Managing Your Money

By Paul McDonnell

The Management of Public Funds must carefully balance preservation of capital with the need for interest income.

Simply maintining a "conservative" approach is not enough, since we need our dollars to be productive. If we were to take the approach of "putting our money under the mattress" we would deprive local government of millions of dollars necessary to keep vital public services available to the public. We currently deliver close to $100 million in earnings which is used to pay for a host of important purposes.

Our conservatism, therefore, should not hamper our ability to maximize investment return. Even within the context of a conservative approach we need to make intelligent decisions. Money management in a dynamic global marketplace cannot be done by rote. It requires constant monitoring of market conditions and cash flow requirements. We strive to maintain the highest possible return within the conservative investment policy adopted by the Board of Supervisors.