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Peter Babilla brings 40 years of experience in investment management and fiduciary* financial consulting to Vertex Planning Partners, LLC.
Pete graduated from Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana with a Bachelor’s of Science in Finance.
He began his career in 1983 with a focus on institutional fixed-income portfolio management, primarily working with community banks. After a decade serving institutional clients, Pete shifted his focus to working with individuals, families and business owners, providing guidance and education in all areas of Wealth Management. Among his areas of focus are accumulation and retirement planning, investment management, risk management, and estate and wealth transfer.
Pete’s planning philosophy allows him to create a personalized program for clients, based on their own unique goals and circumstances. The extensive investment and planning platform offered by Vertex enables him to create a highly customized program, tailored to each individual client.
Pete and his wife Suzanne have two children, and have resided in Wheaton, Illinois for the past 30 years. He enjoys golf, reading, and traveling with his family. Pete gives back as a past Board Member of the Epilepsy Foundation of Greater Chicago, where his focus is on improving the lives of those living with epilepsy.
Pete works as fiduciary for his clients and holds the CERTIFIED FIANANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®) designation and the Chartered Retirement Plan Specialist (CRPS®) designation.
Justin D’Agostino is a Partner and Private Wealth Advisor at Vertex Planning Partners, advising business owners, executives, and high-net-worth families on investments, financial planning, tax and succession planning.
He coordinates the full advisory team around each client to keep tax, investment, and planning decisions moving in the same direction. Justin’s approach centers on rigorous, data-driven analysis — modeling outcomes across planning scenarios so clients can make decisions with clarity.
With over a decade of experience, Justin’s work focuses on:
Justin attended Hillsdale College, where he earned his BA in Accounting and Financial Management. He is an avid sports fan and enjoys spending weekends with his family.
Designations:
Justin does not provide tax or legal advice. He works alongside each client’s CPA and attorney on those matters.
CRPC conferred by College for Financial Planning.
Scott Sandee brings over 20 years of experience to his role as Managing Partner of Vertex Planning Partners, leading the firm’s efforts to assist middle-market business owners and eight and nine-figure families in comprehensive planning. We enable clients to achieve their financial goals by tailoring solutions to their unique aspirations and situations. Leveraging his experience in sophisticated investment techniques and financial strategies with privately held family businesses, supported by extensive post-graduate education focused on exit planning, wealth management, estate planning, investment analysis, insurance planning, risk management, and tax optimization, he:
Scott guides successful entrepreneurs and wealthy families through the transfer of ownership of their privately held companies.
Designations: Certified Financial Planner® Certified Private Wealth Advisor® Certified Investment Management Analyst® Certified Exit Planning Advisor Certified Merger & Acquisition Advisor
Julie Hupp, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional, has worked in the accounting and corporate finance field since 1987. She began her career as a CPA with Deloitte & Touche, specializing in the financial needs of small businesses. Then spent the next 13 years in corporate financial planning and business development at Baxter and TAP Pharmaceuticals. Recognizing her passion for personal financial planning, Julie started her business in 2006 where she focuses on comprehensive financial planning strategies and implementation.
Julie graduated from University of Illinois with a BS in Accountancy. She received her Master’s in Management with a concentration in Finance from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management in 1994.
Outside the office, Julie is the co-founder of the 12 Oaks Foundation, which has merged with Cal’s Angels, and is a former Board member. Julie enjoys cooking, reading, running, triathlons and doing almost anything outdoors. A great weekend is spending time with her husband and two adult kids boating at their lake house in Wisconsin.
Steven P. Franzen, CPA, PFS, CGMA is a public accountant and consultant with more than 23 years of experience helping individuals and businesses reduce their tax liability. He began his career under the guidance of Patrick M. De Sio, CPA, CGMA and in 1996 became Mr. De Sio’s partner in De Sio, Franzen & Associates, Ltd. Steve’s expertise include entity design, complex tax strategies and multigenerational wealth transfer. As Managing Partner, Steve conducts his practice under the philosophy that the client’s investment in their CPA should yield a return on that investment – most of the time that return is realized when working with clients on planning for their future. In an effort to increase the planning capabilities of the firm, Steve formed Vertex Accounting Partners, LLC to ensure their guiding philosophy will continue well into the future.
Steve is a certified public accountant and has earned the professional designations of Personal Financial Specialist and Chartered Global Management Accountant. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Illinois CPA Society. Steve earned a B.S. degree in accounting from Millikin University. He and his wife Kristie live in Sugar Grove, IL with their three children.
Greg Benner advises high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth business owners, individuals and families on advanced tax, risk management, retirement, estate planning, and wealth strategies.
As a co-founder of Vertex Planning Partners, he works closely with clients, families, and their professional advisors—CPAs, attorneys, and business stakeholders—to implement thoughtful, durable planning strategies. His approach prioritizes clarity, coordination, and disciplined execution.
For twenty-four years, Greg’s work has focused on designing and coordinating multi-factor, integrated plans involving:
Drawing from his own experience as a founder, business and real estate investor, and multi-generational family business member, he understands some of the challenges that can arise for business owners as they consider an exit. Multi-disciplinary, intentional planning with stakeholder communication creates structure, mitigates risk, addresses tax implications, and preempts issues that can arise.
Greg holds a Master of Science in Taxation, a graduate program that deepened his technical training in federal income taxation, partnership and corporate taxation, estate and gift tax, and tax procedure. This academic work enhances his ability to help families and business owners navigate complex tax environments and align their financial and estate-planning objectives across generations.
Designations:
Licenses:
Greg is deeply committed to lifelong learning and continuous professional development in the areas of tax, estate planning, and private-wealth strategy.
Michael D. Bellis, CFP®, CLU® began his career as a financial planning professional in 1994. His practice is centered on holistic financial planning, astute risk management strategies and empirical, research-driven portfolio construction. He began his career in partnership with his father under the name Bellis & Associates. Together, their practice and reputation for excellence dates back more than 40 years and includes multiple generations of the same families. After his father’s retirement several years ago, Mike continued to build a client-centric, consultative practice before forming Vertex.
Mike holds the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ certification and is also a Chartered Life Underwriter. He has been an active member of both the Society of Financial Services Professionals and the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors. He earned a B.S. in Business & Marketing from Illinois State University. Mike is a lifelong resident of Naperville, Illinois. He and his wife Tanja have three children.
Tariff Refunds and the National Debt: What They Mean for Investors
Since new tariffs were announced last year, global trade has been a source of uncertainty for financial markets and the economy. In February, the Supreme Court ruled that the original “Liberation Day” tariffs were illegal, resulting in a wave of refunds to businesses that are now well underway.1 New tariffs have been implemented since then under different laws, including recently with close trading partners such as Canada.
At the same time, tariff refunds have pushed the federal budget deficit higher, with the national debt exceeding $40 trillion for the first time and raising questions about the government’s long-term cost of borrowing.2
While some investors have legitimate concerns around these developments, the impact on portfolios has been muted. In fact, markets have performed well over this period with broad market indices reaching new all-time highs. This shows how important it is for investors to keep these developments in perspective, since markets have performed well across many different trade and fiscal environments across history. What do investors need to know about the latest events?
Tariff refunds are making their way back to businesses
Since then, companies that had paid those tariffs became eligible for refunds, which are in the process of being paid out. According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, $129 billion in refund claims had been accepted for processing, representing a significant share of the total amount owed.3 Treasury data shows that tariff refunds have exceeded new tariff collections since May, resulting in net outflows from the government for three consecutive months.4
Specifically, June marked the single largest monthly amount of refunded tariffs ever recorded, with $49.2 billion returned compared to $23.6 billion collected. With roughly 40% of the total refunds still to be processed, net tariff receipts for the government are likely to be negative in the months ahead.
On the surface, these refunds could act as a stimulus, supporting company balance sheets and investments. However, it’s important to remember that this cash was originally paid by each business to begin with. So, while markets may view these refunds as positive, they are largely a one-time event. They do not represent a lasting improvement in underlying fundamentals, and simply reverse last year’s tariff payments. Additionally, many companies continue to pay tariffs under different laws.
For consumers, one fear was that the tariffs could be inflationary. However, this has not materialized as many expected, since many retailers absorbed or passed on tariff-related costs in indirect ways. This is one reason tariffs did not have the negative effect on consumer spending that some feared. This also makes it difficult to trace how refunds will be returned to and benefit households. For example, some shipping companies have begun returning refunds to customers who paid tariff surcharges directly, while some larger retailers have pledged to pass on savings through lower prices rather than direct payments.
Tariff refunds have added to the deficit and debt
This means that the national debt now exceeds $40 trillion for the first time in history, a figure that has grown steadily over decades as annual deficits have compounded. The accompanying chart shows this long-run trajectory, with each year’s deficit adding to the total debt. Tariff refunds are contributing to the deficit in the near term, but it’s important to keep in mind that tariffs alone cannot close the budget deficit. Complex issues such as entitlement programs, including Social Security and Medicare, are much larger drivers that are difficult to solve.
While many investors are understandably concerned about the national debt, history shows that it’s important to separate these issues from how we invest and plan our financial futures. Since 1970, the federal government has run a deficit in all but five years, with the only four surpluses occurring in the past thirty years. And yet, balanced portfolios have performed well over this period. Moreover, the deficit is often at its highest when markets and the economy are in difficult periods, which can coincide with market bottoms. So, while the past is no guarantee of the future, and the size of the national debt does create challenges, investing based on this alone has historically been counterproductive.
The government is trying to manage interest rates
To manage this, the Treasury Department has increased the size of its buybacks of U.S. Treasury securities, which serves to keep interest rates within a range.7 Other Treasury activities, such as supporting the Japanese Yen, may seem unrelated at first, but this too is intended to ensure that governments such as Japan’s do not sell large amounts of Treasury securities. Still, these efforts are small compared to the overall size of the Treasury market.
The accompanying chart helps to put interest rates in a longer historical context. Rates today are high relative to the past two decades, especially when the Federal Reserve held rates near zero for many years. However, it’s easy to see that rates are not historically extreme. In fact, higher rates also mean that investors have more opportunities in bonds and income generation for their portfolios.
Concerns about tariffs, the national debt, and interest rates could continue to grow as we approach the midterm elections in November. Investors should be careful not to let headlines drive portfolio decisions. History shows that markets have navigated many periods of trade and fiscal uncertainty, and that investors who maintained a longer-term perspective were better positioned for their financial goals.
The bottom line?
Tariff refunds and rising deficits are creating near-term fiscal challenges, but it’s important to keep these developments in perspective. Maintaining a balanced portfolio aligned with long-term financial goals remains the best way to navigate periods of fiscal uncertainty.
References
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