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To: Mayor and Council <br />From: City Treasurer <br />Date: June 11, 1990 <br />Subject: Increase in salary <br />It came as no surprise, that the Council again has refused to <br />negotiate with me about a salary increase for the additional duties <br />that I have been assigned. It is very obvious that the Council as <br />a whole has attempted to keep me from revealing hundreds of <br />thousands of dollars in losses, and intends to keep me from <br />carrying out the state legislative intent of acting as a watchdog <br />and guardian of the public funds of this city. The following is a <br />partial list of what has transpired since I took office in November <br />of 1988. <br />1. The former City manager, Frank Benest, attempted to reduce the <br />treasurers salary from about $1200.00 to $250.00 per month. This <br />attempt was rectified when the Mayor required that the City Manager <br />follow the Council resolution regarding the treasurer's salary. <br />2. upon assuming office, I found the treasurer's office had no <br />accounting system for recording investments,and no way of <br />monitoring the receipt of the anticipated investment income. The <br />first several days of the month of November 1988 the bank account <br />was actually overdrawn by in excess of $300,000.00. The previous <br />treasurer's report did not list all of the actual investments owned <br />by the City, it did not disclose the use of borrowed funds that <br />were used to make additional investments and it did not list the <br />large decline in the value of about $3,000,000.00 of the portfolio. <br />My request for a computer and some software was placed on the <br />consent calendar for Council approval and Councilman Rios asked <br />that the request be removed for further study. In the meantime a <br />local businessman allowed me to use his computer until the Council <br />consented to provide the funds necessary to computerize the <br />$30,000,00.00 investment portfolio. <br />3. When I met with the Council to discuss the prior treasurer's <br />investment portfolio, Councilwoman Cisneros and Councilman Rehrer <br />left early, which required me to brief them separately at a later <br />date. I explained that Prudential Bache had recommended the <br />purchase of a 30 year bond and a 10 year treasury note. These <br />investments were then used as collateral to borrow 1.8 million <br />dollars that was invested in several bond mutual funds. The results <br />of these recommendations were disastrous and the portfolio value <br />declined. <br />ORIGINAL <br />,,, <br />moo. y'v <br />QC; �o-1 <br />