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Vallejo committee requests education push, considers brokerage expansion and small participant incentives
Summary
Committee members pushed for expanded participant education (statement literacy, fee transparency) and asked staff to present Charles Schwab self-directed brokerage (SDBA) options in January. The group also agreed to consider a small raffle/incentive pilot funded from the administrative account to boost webinar attendance and beneficiary updates.
Committee members urged stronger participant education, a clear explanation of fees on statements and hands-on workshops to improve financial literacy and awareness of investment options. Members recommended a lunch-and-learn format with food to increase attendance and suggested Mission Square and staff produce a plain-language guide explaining statement line items, fee components and how investment choices map to asset classes.
The committee asked staff to place a presentation on Charles Schwab’s self-directed brokerage-account options on the January agenda so members could consider whether to expand the Schwab trading menu beyond mutual funds and ETFs. Mission Square explained that opening additional securities would require an addendum to the service agreement and Schwab’s trade-menu change form but would not impose an ongoing administrative fee increase; staff and vendor noted the expanded option could increase participant risk and would require added education.
Members also proposed a small quarterly raffle (several $50 gift cards) as an incentive to drive webinar participation and beneficiary updates. Chair Brown asked staff to add the raffle proposal to the January agenda for a formal vote and noted administrative/excess funds could cover a modest pilot.
Quotes: Committee member Crutchfield proposed, “If people sign up for a webinar, they enter this raffle.” Luther Hermano agreed that communications and web banners could be used to drive beneficiary updates and that vendor email lists reached roughly 91% of participants with emails on file.
Next steps: staff will add the Schwab-options presentation and the raffle/incentive proposal to the January agenda, and Mission Square and Highest Group will prepare educational materials and FAQ content for board review.
