Pension Fund Governance - Campaign Against Corruption
According to "Clean Up" (Global Proxy Watch, November 2, 2007), the California State Teachers' Retirement System ("CalSTRS") has approved new rules that seek to prevent the practice of "pay to play." Set to become effective as of November 28, 2007, California Code of Regulation, Title 5, Division 3, Chapter 1, Article 14 prohibits campaign contributions to board members in excess of $5,000 per year from any firm providing investment services. CalSTRS self-identifies as the "first public pension fund in California to pursue ethics reform of this scope."
Editor Stephen Davis writes that the focus on pension fund governance continues unabated in the UK, US and elsewhere. We appreciate the nod to our efforts at Pension Governance, LLC.
Davis concludes with a quote by former U.S. SEC chief Arthur Levitt who, in a recent speech, emphasizes the need for improvement. Referring to pension fund governance as a "ticking time bomb," he urges trustee literacy as one of several solutions. See "Ex-Chief of S.E.C. Says Pension Funds in Danger" by Mary Williams Walsh, New York Times, October 31,2007.
