The New York City Police Pension Fund, one of the five city pension plans overseen by the Comptroller’s Office, voted down a proposal to divest the city’s pension funds from companies that own fossil fuel reserves.

Mayor Bill de Blasio and Comptroller Scott Stringer announced the divestment proposal earlier this month, saying that the $189bn New York City Pension Funds should divest from companies that own fossil fuel reserves in the next five years, becoming the first major U.S. pension plan to do so (MMR, 1/10/2018). The comptroller introduced a resolution to begin the process at the common investment meeting last week, starting with a broad request for information from experts, stakeholders, industry, and members of the public and following with a request for proposals for a consultant to study divestment and guide the pension funds’ efforts.

One of the pension funds, the $63.2bn New York City Employees Retirement System has passed the resolution thus far, and the plan also has majority support from the Teachers Retirement System and the Board of Education Retirement System, which will vote soon. But the $39.8bn New York City Police Pension Fund did not sign on to the divestment effort, with one trustee saying that he felt that the board was being pressured to go along with a plan that was formed without its input.

“I don’t know what the sudden urge to do this was,” said trustee Joseph Alejandro, representing the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association. “I see that a lot of work was done without us being involved in the very beginning of it…. I don’t think we need another resolution with another undefined process being pushed by someone who may or may not be here four, five years from now.”

Read the full story: NYC police pension not on board with city_s fossil fuel divestment plan

Published by Money Management Report/Pageant Media.