CALIFORNIA VOTES TO DIVEST FROM IRAN

AIPAC ACTION ALERT:

June 7, 2007

Thank California Assembly Members for

Voting for Bill to Divest State Funds From Iran

Thanks to your outreach, the 'California Public Divest from Iran Act' (AB 221) passed out of the State Assembly on Tuesday, June 5, by a vote of 75-0.

ACTION

Please call California Assembly Members in their Sacramento offices and thank them for supporting AB 221, the California Public Divest from Iran Act. A complete list of Assembly members who supported the measure is below.

The legislation now moves to the State Senate and will likely be referred first to the Public Employment and Retirement Committee. If you are a constituent of any of the 5 members of the California Senate Public Employment and Retirement Committee (Ashburn, McClintock, Migden, Negrete McLeod, or Wiggins), please call your Senator to encourage his or her support for the bill. Click here to look up your state officials and their contact information.*

KEY PROVISIONS OF THE BILL

The California Public Divest from Iran Act, introduced in the California State Assembly by Joel Anderson (R-El Cajon), with 26 co-authors, including principal co-authors Lloyd Levine (D-Van Nuys), Sally Lieber (D-San Jose), Ted Lieu (D-El Segundo), Fiona Ma (D-San Francisco) and Jose Solorio (D-Anaheim), will prohibit the state's public pension funds from investing in companies with business ties to Iran's petroleum, natural gas, nuclear, or defense sectors.

The California Public Divest from Iran Act:

• Requires the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) and the California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) to review their holdings in companies investing in Iran's petroleum, natural gas, nuclear, or defense sectors.
• Mandates pension funds divest their direct holdings from companies invested in Iran's petroleum, natural gas, nuclear, or defense sectors.
• Calls on the pension fund managers to review their holdings in mutual funds, index funds, or other commingled investments, and identify ways to create alternative funds without holdings in these companies.
• Requires a report of all state pension holdings and actions taken to be submitted to the state legislature on an annual basis to ensure the full implementation of the legislation.

TALKING POINTS

Time to Act

• Iran is accelerating its nuclear development program in defiance of mandatory U.N. Security Council resolutions.
• Combined with its support for international terrorism, a nuclear-armed Iran would pose an unacceptable threat to the United States and its allies.
• CalPERS and CalSTRS are the largest state pension systems in the country. Californians can ensure that our state's financial holdings are not invested in companies that provide Iran critically-needed capital it uses to advance its nuclear program.

Investments in Iran Pose a Financial Risk to California Shareholders

• The SEC has determined that there is a special risk associated with investments in terror-sponsoring states such as Iran.
• Additionally, companies that have invested more than $20 million in Iran's petroleum and natural gas sector are liable to sanctions under U.S law.
• Moreover, economic sanctions, embargos and loan restrictions imposed by the U.N. Security Council further increase the financial risk associated with investments in this rogue state.
• As members of the largest public pension systems in the country, we are deeply concerned that the state's holdings in companies with investments in Iran pose a financial risk to the shareholders. It is both morally wrong and financially irresponsible for the state to invest funds in these companies.
• The California Public Divest from Iran Act will safeguard Californians from such risky investments.

ASsembly Members who voted for ab 221

Adams, Aghazarian, Anderson, Arambula, Beall, Benoit, Berg, Berryhill, Blakeslee, Brownley, Caballero, Charles Calderon, Carter, Cook, Coto, Davis, De La Torre, De Leon, DeSaulnier, DeVore, Duvall, Emmerson, Evans, Feuer, Fuentes, Fuller, Gaines, Galgiani, Garcia, Garrick, Hancock, Hayashi, Hernandez, Horton, Houston, Huff, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Karnette, Keene, Krekorian, La Malfa, Laird, Leno, Levine, Lieber, Lieu, Ma, Maze, Mullin, Nakanishi, Nava, Niello, Parra, Plescia, Portantino, Price, Richardson, Sharon Runner, Ruskin, Salas, Saldana, Silva, Smyth, Solorio, Spitzer, Strickland, Swanson, Torrico, Tran, Villines, Walters, Wolk, Nunez