Letters: Apply now to vote by mail; ‘Real-life impact of fiduciary negligence’ at Penn State

Editor’s note:The Centre Daily Times welcomes letters endorsing candidates in the June 2 primary election and will accept letters that are received by May 22. Election letters will be published through May 29. Letters are subject to editing, must be based on facts and should avoid attacks on other candidates. Letters of 250 words or fewer can be sent to cdtletters@centredaily.com.

Apply now to vote by mail

The Patton Township Board of Supervisors voted last week to join with other county entities in encouraging all residents to vote by mail in the June 2 primary as one way to protect our poll workers during this time of COVID-19. Ballot applications may be requested online at https://centrecountypa.gov/452/Voting-by-Absentee-or-Mail-In-Ballot.

Ballots should be requested by May 26 and and must be returned no later than June 2. For those who choose to vote in person on June 2, we strongly encourage everyone to wear a mask and maintain appropriate social distance.

Todd Robatin for delegate

On June 2nd, Republican voters across Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District will have the opportunity to vote on delegates to send to our National Convention in August. The position of delegate is three-fold: officially nominate the president and vice-president for reelection, help develop a strategic platform for the success of our party and the country at large and serve as one of our district’s strategic leaders in how we accomplish that platform over the next four years.

As such, we need delegates that are driven behind results, that understand the importance of the Constitution, and support our president in a unified front. We need delegates from different backgrounds, different experiences and different age groups that know the values of PA12, will go to great lengths to understand the voice of its citizens, and will vote accordingly at the Convention.

That is why on Jan. 27th I announced my candidacy for delegate to represent PA’s 12th Congressional District. Over the past several months, I have worked tirelessly to hear your voice while traveling to all 15 counties multiple times, spending hours on the phone and answering emails, and working with the Trump campaign in virtual events almost every single day.

I humbly ask for your vote for delegate in ballot position number 7 to let all of our voices by heard loud and clear in August.

‘Real-life impact of fiduciary negligence’ at Penn State

As the individuals responsible for oversight of the Penn State endowment, Penn State’s trustees have approved of dramatic increases in the fees paid to Penn State’s “Investment Advisors” (nearly tripling those fees in just the last four years), including increases that are far in excess of the limitations put forth in Penn State’s own guidelines.

These fees are intended to procure financial expertise that will lead to excess returns on those endowment funds — greater returns than those that might be achieved without such expertise — such that the funds paid to those advisors will provide a net benefit to the University.

Is that what has happened?

In analyzing the investment performance from 2008 through 2017 (the most recent 10 year period for which “Right to Know” data, and IRS filings, are available on the university’s website), the inordinately expensive “expertise” has generated returns that have resulted in the Penn State endowment being worth $1 billion LESS than what would have been achieved by simply putting the funds into a stock index fund.

How impactful would it have been, if Penn State simply realized the returns that could have been achieved without such “expertise?” The $1 billion of additional endowment funds would have been enough to endow 2,000 full scholarships for Penn State students — each and every year, in perpetuity.

That is the real-life impact of fiduciary negligence. And no one seems to care, least of all the individuals with a duty to responsibly steward Penn State’s resources.