Tag: divestment

Can States Be Trusted To Manage Retirement Savings? Two New Reasons For Concern

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.forbes.com/sites/ebauer/2021/02/28/can-states-be-trusted-to-manage-retirement-savings-two-new-reasons-for-concern/

Excerpt:

Readers, I have long been of the opinion that it’s a sensible approach to enable savers to choose among multiple retirement funds, so that they are able to reflect their particular ethical concerns, whether this means an “ESG” (environmental, social, and governance-issue focused) fund or a religious-screening approach, such as excluding companies which donate to Planned Parenthood (Ave Maria Funds) or which are in the alcohol industry (GuideStone Funds).

But no state official should be using investors’ money to play politics — not the money of individual investors through state-run IRAs or the retirement savings accounts of state employees, and not the money of public pension funds. And, frankly, I find it appalling that these sorts of actions aren’t universally considered to be wholly out of bounds — but I suppose living in Illinois (newly-declared the third-most-corrupt state, with Chicago as the most-corrupt city), I suppose I should lower my expectations. Readers in the remaining 49 states, however, should watch carefully.

Author(s): Elizabeth Bauer

Publication Date: 28 February 2021

Publication Site: Forbes

The Culture Wars Are Coming to the SEC

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-culture-wars-are-coming-to-the-sec-11614813925

Excerpt:

At Tuesday’s confirmation hearing, Sen. Pat Toomey pressed Gary Gensler on the scope of the SEC’s authority to regulate politics. Let’s say “a publicly-traded company spends a financially insignificant amount of money on, let’s say, electricity,” Mr. Toomey proposed. “Is it material whether that electricity came from renewable sources or not?”

Mr. Gensler resisted answering, saying “it may not be material or it may be material.” This isn’t reassuring. The concept of materiality is crucial to securities regulation because it defines the transparency required for investors to make prudent decisions. The SEC is supposed to protect investors from fraud by making sure they have access to accurate information about a firm’s performance.

But progressives want to use the agency’s watchdog responsibilities as a guise to bend finance in service of unrelated political goals, like climate. Mr. Gensler seemed to reserve the right to impose such politicized disclosure requirements, even when the information is “financially insignificant.”

Author(s): Editorial board

Publication Date: 3 March 2021

Publication Site: Wall Street Journal

House scuttles proposals to politicize investments of Indiana Public Retirement System

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.elkharttruth.com/news/state/house-scuttles-proposals-to-politicize-investments-of-indiana-public-retirement-system/article_b2427808-e315-5ae3-b66b-ba77baa3ef88.html

Excerpt:

State and local government employees, including Hoosier teachers, can breathe a little easier knowing their retirement funds — for now — will not be subject to political whims.

Two proposals seeking to politicize the investments of the Indiana Public Retirement System (INPRS) failed to advance out of the Republican-controlled House by this week’s deadline, and likely will not again be considered by state lawmakers this year.

Author(s): Dan Carden

Publication Date: 24 February 2021

Publication Site: The Elkhart Truth

Tufts University to End Direct Investments into Coal and Tar Sands

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.ai-cio.com/news/tufts-university-end-direct-investments-coal-tar-sands/

Excerpt:

Tufts University joins the growing number of colleges that have pledged to end direct investments into coal and tar sands companies. The decision comes after a review from an internal school sustainability committee. 

A list of 120 of the largest energy firms will be banned by the $1.9 billion endowment, the university said Wednesday. At the moment, the school has no direct investments into the excluded companies, though the list will be reviewed and updated every year.

Author(s): Sarah Min

Publication Date: 11 February 2021

Publication Site: ai-CIO

New York City pension funds to divest $4 billion of fossil fuels

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://fixedincome.fidelity.com/ftgw/fi/FINewsArticle?id=202101260811SM______BNDBUYER_00000177-3abd-de06-a5f7-7aff55560002_110.1

Excerpt:

Dovetailing on President Biden’s clean-energy initiatives shortly after taking office, two of New York City’s five pension funds voted to divest their portfolios of an estimated $4 billion from securities related to fossil fuel companies.

The New York City Employees’ Retirement System and New York City Teachers’ Retirement System voted to approve divestments on Monday and the New York City Board of Education Retirement System is expected to proceed on a divestment vote imminently, Mayor Bill de Blasio and city Comptroller Scott Stringer said in a joint statement.

NYCERS and Teachers were valued at $91.4 billion and $77.4 billion as of November, according to data from Stringer’s office. Overall, the five systems have roughly $240 billion in assets under management, constituting the fourth largest public pension plan in the U.S.

Author: Paul Burton

Publication Date: 26 January 2021

Publication Site: Fidelity Fixed Income

Two NYC Pension Funds Divesting $4 Billion from Oil Companies

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.ai-cio.com/news/two-nyc-pension-funds-divesting-4-billion-oil-companies/

Excerpt:

Oil companies are quickly losing investors, including two pension funds in New York City, as more asset managers are pivoting to renewable options in the battle against climate change and for environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing. 

The two pension funds will divest an estimated $4 billion from fossil fuel companies. NYC Comptroller Scott Stringer on Twitter called the move “one of the largest divestments in the world.”

The move to sell holdings in oil companies mirrors the divestment from tobacco companies two decades ago. 

The $77.4 billion New York City Employees’ Retirement System (NYCERS) and the $91.4 New York City Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) approved the divestments in a vote on Monday. They represent the largest pension funds within the $239.8 billion New York City Retirement Systems.

Author: Ellen Chang

Publication Date: 26 January 2021

Publication Site: ai-CIO