Title
Staff Report on divestiture from Wells Fargo Bank due to its funding of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) Project
Staffreport
SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Staff recommends that the Finance Committee discuss divesting from Wells Fargo Bank
BACKGROUND
On March 6, 2017, the City Council received a letter from a group of citizens requesting that the City replace Wells Fargo Bank (Bank). Please see attached letter. The Council referred the request to the City's Finance Committee for discussion on April 4, 2017.
Wells Fargo has been the City's primary bank offering commercial services since June 2008. The Bank was chosen in a competitive 6-month Request for Proposals (RFP) process in 2007 that had eight respondents. Six of the eight respondents were selected by an Evaluation Committee (consisting of six finance staff members) to provide an in-depth presentation and demonstrate their ability to support daily City operations in an effective and efficient manner utilizing the bank's service applications. Wells Fargo was chosen primarily due to anticipated savings of 31% over the City's former banking provider (Bank of America) as well as technological offerings, enhanced customer service, and operational efficiencies. Services include providing the City's general checking accounts for payroll, accounts payable, and worker's compensation, collateralization of deposits (as required by Section VII (D) of the City's Investment Policy and Section 2257.021 of California Government Code), and nightly sweep of the City's deposits into short-term investments to earn the City maximum return on its liquid funds. The City currently has $10.3 million deposited with Wells Fargo for daily operational purposes and also owns a $700,000 Wells Fargo Corporate Note as part of its Investment Portfolio managed by Chandler Asset Management. Bank's fees are approximately $80,000 per year, which is less than the amount paid to Bank of America a decade ago
DISCUSSION
Prior t...
Click here for full text