February Newsletter

Valentine’s Day, February 14, 2000 is a date I will never forget as I was fortunate to have been hired by the board of directors as the Executive Director of Commonwealth Community Trust, the first and only employee at the time. The Board was committed to the mission of providing beneficiaries with trust administration services by a not for profit organization and they worked hard from 1990-2000 managing the organization until they hired me.

While my knowledge of pooled special needs trusts was limited, I had an amazing support network of volunteer certified financial planners, a trust and estate attorney who always answered my calls, which were every day, parents who had a son or daughter with special needs and colleagues who shared their expertise.  

Roberta Welch, CFP, and the founder of CCT, came from California for a visit last year.  Never did she anticipate that CCT would grow to become a nationwide organization serving  2,866 beneficiaries and growing.  She was overcome with emotion and gratitude that her vision to help her daughter with special needs, and others, has become a reality beyond what she imagined. 

I am the lucky one on this Valentine’s Day, a day where we treasure our loved ones. I am helping families who are fearful about what is going to happen when they are no longer here and beneficiaries whose lives are enriched because of the vision of the board and the dedication of the staff.

Pictured above is Joanne Marcus, President & CEO with CCT’s Founder Roberta Welsh, CFP.

Powers of Attorney

CCT as a Pooled Special Needs Trusts (PSNT) administrator, provides a critical service to our clients who can benefit from having a trust administrator.  To qualify, a beneficiary must have a disability. Individuals with a disability can benefit from having a PSNT account administered by CCT if, because of the nature of their disability, they cannot manage their funds themselves, or if their assets being held in trust allows the beneficiary to qualify for or maintain their eligibility for means-tested government benefits, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Medicaid.

A carefully drafted power of attorney is critical in many contexts – for example, when establishing an estate plan for a person with a disability or who may become disabled, or when assisting a person with a disability in a personal injury or other litigation, when that client may need assistance setting up their trust.

Ensuring that a power of attorney has the appropriate authority allows the agent the flexibility to set up a trust. This is an authority that should be included in all powers of attorney and that attorneys should look for when they know their client might need a trust in the future. 

Below are the criteria that CCT uses to evaluate powers of attorney that are submitted to us for review as well as suggested powers to include when drafting a powers of attorney.

Safeguarding Funds

In CCT’s role as Trust Administrator, it is of critical importance that we have established procedures to faithfully steward the funds that are entrusted to us – both CCT’s operating funds, and our clients’ trust accounts.

CCT’s internal policies are focused on accountability. The Board of Directors approves the annual budget. 

For CCT’s operating funds, every flow of funds into or out of CCT is reviewed and approved internally by a minimum of three people. The Operations Manager inputs the bills for payment and the Director of Finance and Operations approves the bills and the President/CEO reviews and approves payment. In addition, the Board Treasurer receives the monthly Financial Report that has been reconciled in QuickBooks along with supporting documents (bills and receipts). After reviewing the documents, the Board Treasurer signs off on the monthly financial report.

For the trust sub-accounts that CCT administers, for beneficiaries, every deposit and disbursement is reviewed and approved by at least three people. Every disbursement over $2,000.00 is reviewed by CCT’s Disbursement Committee that meets twice a week. Full financial information, including deposits and disbursements, is available to our beneficiaries and their advocates in real time via our website and mobile app portal, and quarterly statements are mailed for review.

Additionally, CCT employs Harris, Hardy & Johnstone, P.C., a Certified Public Accountant firm that has been providing quality accounting and auditing services for over four decades, to conduct a complete annual audit covering both CCT’s operating funds and our client accounts. 

Any error or misplaced or misappropriated funds would be caught and corrected either in CCT’s internal procedures, or in the monthly reconciliation, or in the annual audit.

CCT takes its obligations as Trust Administrator and the faith that is held in us seriously.

Frequently Asked Questions

Question: As an attorney, how can CCT assist my client when setting up a trust account?

Answer:  We know that putting assets in the hands of a third-party can feel frightening to your client. The most common concern is “How can we be sure that the custodians of those assets will be fully informed about the beneficiary’s needs and the full context of their life”?

CCT works extensively with the attorney, the beneficiaries’ families, the beneficiary him or herself during the initial process of setting up a sub-account. Our experienced and caring New Client Services staff answer questions and work to establish confidence in CCT’s ability to serve the beneficiary. We have readily available educational and informative written materials on our website, which we are also happy to mail.

Once the decision has been made to join CCT, the New Client Services staff is available to assist with completing the Joinder Agreement, which establishes the sub-account for the beneficiary. 

During this initial phase, we gather information about the beneficiary to guide CCT’s Disbursement Committee and our Client Services Coordinators in making disbursements for the beneficiary’s specific needs. The optional Grantor Vision Form for third-party sub-accounts and Objectives of the Trust for first-party sub-accounts helps CCT staff understand the vision for the trust and provides information about the beneficiary – health information, hobbies, interests, anything that can guide us as we apply the assets under our care.  Another useful form is the Budget Form that informs CCT about the day-to-day needs for the sub-account.

CCT staff are here to help you as you work with your client by setting up virtual meetings, providing language for court orders or legal documents in the Professionals section of the CCT website, and assisting in the completing of the documents needed to set up the trust.

We welcome your calls and emails. Please let us know how we can help.

Pictured above is Joanne Marcus, President & CEO with CCT’s new Board Chair, Alexandra Badman, Esq.

Our Client Services Staff Who Set Us Apart

Written by

Jessica Morris, LCSW

Client Services Clinical Manager

CCT’s holistic view of beneficiaries as individuals with unique needs and circumstances allows us to provide the assurance grantors seek as they prepare for inevitable changes and future challenges. Upon creation of an account with CCT, our team gathers crucial information to shape our trust administration for each individual client, and the grantor’s identified vision and objectives for the trust lay the foundation for our work.This input helps inform our team’s decision-making regarding disbursements and budgeting for each beneficiary.

In some circumstances, a beneficiary is not able to serve as their own advocate. Grantors often describe an unwillingness to burden family members with managing finances for a loved one, as this commonly leads to division and conflict. Or there may just be no family or friends who can support the beneficiary in accessing their funds. Our Client Services team can connect families/clients with case managers and other community resources who can provide representation as advocates for beneficiaries. The combination of resources and personalized information can bring families and grantors peace of mind, knowing that CCT is working in the interest of each beneficiary and distributing funds as originally intended.

Conferences & Presentations

Contact CCT

trustCCT.org

804-740-6930

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