wfn.org | Methodist Pension Board Passes $9 Billion

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"UNITED METHODIST DAILY NEWS 97" by SUSAN PEEK on April 15, 1997 at 14:24
Eastern, about DAILY NEWS RELEASES FROM UNITED METHODIST NEWS SERVICE (238
notes).

Note 238 modified by SUSAN PEEK on July 23, 1997 at 17:16 Eastern (5847
characters).

Produced by United Methodist News Service, official news agency of
the United Methodist Church, with offices in Nashville, Tenn., New
York, and Washington.

CONTACT:     Ralph E. Baker                                   
426(10-21-34-71B){238}
             Nashville, Tenn.  (615) 742-5470                           July
23, 1997

Pension and health board's
assets pass $9 billion mark

      SKOKIE, Ill. (UMNS) -- The United Methodist Board of Pension
and Health Benefits announced here that for the first time, board-
managed assets have passed $9 billion.
      The assets surpassed $9 billion in June "growing at a
phenomenal rate," said Barbara Boigegrain, top staff executive, in
her general secretary's report. "That~s $3.3 billion in just under
three years," she explained.
      She also reported that after Oct. 1, the board no longer will
accept personal checks for personal or salary reduction pension
contributions.  Church treasurers will need to withhold the amount
from the pastor's compensation and send it to the board.  The
action brings the board into compliance with industry standards
and clarifies the source of the money for the Internal Revenue
Service.
      The board's Personal Investment Plan (PIP) Committee, chaired
by Irma Gonzalez Freestate of Maryville, Tenn., set the interest
rate for "hardship loans" from personal investment money at prime
interest rate plus 2 percent, based on prime at the first of month
the loan is issued. The committee also recommended a minimum
amount of $1000 for such loans and the board approved it.
      Earlier the board specified only money from participants'
personal and salary reduction contributions could be borrowed or
withdrawn in cases of hardship for educational, medical expenses
or purchase of a dwelling.
      The committee also heard a report that electronic fund
transfer will be available for "plan sponsor contributions" no
later than January 1998. By October, Interactive Voice Response by
telephone will be available to PIP participants for making
investment elections.  The new plan will go into effect Jan. 1,
1998.
      A model office will begin operating in August to test the
reengineered processes required to administer the new participant
investment program. It will finish operation in late October, and
documentation of new procedures growing out of experience in the
model office and training staff to carry out those new procedures
will occur in the fall. It is anticipated that the reengineered
procedures will make some staff reorganization necessary.
      "Racing to stay on track, yet excited about our vision, we
are in the midst of planning broad organizational change to meet
the board's directives for improved service, responsiveness and
accountability to the denomination," said Boigegrain.
      The Investment and the PIP committees determined that the
participant investment funds will be:
      * Domestic Bond Fund;
      * Domestic Stock Fund;
      * Money Market Plus Fund, primarily consisting of government
securities, certificates of deposit, corporate notes and
commercial paper;
      * Balanced Social Values Plus Fund;
      * International Stock Fund
      The Corporate and Fiduciary Responsibility Committee, chaired
by the Rev. Dianne Reistroffer of Madison, Wis.., called for a
task force to write a position paper setting guidelines for
executive compensation. The action follows shareholder resolutions
filed by the board at the Disney corporation's annual meeting
regarding inordinately high salaries and bonuses paid to its top-
level executives.
      Staff reported to the committee that shareholder resolutions
filed with Delta Airlines and Nike corporations have resulted in
meetings with officials of those companies to discuss Delta's
refusal to provide equal opportunity data to shareholders and
Nike's labor policies. The committee also asked staff to contact
Disney for a response to allegations brought to the board's
attention by the American Family Association, a television and
media monitoring organization based in Tupelo, Miss. The
association has complained about increasingly negative treatment
of family values in Disney films and programs and about the
company's policy providing spousal benefits to gay and lesbian
partners of employees.
      Bishop William W. Morris of Montgomery, Ala., said, "We need
to know what the facts are about Disney's policies." He also asked
the staff to contact Southern Baptist officials to inquire what
prompted their recent boycott against the Disney corporation.
Currently the board owns 202,000 shares of the company's stock
valued at $69 million.
      Receiving objections by Native American groups to the "Chief
Wahoo" logo of the Cleveland Indians baseball team, the committee
determined nine retailers in its universe of approved investments
will be contacted and urged to discontinue sale of items bearing
that logo.  In addition, staff will contact team officials to
express the agency's concern about use of the logo.
      A letter of commendation was sent to Archer-Daniels-Midland
Corporation for their election of former U.N. Ambassador Andrew
Young to their board of directors in response to calls for a more
inclusive board of directors. It also was reported that
shareholder actions with the Texaco Corporation has resulted in
appointment of a task force to monitor inclusiveness.
      In other business, directors approved resolutions defining
~415 compensation' so that participants can comply with tax
requirements; acted to make a managed care dental program
available to annual conferences at less cost than other current
dental coverage; and set the next meeting for 3 p.m. Oct. 23-noon
Oct. 24.
      Bishop Bruce P. Blake is president of the agency's board of
directors.
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