Oklahoma Firefighters Pension System

Greetings Brothers and Sisters! As summer is coming to an end and kids are going back to school, I hope that everyone had an opportunity to travel or get away. Time away is extremely important to recharge and refocus on being a positive influence within your organization. It is also a great opportunity to spend time with those that are significant in our lives. In June, I had an opportunity to meet with our department and discuss the Firefighter Safety Standdown which provided a chance for everyone to focus on the topic of Rebuild Rehab. During this time, we were able to reflect on 2020 and focus on the positive attributes from the full year of change, consternation, and learning. I want to share some of the lessons learned from the challenges we all faced in public safety: • We are stronger and better together than individually. • We can do anything when we work together. • We will never be perfect, but we will always strive for excellence. • Resiliency is more important than ever in our field of service. • We have great people who can do extraordinary things. Currently, the OFCA Board is preparing for an outstanding 2022 Chiefs Winter Workshop Jan. 26-28 in Stillwater.

This year, we will focus on numerous topics, including leadership, difficult conversations, mentoring, retention and recruiting, and labor relations. Please make plans to attend so we can support and learn from each other. Oklahoma City FD In October, the fire service will once again focus on Community Risk Reduction with Fire Prevention Week. Although this week is a great time to focus on reducing the risk of injuries and death to our residence, it should go without noting that we should maintain this focus throughout the entire year. Oklahoma is one of the states with the highest structure fire death rate per capita in the U.S. As fire service leaders, we must address this issue at all levels through installation of smoke alarms and other fire safety programs. If your department does not have a smoke alarm program, take on that project and develop one for Governor Stitt with OFCA Executive Board your community. Leadership sometimes falls to those who are appointed formally, but we each understand that all our personnel are leaders. Never underestimate your level of influence, no matter what collar brass is on your shirt. Leadership is a verb which requires action and influence in a positive manner to improve our great profession. Now more than ever, the fire service needs great leaders, so continue to learn and improve daily. Until next time, strive for excellence because leaders are not born, they are made.

Chase Rankin: Firefighter’s Pension Executive Director

While we are still tallying the final results of the plan year ending June 30, 2021, the preliminary investment return for the year is 31.79%. This is the single highest return for the Oklahoma Firefighters Pension System and should be, once again, among the best returns in the entire country. We are so pleased with the return, and it is a wonderful reflection of the solid investment team that is in place to manage the assets of your System, as well as the hard work and dedication to the process by the board, investment consultant and staff. This brings the average annual return of the System to 8.87% each year since July 1, 1989. Since the actuarial assumed rate of return for the System is 7.5%, we are continuing to beat our benchmark with this part of the funding of our plan. Speaking of actuary, it is important to note that the actuary will not recognize the entirety of this investment gain in one year. They use a five-year-smoothing model to calculate the “actuarial value of assets.” In a year, such as this, where the return is significantly different than the normal year, the actuarial value of assets can differ

quite a lot from the “market value of assets.” This is because the actuary uses a five-year average of returns and only recognizes 20% of the experienced gain (the portion over 7.5%) to calculate the “health” of the System. This is important to prevent decision makers from making drastic decisions based on wild swings in the market (good or bad). The good news for us is that if we maintain our 7.5% for OFCA Ex Officio the next five years, we will experience a gain each year as we smooth the 31.79% into the plan. This is an excellent place to be so that there is a cushion in place should the markets be less co-operative than they were this year. All this is to say that I expect an excellent bill of health from the actuary this year and the excess return only gives us further confidence that this plan is solidly on the path to being “fully funded.” The board of the System has put together an amazing portfolio under the direction of the investment consultant. They remain committed to the process which I believe will continue to have success well into the future. It is an honor to be a part of this success and to serve you as the Executive Director of the System. Please stay safe out there and know that we have you covered for your financial future.

Craig Carruth: OFCA 3rd Vice President’s Report

Mustang FD

Greetings Everyone! I hope the delivery of this edition finds everyone doing well. We are quickly approaching the changing of seasons from summer to fall. With the unseasonable increase in rainfall for almost everyone in the state during June and the first part of July, this has the potential to be a very active fall wildfire season. Please take time to review the importance of proactive hydration and proper wildland fire tactics with your department members. It may also be a good idea to take this opportunity to put our Vision 20/20 knowledge to work and educate our communities on how to become fire adaptive. In addition to the fall, there are a couple of venues with great educational opportunities quickly approaching. The first venue approaching is the Southwestern Division of the International Association of Fire Chiefs Conference. This is a five state regional conference for fire service leaders, which is to be held Oct. 6-8 in Midwest City at the Reed Center. Chief Bert Norton has put together an outstanding conference filled with talented national and local fire service educators that is sure to not disappoint. The second venue quickly approaching is the Chiefs Winter Workshop Jan. 26-28 in Stillwater. I am excited about what is in store, as Chief Richard Kelley is working extremely hard to set up a wonderful educational and networking event for us to enjoy. Start checking the websites (SWD-IAFC and OFSA) to get registered to attend some of the best educational opportunities set for fire service leaders in 2021 and early 2022. On another note, as OFCA 3rd Vice President, I reached out to the OSFA to gather statistics on the number of fire departments registered with the OSFA, how many members are registered with the OSFA, and how many members are registered with the OFCA. The data I was given in return shows the following:

OSFA member departments: 573 • 80% Volunteer • 13% Combination • 7% Paid

OFCA member departments: 205 • 59% Volunteer • 21% Combination • 20% Paid The membership letter is addressed to the Fire Chief of every department in our system (906 departments). The data caused me to ask this question: why do we not (at a minimum) have 906 members in both the OFCA and OSFA? I pause to question the data further, as this publication reaches more than 16,000 firefighters and fire service organizations. The OFCA and OSFA do a tremendous amount of work to educate and represent the Oklahoma Fire Service as a whole, regardless of the type of department represented or the rank in which any one person holds. That being said, I would like to challenge those who are not currently active to become active, and to remind everyone that membership to the OFCA is open to everyone. The cost to join is half the price of a cup of coffee per month ($3 for chief officer) and even less for a sustaining member ($1.5 non-voting rights). The amount of education, representation, and connection with other leaders in the fire service is mind boggling for the minimal membership fee. It is not too late to join. Simply go to the OSFA website and follow the OFCA link to become a member today. Stay Safe and Get Active. Hello Oklahoma Fire Leaders! I hope all is well and you are enjoying the cooler temperatures than usual for us. The legislative session has come to a wrap and our legislators have headed back home to their regular roles and making rounds. I would encourage you to invite them over to visit or meet them at one of their update locations they are providing to the district. I know that redistricting is taking place and many of you will be getting a new representative, so take the time to get to know them. The Fire Chief’s board will be busy the next quarter working on getting the Winter Workshop set up for January. I know Chief Richard Kelley is getting a lot done and he has heard what you want to see and is trying to make that happen. It’s not to early to place that on your calendar. We are working on updating the Fire Chief’s handbook that is on the website. Years ago, the board put together a handbook of important numbers and things that you might need as the Fire Chief. If there is anything that you think we need to add to this, please let us know and we will work to get it done. Moving on to the Southwestern Division of the IAFC. We will be hosting the educational conference this year in Oklahoma. It will be Oct. 6-8 in Midwest City at the Reed Conference Center. If you are not an IAFC member, you can still attend the educational portion of the conference. Registration will be open soon for that and we have several guest speakers coming to town who are national speakers to present at the conference. I think this will be worth the money and I hope you will attend. If there is anything I can do for you, please do not hesitate to reach out to me. Until next time, Stay Safe and Get Involved!

Bert Norton: OFCA Past President’s Report

Midwest City FD

Guest Speakers for IAFC SW Division Conference

• Chief Brian Brush, Midwest City FD • Chief Bob Hoff, Chicago FD (Ret.) • Chief Anthony Kastros, Sacramento Metro Fire District (Ret.) • Dr. Haley Murphy, Oklahoma State University • Chief Peter Van Dorpe, Algonquin-Lake in the Hills FPD (Ret.) • Chief Mike Walker, Oklahoma City FD