Hampden County retirement board chairman Richard Theroux to resign in wake of critical audit, mounting calls for leadership changes masslive.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from masslive.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Longmeadow Select Board formally calls for resignation of Hampden County retirement board, asks for state takeover
Updated Mar 16, 2021;
LONGMEADOW The Select Board has adopted a resolution of “no confidence” in the Hampden County Regional Board of Retirement that calls for immediate resignations and they’re asking other member communities to do the same.
The March 9 resolution calls for the resignations of Executive Director Julianne Bartley, the four board members and Chairman and Treasurer Richard M. Theroux, and asks for a state oversight commission to take over management of the system until they can be replaced.
The Select Board’s resolution also asks representatives of other communities and organizations with retirement funds invested and managed through the Hampden County Regional Retirement System to rally around their cause. The members asked their colleagues to “join us in this call for the resignation of the Board, Chair, and Executive Director of that
State commission says it will be back ‘sooner rather than later’ to check on Hampden County retirement board
Updated Mar 10, 2021;
Posted Mar 10, 2021
The Hampden County Regional Retirement System is headquartered at the Agawam Corporate Center, along with several other businesses and organizations. (Hoang Leon Nguyen / The Republican)
Facebook Share
Members of the commission that oversees the state’s public pensions say they are following up on the findings of an audit of the Hampden County Regional Retirement System, and that the county retirement board’s members are committed to “cleaning up” the issues.
At the monthly meeting of the Public Employee Retirement Administration Commission on Wednesday, Executive Director John Parsons updated members and staff on what has happened since the February release of the audit, which examined records from Jan. 1, 2014, to Dec. 31, 2017. Auditors flagged issues including questionable travel expenses, spending on services
‘Change had to happen’ after audit of Essex County retirement board; officials see parallels in Hampden County
Updated Mar 07, 2021;
SPRINGFIELD Ten years before a stinging audit of the Hampden County Regional Board of Retirement, there was Essex County.
A 2010 audit of the regional retirement board in northeastern Massachusetts exposed lavish travel, patronage and general piggery by its executive director and, to a lesser extent, its board members.
The State Ethics Commission in 2011 whacked former state representative and executive director Timothy Bassett with a $10,000 fine enormous by that agency’s standards after Bassett admitted using the county agency as a home base for his private lobbying business. He was collecting a $140,000 annual salary from the board, plus a pension from the state while racking up large fees as a lobbyist, according to published reports.
Hampden County retirement board members say ‘system is sound,’ but some officials unsatisfied with answers about audit
Updated Mar 03, 2021;
Members of the Hampden County Regional Board of Retirement say they are confident they can continue managing the system, despite a recent audit flagging issues with the board’s spending and questioning documentation but several representatives from communities within the system say they aren’t convinced.
In a discussion that was at times heated Wednesday, the five board members as well as Executive Director Julianne Bartley fielded questions from town officials across Hampden County. The participant list included board Chairman and Treasurer Richard M. Theroux and board members Patricia C. Donovan, Karl J. Schmaelzle, Patrick O’Neil and Laurel A. Placzek.