Investment Policy

Last updated: 4 April 2025

I. Purpose

This Investment Policy establishes an informed and consistent investment framework for current and future Finance Committees of the The Guild of Carillonneurs in North America (GCNA) in order to maintain the necessary financial resources to support the GCNA's mission.

II. Responsibilities

All persons responsible for GCNA funds must do so in good faith and with the care that an ordinary reasonable person in a similar position would exercise under similar circumstances.

II.A. Responsibilities of the Board of Directors and the Treasurer

The Board of Directors provides general oversight of the GCNA's finances. The Board must approve the Investment Policy and any subsequent updates to the policy.

The Board Subcommittee on Finance performs a review of the GCNA's finances on a monthly basis. This includes a review of the GCNA's fund balances.

The Treasurer rebalances the GCNA's investments periodically in order to maintain the target mix of funds specified in Section III.

II.B. Responsibilities of the Finance Committee

The Finance Committee shall be composed of at least three persons: at least one chair and two members at large. One of these at-large members must be the GCNA's current Treasurer.

The responsibilities of the Finance Committee are:

1. To monitor and evaluate investment performance at least twice a year—(1) after the end of the fiscal year in April and (2) midyear between October and December—and develop and propose any changes to investments to the Board;
2. To present annual reports to the membership at Congress;¹
3. To review the Investment Policy and propose any changes to the Board;
4. To recommend professional services and review reports resulting from consultation, if any; and
5. To maintain and update the GCNA’s financial information on charity accountability websites.

III. Evaluating investment performance

III.A. Investment framework

The GCNA prioritizes stable growth that balances long-term income generation from equities with preserving capital for the GCNA's short-term, annual expenses. Following this priority, the GCNA shall assume a reasonable amount of investment risk and seek to minimize the investments' maintenance costs.

III.B. Factors to consider

When making decisions about GCNA funds, each of the following factors must be properly considered:

1. General economic conditions and market trends;
2. Comparable performance of benchmarks (as indicated in Section III.C) in the short-term and long-term;
3. Expected total return from the income and appreciation of investments;
4. Impact of the decision on the portfolio's risk profile;
5. Prevailing advice and decisions made among similar nonprofit investors in similar conditions, if any;
6. Expected cost and any applicable consequences as it relates to the GCNA's tax-exempt status; and
7. Any assets' special relationship or special value, if any, to the GCNA's mission.

III.C. Benchmarks

^{1. The annual report shall include end of fiscal year asset levels and their components, along with historical data, as available.↩}

^{2. As of March 2025. Expected returns will vary depending on when they are considered.↩}