Treasury Accomplishments

Tim Cahill was elected Massachusetts’ Treasurer and Receiver General in 2002. In his capacity as Treasurer, Tim manages the state’s finances by taking a fiscally conservative approach to investing and maximizing the use of taxpayer money. He has proven himself to be an independent, fiscally responsible problem solver who consistently holds the line on over-spending, offers innovative solutions to complex financial problems, and implements cost-saving reforms that benefit taxpayers across the state. As Treasurer Cahill proudly serves the remainder of his second term, he will continue to seek new avenues of growth to bring financial and economic stability to the Commonwealth. Please take a moment to read through a summary of the many accomplishments throughout his tenure.

• Treasurer Cahill is Chairman of the seven-member Board of Directors
• He worked with lawmakers in 2004 to craft the legislation that created the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA)
• The MSBA works with local communities to identify school facility needs, develop fiscally responsible and educationally appropriate solutions, and create safe, sound, and sustainable learning environments
• The original school building program (under the Executive Office of Department of Education) was in total disrepair, with an original waitlist of 428 projects 
• Its creation represents the most comprehensive reform to the system in 60 years
• The MSBA has made over $6.6 billion in payments to cities, towns, and regional school districts since its inception in 2004—more than any other state entity
• By making these expedited payments, the MSBA has saved cities, towns and regional school districts over $997 million for taxpayers by completing over 754 audits of the 800 audit backlog
• Made payments to over 415 of the 428 projects on the waiting list, with funding available for the remaining projects once they begin construction
• The MSBA created a Model Schools Program to build best-in-class schools while finding ways to reduce costs and increase efficiency.  The program reduced the cost of building a new Norwood High School from the estimated $100 million to $68 million
• As of July 1, 2009, the MSBA assumed full funding responsibility for the Green Schools Program, formerly funded by the Renewable Energy Trust Fund, and will now begin the process of improving all of the green schools program requirements
•  Currently working with over 100 districts on school construction projects ranging from repairs, renovations and new construction 

• Treasurer Cahill is Chairman of the nine-member Pension Reserves Investment Management (PRIM) Board, which is charged with the general supervision of the PRIT Fund
• The Pension Reserves Investment Trust (PRIT) Fund is a pooled investment fund established to invest the assets of the Massachusetts State Teachers’ and Employees’ Retirement Systems. PRIT is also responsible for the assets of county, district and municipal retirement systems that choose to invest in the Fund
• The PRIT Fund grew by double digit percentages in six out of the past seven years and outperformed our peers for a total growth of $17 billion since 2003, a growth of over 70% 
• Changes made since 2003 have increased the return by 11 percent and reduced the risk by 23 percent
• Assets increased over $5 billion during 2009 alone, with the PRIT Fund ending 2009 with nearly $43 billion compared to $37.7 billion at the end of 2008
• Since the beginning of 2003, the PRIT Fund ranks in the top tenth percentile over the 7-year period when compared to public plans with greater than $1 billion in assets
• PRIM has a responsibility to seek out investment opportunities that will benefit the economic climate of the Commonwealth as a whole, and does so through its “Economically Targeted Investment program” (ETI)  
• Since the program’s inception in 2003, PRIM has committed $270 million to ETIs
• The ETI program has yielded:
  • over 2,550 jobs
  • 3,800 affordable housing units
  • 1,400 mortgages
  • 13 small business/economic development loans

• Treasurer Cahill is Chairman of the five-member Lottery Commission, which was established by the Legislature in 1971 to provide critical Local Aid revenue to the Commonwealth’s 351 cities and towns, as well as the state Arts Council and the Massachusetts Cultural Council
• The Lottery sells the most tickets per capita in the nation: it has sold over $31.2 billion since FY03 and raised over $6.3 billion in Local Aid
• As of January 30^th, Lottery FY10 sales are about $2.599 billion 
• Due to improved sales, projected FY10 sales are $4.3 billion, profits at $850 million and $939 million in net operating revenue
• Awarded over $3 billion in prizes in FY09, including over 180 prizes of $1 million or more
• Introduced Powerball, a multi-state game expected to increase sales by $50 million and generate $25 million in new profits
• Total sports-themed ticket sales are more than $900 million since the first ticket was introduced in 2006 – our sports team partners include: the Red Sox, New England Patriots, Celtics, and Bruins

• Treasurer Cahill is Chairman of a five-member Board that oversees the retirement of state employees of the Commonwealth, its agencies and various other public entities, including certain counties
• The State Retirement Board is responsible for over 87,000 active employees and almost 53,000 current retirees
• Fought against inflation of pension benefits by challenging the inclusion of college presidents’ housing allowances, value of parking spaces, office stipends, and per diems as “regular compensation” in retirement calculations:
  • Denied former UMass President William Bulger's request to include his university housing allowance to boost his pension in 2003
• Filed legislation in three consecutive years and worked with the legislature to tighten the definition of “regular compensation”; (adopted by the Legislature in Chapter 21 of the Acts of 2009)
• Aggressively took on pension forfeiture cases where members of the retirement system are charged or convicted of crimes related to their service:
  • Clerk Magistrate Jack Bulger
  • Speaker of the House Salvatore DiMasi
• Saved over $400,000 by implementing regular benefit verification process by which we ensure that benefits are being paid to eligible retirees and beneficiaries

 Abandoned Property

• The Abandoned Property Division protects assets belonging to the citizens of the Commonwealth. Under Massachusetts abandoned property law, financial assets that have been inactive for three years for most property types are reported to the Division
• After receiving the funds, the Treasury lists the names of property owners in newspapers across the state through a biannual publication
• Since 2003, the Division has:
  •  Received well over 730,000 phone calls
  •  Processed over 264,000 claims
  •  Received over 475,000 emails
  •  Returned $329.23 million in cash to its rightful owner
  •  Returned 4.3 million shares of stock and 2.3 million Mutual Fund share 
• Postponement of 2007 and 2008 ABP Stock Liquidations: under normal market conditions we would have proceeded with the liquidation of the 2004 and 2005 accounts in December of 2007 and December 2008 respectively. We delayed the December 2007 sale due to market volatility and in 2008 we did not sell due to the drastic downturn of the market in the fall of 2008.
• The stock sale resulted in over $76 million being added to the state’s General Fund
• The Treasurer transitioned the annual tangible property auctions to Ebay. This has resulted in a significant expansion of the bidder pool, which increases the gross revenue generated while maximizing the sale price for the original owner or their heirs
• The Division has also signed on to a pilot program to investigate the historical under-reporting of a certain property type by one of the country’s major financial sectors
• To date, this has resulted in the Treasury’s transfer of over $5 million to the Department of Revenue for the payment of outstanding tax and child support obligations
• The Division had only 29 full-time staff members in 2009

 Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission

• Per the Massachusetts General Laws, the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission (ABCC) is responsible for the “general supervision of the conduct of the business of manufacturing, importing, exporting, storing, transporting and selling alcoholic beverages.”
• The ABCC has brought in over $21.96 million in revenue since its transfer to the Treasury in 2004, with budget allocations of $11.61 million
• In FY09, the ABCC Investigation and Enforcement division investigated 5,110 applications, complaints, OUI notices and observed and reported violations of the Liquor Control Act, and conducted 317 hearings
• In FY09, over $20.28 million in revenue went directly to the Commonwealth’s cities and towns from retail beverage alcohol license fees reported to the ABCC, a 5.5% increase from FY08
• Despite Massachusetts having the 3^rd lowest ratio of enforcement agents to licensees in the country, the 12-member Investigation and Enforcement Division – under the direction of Treasurer Cahill – has received the following national recognition for its innovative and successful enforcement programs for the prevention of underage drinking and drunk driving:
• 2004: Recognized as a National Success Story by the U.S. Justice Department’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
• 2004: The ABCC’s Chief Investigator was named the National Liquor Law Enforcement Association’s 2004 “Agent of the Year”
• 2005: Received the 2005 President’s Award from the National Chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving
• 2007: Received the 2007 “Innovations in Health and Safety” Award from the National Conference of State Liquor Administrators
• 2008: Received the National Liquor Law Enforcement Association’s “2008 Enforcement Agency of the Year” award

Click here to view Tim's Treasury Accomplishments in a PowerPoint presentation