Senate Bill S6472

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S6472

SPONSOR: LANZA
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the retirement and social security law, in relation to
prohibiting the comptroller from using environment, social, and gover-
nance criteria when investing the state pension fund

 
PURPOSE:

To prohibit the state comptroller from using environmental, social and
governance criteria as a screening method for selecting companies and
funds to invest in.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1: Adds a new paragraph 11 to section 177 of the retirement and
social security law that prohibits the comptroller from using environ-
mental, social and governance criteria as screening method for selecting
companies and funds to invest in.

              

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Over the last decade, many states, including New York, have begun to use
environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria when deciding what
companies and funds their states' money should be invested in. ESG
investing is used to screen investments based on corporate policies and
encourage companies to act responsibly in relation to their internal
environmental, social, and governance policies, rather than their finan-
cial performance. In order to secure our pension fund for future reti-
rees, it is of utmost importance that the Comptroller focus on the
financial health and performance of a company or fund, rather than ESG
practices, so that the State's return on investments are maximized to
its fullest potential. This bill would ensure that the Comptroller
chooses companies and funds to invest in based on their financial
performance, and would prohibit the comptroller from using ESG criteria
when determining what company or fund to invest our money in.

The enactment of this bill would ensure that the Comptroller is invest-
ing the retirement funds based on the best interest of the Fund, which
would result in potential greater investment returns for the State's
pension fund.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New Bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None to the State.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.