City Treasurer Finkel Releases Campaign Statement for Re-Election

The following is a campaign announcement from City Treasurer Eliot Finkel, who plans to run for re-election in March 2013.  

Eliot brings more than three decades of financial management experience to the city. His firm, Eliot Finkel Investment Counsel, LLC has been managing investments for individuals, estates and retirement plans for over 38 years.

A Beverly Hills resident for more than 30 years, Eliot Finkel is a graduate of the 1997 class of Team Beverly Hills and served as a member and chair of the Public Works Commission. Eliot Finkel has been married to Maxine Egerman Finkel for 30 years. Son Peter, an MBA and Chartered Financial Analyst, is a member of Eliot’s firm.

Eliot holds MS degrees in business administration and in operations research (engineering) from the University of Southern California plus a BS in mathematics from the University of Chicago.

Eliot Finkel's leadership and expertise have resulted in the following:

• Credit Rating: Beverly Hills achieved a “AAA” credit rating under Eliot’s leadership, the highest available, higher than the United States “AA”. This top rating significantly reduces the City’s cost of borrowing money, and is in stark contrast to the poor financial standing of many other California cities.

• Earnings: Under Eliot Finkel’s leadership the City’s General Fund Portfolio has earned $52 million. He is the first City Treasurer to personally make investment decisions and initiate investment trades.

• Track Record: Under Eliot Finkel’s management the City achieved a rate of return on City investments exceeding the Dow Jones’ Industrial Average by 13% and 3-month U.S. Treasury Bills’ by 79%.

• Citizens’ Budget Review Committee: As Treasurer and with the consent of the City Council, Eliot Finkel formed the Citizens' Budget Review Committee to critically evaluate the budget process and provide ideas for cutting spending, increasing revenue and promoting transparency.

• Pension Task Force: Eliot formed the Pension Task Force with the specific goals of promoting better understanding of Beverly Hills pension obligations, quantifying those obligations, estimating what our City can affordably sustain, and recommending improvements.

• Reporting: Eliot Finkel greatly improved the Quarterly Portfolio Report to present more and better financial and accounting data. This new format separates deposits and withdrawals, from income and changes in market value while providing rates of return for the most recent quarter, fiscal year, and inception to date.

• Webpage: Eliot Finkel initiated and published a webpage on the City website (www.beverlyhills.org). It includes: Treasurer’s Duties & Responsibilities; Investment Policy; Quarterly Investment Report; Monthly Portfolio Statement; Treasurer’s Biography; Contact Information; Budget Review Committee; and Pension Task Force.

• Long-Term Financial Integrity: Eliot promoted the City’s long-term financial integrity through his extensive and close working relationship with residents, the City Council, the City’s Audit Committee and the City’s Finance Division.

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