-
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: July 2017
NY Divestment Act Good for Pensioners? Comptroller Tom DiNapoli Says No.
Is a symbolic win for some in the environmental movement worth a financial desolation for one million New York state pensioners and their families? This is the question that New York lawmakers must consider when casting a vote for the Fossil Fuel Divestment Act. And this question was explored in a recent Albany Times Union column exploring this issue.
The Act argues, “Divestment is financially prudent, morally imperative, responsible policy making,” but how can our legislatures claim moral, responsible policy … Read More
Posted in Uncategorized
Leave a comment
Decision for the Board Just Became Easier – Divesting Means More Costs for the City of San Francisco and No Reward
The San Francisco Employees’ Retirement System (SFERS) Board has an upcoming decision to make that will affect the lives of thousands of Californians. However, this decision just became a very easy one. A recent study from Compass Lexecon found that divesting from oil, natural gas, and coal securities would cost SFERS $11.5 million annually, the authors note in a recent San Francisco Examiner column. That equals to $149 billion loss over 50 years.
The study also found that the decision … Read More
Posted in Blog, California
Leave a comment
As CalPERS Hits Earnings Target, Public Workers Urge Fund to Focus on Pensions
The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS), the biggest pension system in the country, reported some good news recently, when officials announced a stellar 11.2% return rate percent, a stark contrast to less than stellar returns from the past two years, when CalPERS recorded returns of .61% and 2.4%.
The good news comes at a time when pension funds all across the country are being pressured to stray away from their primary mission, securing the retirement of those retirees who … Read More
Posted in Blog, California
Leave a comment
Seattle Pension Board Puts Retirees First, Rejects Divestment
Good news came out of Seattle this week, as the Seattle City Employees’ Retirement System (SCERS) Board voted to reject a measure to divest the fund of energy holdings. Regarding the decision, the SCERS memo read:
While we are concerned with the profoundly negative impact that climate change is having on our environment, divesting … would negatively affect expected investment performance, even if pursued on a limited scale (e.g. only coal) or if pursued over many years.
Jason Malinowski, chief … Read More
Posted in Blog
Leave a comment
Cambridge, MA Should Not Follow in the Divestment Footsteps of Somerville
It is a fact that good ideas get copied by others. The inverse, however, can also apply, and when it comes to the bad idea of divestment, those bad ideas come with real costs to pensioners.
With the city of Somerville, Massachusetts divesting their municipal pension fund of traditional energy assets, some divestment advocates are calling for this bad idea to be replicated elsewhere, such as in neighboring Cambridge. A recent letter to the editor written by a Cambridge resident … Read More
Posted in Blog
Leave a comment
Coalition Leaders Tell California Senate: Protect Pensions, Reject AB 20
In anticipation of the California State Senate hearing on Assembly Bill 20 on July 10, California members of Protect our Pensions sent a letter urging lawmakers to take politics out of pension decisions, and to reject this costly legislation.
The bill, introduced in late 2016, is designed to pressure the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) and the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS) to divest from businesses involved with the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL), a project that is already … Read More
Posted in Blog, California
Leave a comment