LOS ANGELES (CNS) - A Senate bill to have the Public Employees' Retirement System and the State Teachers' Retirement System divest from fossil fuels was supported by the Los Angeles City Council today.
The council passed a resolution, introduced by Councilman Paul Koretz, to support Senate Bill 1173, which was introduced by Sen. Lena Gonzalez, D-Long Beach, and Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco.
The resolution passed 12-0 and notes that the pension funds have more than $9 billion invested in fossil fuel production.
``Given the damages of climate breakdown, it is in the best long-term interest of the city of Los Angeles to support the dismantling of the fossil fuel system, both physically and financially,'' the resolution states.
Student climate activists protested outside Los Angeles City Hall on March 25 as part of the worldwide Youth Climate Strike. The group marched from City Hall to a conference by the California Teachers Association to ask it to support SB 1173.
The bill, if passed, would prohibit the boards of the state's pension systems from making new investments or renewing existing investments in a fossil fuel company. It would also require the boards to liquidate investments in fossil fuel companies on or before July 1, 2027.
The board would not be required to take any action that is determined to be inconsistent with its fiduciary responsibilities established in the California Constitution.