Pueblo County treasurer lays out multi‑year plan to rebuild investment portfolio, preserve liquidity

Pueblo County Treasurer Kim Archuleta presented a multi‑year plan May 8 to consolidate the county’s investment holdings, increase short‑term liquidity and move the county’s reserve portfolio toward a conservative 0–3 year U.S. Treasury benchmark.

The presentation, led by advisers from Chandler Asset Management, explained why the county’s current holdings — largely callable federal agency bonds bought during the near‑zero interest‑rate period — yield below 1% on average and expose the county to losses if sold today. Julie Hughes, senior portfolio strategist at Chandler Asset Management, said the firm consolidated disparate brokered holdings into a single custody relationship with U.S. Bank and conducted a three‑year historical and forward cash‑flow analysis to determine how much must remain liquid for day‑to‑day needs.

Hughes said, “we consolidated all of those positions and holdings with one entity, which was U.S. Bank,” and described that step as essential to better reporting and oversight. She told commissioners the firm and the treasurer’s office settled on a target benchmark — the ICE BofA 0–3 year U.S. Treasury index — with an average maturity and duration near 1.5 years and a strongly conservative profile.

Why it matters: county staff said limited liquidity forced some early sales…