-
Recent Posts
Archives
- September 2018
- August 2018
- May 2018
- February 2018
- January 2018
- December 2017
- November 2017
- October 2017
- September 2017
- August 2017
- July 2017
- June 2017
- May 2017
- April 2017
- March 2017
- January 2017
- December 2016
- November 2016
- October 2016
- September 2016
- August 2016
- July 2016
- June 2016
- May 2016
- April 2016
Categories
Monthly Archives: May 2017
Protect our Pensions Calls on California Assembly to Reject AB 20
Protect our Pensions sent a letter to all 80 members of the California Assembly this morning, urging lawmakers to reject Assembly Bill 20, legislation that pressures the California state pension funds to divest of their energy holdings. Please see the following letter to the state Assembly Members:
… Read MoreDear State Assembly Member,
On behalf of our members in the State of California, we urge you to oppose Assembly Bill 20, which would require filing annual disclosures of the carbon footprint of
Posted in Blog, California
Leave a comment
California Pensioners Urge Lawmakers to Reject Harmful Divestment Measure
Today, thirteen members of Protect our Pensions from California submitted a letter to the lawmakers of the California Assembly Committee on Appropriations, urging them not to resuscitate Assembly Bill 20, which was intended to divest public employee retirement systems from their investments with the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). Assembly lawmakers have since put the bill on hold after some amendments, but its passage is still possible.
The letter highlighted the widespread opposition to the bill:
… Read MoreSince its introduction, this bill
Posted in Blog, California
Leave a comment
Protect our Pensions Urges Montgomery County Pension Board to Ignore Non- Binding Divestment Resolution
Recently the Montgomery County Council decided to put ideology above smart investing principles and vote for a resolution calling for the divestment of the county pension fund. The resolution vote follows a failed attempt to force the board to divest at the end of last year.
Protect our Pensions opposed the original bill and also opposed the resolution, stating:
… Read MoreGiven that the original bill was deemed simultaneously dangerous to the county’s pension funds and ineffective in its broader purpose,
Posted in Blog, Maryland
Leave a comment
Montgomery County Firefighters: Reject Divestment Resolution
Jeffrey Buddle, President of Montgomery County Career Fire Fighters Association, IAFF Local 1664, which represents around 1,500 firefighters in Maryland, wrote a strongly worded letter to members of the Montgomery County Council, asking them to reject a divestment resolution, which calls on county pension funds to sell off traditional energy stocks in order to make a political statement.
Asking the critical question, “what purpose does the resolution actually serve?” Mr. Buddle pointed out that the resolution would have no … Read More
Posted in Blog, Maryland
Leave a comment
Montgomery County Council Attempts Divestment with Harmful Resolution
After being rebuffed by pension board officials, labor union members, and citizens, the Montgomery County Council decided a few weeks ago to amend a controversial divestment bill into a resolution, which would encourage divestment, rather than mandate it. The Council is still scheduled to vote on that resolution on Tuesday, May 16.
Protect our Pensions has opposed the bill; we have stated:
… Read MoreGiven that the original bill was deemed simultaneously dangerous to the county’s pension funds and ineffective in
Posted in Blog, Maryland
Leave a comment
California Pension Boards Remain Firmly Committed to Engagement
The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) and the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) were recognized by the Financial Times for their commitment to corporate engagement in a recent article concerning divestment.
CalPERS recently voted to reject divestment as a preferred tool for social change, arguing that “divesting appears to almost invariably harm investment performance.” Instead the new CalPERS policy “prohibits Divesting in response to Divestment Initiatives, but permits CalPERS to use constructive engagement.”
The divestment campaign to disengage … Read More
Posted in Blog, California
Leave a comment
Orange County Register column: California Should Stop “Playing Politics with Pension Funds”
With several divestment bills before the California Legislature, increasingly urgent calls to leave pension funds alone have been reported in the state media. Just recently, Carlos Solorzano, the CEO of The Hispanic Chambers of Commerce of San Francisco pushed back against divestment bill AB 20, making the case that the legislation will be harmful to businesses in San Francisco and across the state. The editorial board of The Press Democrat, of Santa Rosa, also strongly objected to pensions … Read More
Posted in Blog, California
Leave a comment