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the municipal secretary desktop reference manual - Southwestern ...

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B. MUNICIPAL INVESTMENT POLICIES<br />

AND PROCEDURES<br />

A jurisdiction=s governing body should take seriously its obligation to maximize <strong>the</strong><br />

earning power of “idle monies” by designating an investment officer, preferably <strong>the</strong> <strong>secretary</strong>.<br />

Idle monies are those funds which are not needed immediately to finance a local government=s<br />

day-to-day operations. Such monies exist in any <strong>municipal</strong>ity because of <strong>the</strong> uneven flows of<br />

fiscal resources into and out of a <strong>municipal</strong> treasury.<br />

To be a prudent investor of this available money, <strong>the</strong> appointed investment officer need<br />

not be a seasoned stock market participant, but does need to be aware of <strong>the</strong> types of investments<br />

that are permissible by law, or at <strong>the</strong> very least, <strong>the</strong> various programs that make those permissible<br />

investments for <strong>the</strong> <strong>municipal</strong> government unit. Regardless of <strong>the</strong> method used, <strong>the</strong> critical<br />

concern is a return on <strong>the</strong> investment as well as a return of <strong>the</strong> investment - Safety First.<br />

To maximize its investment opportunities, a local governing body should adopt and<br />

adhere to an investment policy which establishes a means to determine:<br />

! <strong>the</strong> amount of money which may be available for investment purposes,<br />

! when this money may be available, and<br />

! <strong>the</strong> length of time <strong>the</strong> money may be available.<br />

To arrive at <strong>the</strong>se conclusions and maintain <strong>the</strong> maximum investment capabilities, <strong>the</strong><br />

administration must:<br />

! develop a cash flow (budget) plan,<br />

! adopt regulations to control <strong>the</strong> cash flow, and<br />

! develop a portfolio plan which relates to those cash flow projections.<br />

In budgets that total less than $500,000.00, it may be determined that <strong>the</strong> largest amount<br />

of “idle monies” does not qualify, at any given time, for high-yield investments. Investment<br />

rates, comparable to those of locally available certificates of deposit, are usually offered by<br />

investment pools and are available on an everyday basis, without <strong>the</strong> requirements of a minimum<br />

initial investment or balance. Information on <strong>the</strong>se types of investment programs is included in<br />

this Manual.<br />

I-7

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