During the past two years the Investment Pools have been tested by the most severe economic and financial stresses we’ve faced in a generation. In recent months the prices of the securities which had been so devastated have generally stabilized, though the markets that support them have struggled to reform.

The shock of last September’s failure of Lehman Brothers and Washington Mutual still resonates nine months later. Perhaps those two great miscalculation provided the tidal wave necessary to force national leadership to come together and design solutions. We believe the pools will continue their slow recovery in value, but caution that estimates cannot be extrapolated on a month to month basis.

As we look later into 2009, participants can expect several improvements in the Fund Manager reporting system and its delivery. One key improvement will be the scoring of the Pool’s performance metrics against an appropriate benchmark. This improvement will provide the Investment Pool Oversight Committee and participants with an objective tool to evaluate portfolio value.