Bill Text: NJ A3431 | 2022-2023 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Prohibits State pension fund investment in certain companies with ties to Republic of Belarus and prohibits State contracts if invested in Republic of Belarus.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-03-08 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly State and Local Government Committee [A3431 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2022-A3431-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman RONALD S. DANCER
District 12 (Burlington, Middlesex, Monmouth and Ocean)
SYNOPSIS
Prohibits State pension fund investment in certain companies with ties to Republic of Belarus and prohibits State contracts if invested in Republic of Belarus.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act prohibiting government dealings with businesses associated with the Republic of Belarus, supplementing Title 52 of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. 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 foreign company that has an equity tie to the government of the Republic of Belarus or its instrumentalities and is engaged in business operations with entities in the defense sector or technology sector of the Republic of Belarus, or engaged in business operations with entities involved in the natural gas or petroleum sectors of the Republic of Belarus, in or with that government and its instrumentalities. This prohibition shall not apply to the activities of any foreign company providing humanitarian aid to the Belarusian people through either a governmental or non-governmental organization.
As used in this section:
"equity tie" means manufacturing or mining plants, employees or advisors, facilities, or an investment, fiduciary, monetary, or physical presence of any kind, including an ownership stake in one or more subsidiary or joint venture with one or more companies in the country;
"humanitarian aid" means the provision of goods and services intended to relieve human suffering or to promote general welfare and health;
"defense sector" means every industry or company, be it private or owned in whole or in part by the government of the Republic of Belarus or its instrumentalities, that is involved in the purchase, sale, manufacturing, testing, or deployment of military supplies and weapons, including every company that provides military advisors and non-military personnel or that sells strategic information or services to companies that purchase, sell, manufacture, test, or deploy military supplies and weapons, or the government of the Republic of Belarus or its instrumentalities; and
"natural gas or petroleum sectors" means those industries and companies that have as their business the owning rights to oil blocks, exporting, extracting, producing, refining, processing, exploring for, transporting, selling or trading of oil or natural gas, constructing or maintaining or operating a pipeline or refinery or other infrastructure, and facilitating such activities, including supplies or services in support of such activities.
b. The State Investment Council and the Director of the Division of Investment, after reviewing the recommendations of and consulting with an independent research firm that specializes in global security risk for portfolio determinations selected by the State Treasurer, shall take appropriate action to sell, redeem, divest, or withdraw any investment held in violation of subsection a. 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).
c. Within 60 days 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 a. of this section. Every year thereafter, the director shall report on all investments sold, redeemed, divested, or withdrawn in compliance with subsection b. 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.
d. State Investment Council members, jointly and individually, and State officers and employees involved therewith, shall be indemnified and held harmless by the State of New Jersey from all claims, demands, suits, actions, damages, judgments, costs, charges, and expenses, including court costs and attorney's fees, and against all liability, losses, and damages of any nature whatsoever that these State Investment Council members, and State officers and employees, shall or may at any time sustain by reason of any decision to restrict, reduce, or eliminate investments pursuant to this act.
2. a. A person or entity that, at the time of bid or proposal for a new contract or renewal of an existing contract, is identified on a list created pursuant to subsection b. of this section as a person or entity engaging in investment activities in the Republic of Belarus, shall be ineligible to, and shall not, bid on, submit a proposal for, or enter into or renew, a contract with a State agency for goods or services.
b. Within 30 days of the effective date of this section, the Department of the Treasury shall, using credible information available to the public, develop a list of persons or entities it determines engage in investment activities in the Republic of Belarus. The department shall update the list every 180 days.
c. Within 30 days of the effective date of this section, the Department of the Treasury shall, using credible information available to the public, develop a list of persons or entities it determines engage in investment activities in the Republic of Belarus. The department shall update the list every 60 days after the publication of an initial list. Before including a person or entity on the initial list or an updated list, the department shall do the following:
(1) Provide notice of its intent to include the person or entity on the list. The notice shall inform the person or entity that inclusion on the list would make the person or entity ineligible to bid on, submit a proposal for, enter into, or renew, a professional service contract with a State agency; and
(2) Provide a person or entity with an opportunity to comment in writing that the person or entity is not engaged in investment activities in the Republic of Belarus. If the person or entity demonstrates to the department that the person or entity is not engaged in investment activities in the Republic of Belarus, the person or entity shall not be included on the list.
d. A State agency or local government shall require a person or entity that submits a bid or application listed in subsection b. of this section to certify that the person or entity is not identified on a list created pursuant to this section as a person or entity engaging in investment activities in the Republic of Belarus. The certification required shall be executed on behalf of the applicable person or entity by an authorized officer or representative of the person or entity. In the event that a person or entity is unable to make the certification required because the person or entity or one of the entity's parents, subsidiaries, or affiliates has engaged in investment activity in the Republic of Belarus, the person or entity shall provide to the State agency or local government concerned, prior to the deadline for delivery of such certification, a detailed and precise description of such activities, such description to be provided under penalty of perjury. The certifications provided under this section and disclosures provided under this section shall be disclosed to the public.
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill prohibits the investment of State pension or annuity funds in companies with an equity tie to the government of the Republic of Belarus or its instrumentalities and is engaged in business operations with entities in the oil, defense, or technology sectors of the Republic of Belarus. The bill also prohibits a person or entity that engages in investment activity in the Republic of Belarus from obtaining a contract from a State entity.
This bill is in response to the Republic of Belarus allowing its territory to be used by the Russian Federation as an invasion location for Ukraine.
