
Minnesota
PERA now has a new Executive Director. Doug Anderson
has replaced Mary Most-Vanek. Previously, Doug
Anderson has worked for 28 years as an actuary for
PERA.
Dick
Smith brought along some charts from the PERA
website that showed that with the new financial
assumption of an annual 8% gain that the PERA
General Fund is considered only 77% funded while
MSRS is 84% funded.
Some pension
statistics. Average monthly pensions, PERA $1100,
MSRS $1600 and TRA is 2200. Most TRA participants do
not receive Social Security payments.
Dick Smith
reported on the February meeting of the City’s LMC
(labor management committee). Dental insurance
payments are up, but nothing of major concern.
Committees
There was
discussion again as to changing our meeting location
and we have decided that if there is a change that
our first meeting in September be at the new
location. We will have a mailing prior to September
if we change sites.
We voted for
Lester Park as the location for the July picnic.
Dick Smith will contact the City Parks and Rec for a
reservation.
We are
considering a new caterer for both the picnic and
the holiday party as the current caterer seems to be
closing his business.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Mike
Switzer and Jerry Veillet.
The meeting was adjourned at 2:00pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
03/09/2016
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG FEBRUARY
10th, 2016
The
meeting was called to order by President Pat
Alexander at 1:27 p.m.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Vice President
Mike Switzer, Secretary Dick Smith and Trustees,
Frank Carle and Jerry Veillet. Treasurer Bud Krause
was absent.
January 13th,
2016 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
As of January
31st, 186 members have paid their dues
for 2016.
Old Business
The Minnesota PERA board has decided to put off
until next year any request to the Minnesota
Legislature for an increase in employer/employee
payments into the PERA retirement funds and the date
that the plan is to be considered fully funded due
to an increase in the longevity of recipients.
Due to ongoing flood damage repair at Chambers Grove
Park, we are not able to have our July picnic there.
I checked with the Parks office and they suggested
going to Lester Park. They have a pavilion similar
to Chambers Grove. I was told a $50 reservation
would be needed to guarantee Lester Park.
Jerry Veillet asked about use of the pavilion at the
Lake Superior Zoo. Dick Smith said that they charge
$200 for 2 hours and are independent from City
Parks.
Several
other locations were suggested, and we decided to
put off a decision until later.
New Business
There was some
discussion as to moving our meetings to a new
location.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Jerry
Veillet and Mike Switzer.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:57 pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
02/10/2016
MINUTES OF THE
REGULAR MEETING OF APERG JANUARY 13th, 2016
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 1:30
p.m.
Officers present were President Pat Alexander, Vice
Present Treasurer Mike
Switzer, Bud Krause, Secretary Dick Smith and
Trustees, Frank Carle and
Jerry Veillet.
November 11th, 2015 Minutes
Read by, Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers Report
Read by Treasurer Bud Krause, approved as read.
As
of the end of 2015, 180 members have paid their dues
for 2016.
Old Business
56
people had signed up for the Christmas party and 50
attended.
New Business
Mike Switzer gave a report on the City’s change in
Cobra providers from TASC
to Eide Bailly which has
been renamed to 121 Benefits. Mike had both TASC
and 121 take out money
from his account in January and he asked TASC to
return what they took out
as they are no longer the provider.
Dick Smith said that he volunteered to take over for
Marty Mehling as the
retiree representative at
the City of Duluth Health Insurance Sub-Committee.
He plans to attend the
meeting next week.
Some retirees not on Medicare have discovered that
when they went to the
pharmacy, that they needed
to bring their Health Partners membership card.
They no longer are members
of Clearscript which ended at the end of 2015.
There were several questions on the $25 Silver and
Fit health club
memberships as to what
health clubs were available and how to join.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Walt Peterson and
Mike Switzer.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:55 pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith, Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees
Retirement Group (APERG)
01/13/2016
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF APERG NOVEMBER
11th, 2015
The meeting was
called to order by President Pat Alexander at 1:30
p.m.
Officers
present were President Pat Alexander, Treasurer Bud
Krause, Secretary Dick Smith and Trustees, Frank
Carle and Jerry Veillet.
October 14th,
2015 Minutes
Read by,
Secretary Dick Smith approved as read.
Treasurers
Report
Read by
Treasurer Bud Krause, approved as read.
There are 90
paid 2016 memberships with 9 gift donations to date.
20 members have
signed up and paid for the Christmas party.
Election of
Officers and Nominations
|
Pat Alexander
for President
Mike Switzer
for Vice-President
Dick Smith
for Secretary
|
Bud Krause
for Treasurer
Fred Crandall
for Trustee
|
All nominees
for office were unopposed and so were elected
unanimously by white ballot.
Old Business
Reporting on
the City of Duluth Health Fair:
Bud Krause was
at the 8:30am meeting. He said that Health Partners
is offering a discounted service where for $9 you
can call by phone 24/7 to a healthcare professional
and get help with medical issues and possibly a drug
prescription sent to a pharmacy.
Dick Smith was
at the noon meeting. He said that they went over the
meanings of terms used in “Explanation of Benefits
or EOBs” that we all get in the mail.
Also:
Retirees who
live outside Minnesota or Western Wisconsin are not
eligible to apply for the $25 Silver and Fit annual
health club membership as they are in a National
Health Partners plan which does not participate.
Anyone on the
ClearScript drug plan such as active employees or
retirees and dependents of retirees under 65 are
being moved over to the Health Partners drug plan in
2016. No drug plan changes in 2016 for retirees
under Medicare.
Anyone who is
paying into Cobra is being moved to a new provider
in 2016.
The APERG
Christmas Party is December 9th at the
All American Club. Admission is $10 per person in
advance.
Good and Welfare
The $5 door prizes winners were Walt
Peterson and Frank Carle.
The meeting was adjourned at 1:50pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Dick Smith,
Secretary, Arrowhead Public Employees Retirement
Group (APERG)
COMPUTER ARCHIVED MINUTES FROM 2009 THROUGH 2015
WILL BE MADE
AVAILABLE BY REQUEST TO THE SECRETARY OF APERG.
|
