County Investments

The Snohomish County Treasurer’s Office manages approximately $1.1 billion in short and long term investments.  The public’s funds are in invested following best practices and procedures, and in accordance with the Snohomish County Investment Policy, as well as all federal, state and local government statutes.

Fund Management

Fund managers at each district provide a written authorization to the Snohomish County Treasurer’s Office to invest monies not required for immediate expenditures. The Treasurer then places the funds in authorized investments for the benefit of the districts.

The Snohomish County Treasurer invests funds for:

• Over 37 Snohomish County Funds
• 14 School Districts
• 20 Fire Districts
• 3 Water Districts
• 4 Flood Control Districts
• 2 Library Systems
• Lake Stevens Sewer District
• Snohomish County Health District
• Cascade Valley Hospital

Snohomish County Investment Pool (SCIP)

The Snohomish County Treasurer is authorized to offer investment pooling opportunities to Districts located in the County.  This is authorized by RCW 36.29.020, 36.29.022 and 36.29.024

The SCIP was established to provide county departments as well as eligible government entities within Snohomish County a mechanism whereby they may utilize the resources of the County Treasurer to maximize the potential of their surplus public funds, in a manner that optimizes safety, liquidity and the return on such funds. The Snohomish County Investment Pool (SCIP) portfolio seeks to provide current income by investing in a combination of high quality investments with varying maturities designed to control investment risk and maximize earnings.

Oversight is provided by the Snohomish County Finance Committee pursuant to RCW 36.29.020. The County Finance Committee consists of the County Treasurer, County Executive and Chairman of the County Council.  The County Finance Committee approves Investment Policies for investments.  

Snohomish County Treasurer’s Office has retained the services of an outside firm to evaluate, provide compliance oversight and issue a quarterly report analysis of the Snohomish County Investment Pool (SCIP).

Local Government Investment Pool (LGIP)

The County is also a participant in the Local Government Investment Pool which is managed and operated by the Washington State Treasurer.  The State Finance Committee is the administrator of the statute that created the pool and adopts rules.  The State Treasurer is responsible for establishing the investment policy for the pool and reviews the policy annually and proposed changes are reviewed by the LGIP advisory committee.  The Office of the State Treasurer prepares a stand-alone LGIP financial report.  A copy of the report is available from the Office of the State Treasurer, PO Box 40200, Olympia, Washington 98504-0200, online at http://www.tre.wa.gov.

Investment Policy

The Snohomish County Investment policy has been certified by the Washington Public Treasurers Association and is in compliance with state law. 

The primary objectives, in priority order, of Snohomish County investment activities shall be:

• Safety:  Safety of principal is the foremost objective of the Treasurer’s investment program.  Investments of Snohomish County and the junior taxing districts will be undertaken in a manner that seeks to ensure the preservation of capital in the overall portfolio.
• Liquidity:  The portfolio will remain sufficiently liquid to enable the County to meet all cash requirements that might reasonably be anticipated. 

• Return on Investment:  The Investment portfolio shall be designed with the objective of attaining a market rate of return through budgetary and economic cycles, taking into account the County’s investment risk constraints and liquidity needs.  Return on investments is of secondary importance compared to the safety and liquidity objectives described above. 

Policies
 

•  /DocumentCenter/View/106197 Investment Policy (PDF) - (Revised December 2022)
• Investment Policy Certificate letter (PDF)
• Operating Terms & Conditions (PDF) - (Revised 2022)