(a) As used in this section:
(1) “Board” means the Board of Administration of the Public Employees’ Retirement System or the Teachers’ Retirement Board of the State Teachers’ Retirement System, as applicable.
(2) “Company” means a sole proprietorship, organization, association, corporation, partnership, venture, or other entity, or its subsidiary or affiliate, that exists for profitmaking purposes or to otherwise secure economic advantage.
(3) “Dakota Access Pipeline” means the oil pipeline connecting the Bakken oil fields in northwest North Dakota to Illinois, traveling through South Dakota and Iowa, that runs north and upstream of the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation.
(4) “Investment” means the purchase, ownership, or control of publicly issued stock, corporate bonds, or other debt instruments issued by a company.
(5) “Public employee retirement funds” means the Public Employees’ Retirement Fund described in Section 20062 of this code and the Teachers’ Retirement Fund described in Section 22167 of the Education Code.
(b) On or before April 1, 2018, the board shall file a report with the Legislature, in compliance with Section 9795, and the Governor that shall include the following:
(1) A list of investments the board has in companies constructing, or funding the construction of, the Dakota Access Pipeline.
(2) A list of companies identified pursuant to paragraph (1) with which the board has constructively engaged, including:
(A) A detailed description of the board and its staff’s engagement activities with each company, including, but not limited to, the number of engagement interactions with each company.
(B) A detailed description of the results of the engagement, including, but not limited to, agreements reached between the board and the company.
(C) An evaluation as to the efficacy of the engagement, including, but not limited to, whether the engagement resulted in a change of action by the investing firm or company with which funds were invested.
(c) It is the intent of the Legislature that on or before April 1, 2018, the board review and consider factors related to tribal sovereignty and indigenous tribal rights as part of the board’s investment policies related to environmental, social, and governance issues.
(d) Nothing in this section shall require a board to take action as described in this section unless the board determines in good faith that the action described in this section is consistent with the fiduciary responsibilities of the board described in Section 17 of Article XVI of the California Constitution.
(Added by Stats. 2017, Ch. 575, Sec. 2. (AB 20) Effective January 1, 2018.)
Last modified: October 25, 2018