Common sense saves common cents

The 11 pension funds for employees of the City of Chicago, sister agencies, and Cook County collectively manage $35 billion in assets, paying $144 million in fees to investment managers every year. These fees are negotiated by each fund individually and are not based on the aggregate value of all the funds, potentially increasing costs by millions of dollars annually.

Over the last two months, Civic Consulting Alliance, The PrivateBank and Mayer Brown worked closely with the City Treasurer's office to identify opportunities for funds to share information and negotiate fees based on the collective value of their assets.

This initiative, a high-priority opportunity in City Treasurer Kurt Summers' 90-day plan, has already received support from five pension boards. "Civic Consulting's efforts will help our office save millions of dollars for Chicago's taxpayers," said Treasurer Kurt Summers. "Their hard work and dedication will pay dividends for decades to come."