Bill Text: NJ A1944 | 2012-2013 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Prohibits investment by State of pension and annuity funds in companies with ties to terrorists.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-01-10 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly State Government Committee [A1944 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2012-A1944-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
215th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2012 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman CAROLINE CASAGRANDE
District 11 (Monmouth)
SYNOPSIS
Prohibits investment by State of pension and annuity funds in companies with ties to terrorists.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
An Act prohibiting the investment by the State of pension and annuity funds in companies with ties to terrorists, and supplementing P.L.1950, c.270.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. As used in this section:
"Commercial tie" means dealings with a terrorist or a terrorist organization, whether they involve the exchange of funds or not, including, but not limited to, the total or partial purchase, control, or ownership of the terrorist organization or any of its subsidiaries, charities, or other related entities; and the sale, lease, or donation of equipment, facilities, personnel, services, or any other apparatus of commerce to or from the terrorist or terrorist organization or any of its agents, associates, subsidiaries, charities, or other related entities.
"Terrorist or terrorist organization" means an individual or partnership, association, corporation, charity, or other organization, group, or subgroup included in the list of Specifically Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons published by the Office of Foreign Assets Control in the United States Department of the Treasury pursuant to Executive Order No. 13224, issued by the President of the United States on September 23, 2001.
b. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, no assets of any pension or annuity fund under the jurisdiction of the Division of Investment in the Department of the Treasury, or its successor, shall be invested in any company that has a commercial tie to a terrorist or a terrorist organization.
The State Investment Council and the Director of the Division of Investment may consult with an independent research firm that specializes in global security risk for portfolio determinations selected by the State Treasurer to determine whether any assets of any pension or annuity fund under the jurisdiction of the Division of Investment are invested in any company that has a commercial tie to a terrorist or a terrorist organization.
c. The State Investment Council and the Director of the Division of Investment shall have one year after the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) to have discussions with any company in which State investment is prohibited under this act, to voluntarily terminate its commercial tie to a terrorist or a terrorist organization.
One year from the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the State Investment Council and the Director of the Division of Investment shall sell, redeem, divest or withdraw any investment held in violation of subsection b. of this section. This section shall not be construed to require the premature or otherwise imprudent sale, redemption, divestment or withdrawal of an investment, but such sale, redemption, divestment or withdrawal shall be completed not later than three years following the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
d. Should the investments identified for divestiture be concentrated within an industry sector so that their sale could reasonably be expected to reduce by more than 25 percent the returns to be expected from investment in that sector as measured by industry indices, then the Director of the Division of Investment shall take appropriate action to sell, redeem, divest or withdraw such investments selectively and over a period of no more than five years following the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
e. Within one year after the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) the Director of the Division of Investment shall file with the Legislature, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), a report of all investments held as of the effective date that are in violation of subsection b. of this section. Every year thereafter, the director shall report on all investments sold, redeemed, divested or withdrawn in compliance with subsection c. of this section.
Each report after the initial report shall provide a description of the progress that the division has made since the previous report and since the enactment of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) in implementing subsection b. of this section.
f. State Investment Council members and State officers and employees involved therewith, shall be immune to any legal or disciplinary action arising from their decision to reduce or eliminate investments pursuant to this act.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill prohibits the State of New Jersey from investing the assets of any pension or annuity fund under the management of the Division of Investment in the Department of the Treasury in companies with ties to terrorists or terrorist organizations. As to holdings in prohibited companies that predate the enactment of this legislation, the division has up to five years to complete their divestiture. A terrorist or a terrorist organization is a person or an organization included in the list of Specifically Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons published by the Office of Foreign Assets Control in the United States Department of the Treasury.
In recent years, the State has banned certain investments of State pension and annuity fund assets on ethical grounds. Because of flagrant human rights violations in Sudan, P.L.2005, c.162 prohibited the investment of pension and annuity fund assets in companies having equity ties to the Sudanese government. P.L.2007, c.250 then took a stand against Iran's sponsorship of terrorism and outlawed the investment of State pension and annuity funds in foreign companies with equity ties to the Iranian government. In the spirit of the Iran divestment law, this bill now frees the State pension and annuity funds from terror generally.
