Ginny Roscamp, Deputy Press Secretary, Federal Communications, Sierra Club, ginny.roscamp@sierraclub.org
NEW YORK — New York City Comptroller Brad Lander announced today, April 22, on Earth Day, that New York City’s pension funds NYCERS, TRS and BERS have set the standards by which the pensions will evaluate the net-zero plans that their asset managers, including BlackRock, are required to submit to the pensions by June 30. Failure to submit plans that meet the pensions’ standards would result in the pensions looking to other firms to manage their investments. Read more in the NYC Comptroller’s press statement.
The move comes just two months after one of the UK’s largest pension funds, The People’s Pension, withdrew $37 billion (£28 billion) from asset manager State Street, criticizing the asset manager for pulling back from sustainable investing initiatives due to increased political pressure after President Trump’s election. That move far exceeded moves by public pension funds in Texas and other Republican-led states to withdraw $13.3 billion from BlackRock after erroneously accusing the asset manager of boycotting fossil fuel investments, a claim BlackRock has disputed.
In response to the news, Jessye Waxman, Campaign Advisor with the Sierra Club’s Sustainable Finance campaign, issued the following statement:
“We applaud Comptroller Lander and New York City pension leaders for taking steps to protect the retirement savings of teachers and other public workers from climate change. NYC’s pension board is responsible for stewarding its assets on behalf of its beneficiaries, and a key way that can be done is by ensuring its asset managers adequately address climate-related risks and opportunities. As Comptroller Lander points out in his letter, asset managers play a key role in supporting the transition to a clean energy economy. We hope to see more climate-conscious investors and pensions join NYC in strategically leveraging their relationships with asset managers to press for more corporate engagement and stronger proxy voting practices that hold corporations accountable for their climate impacts.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.