New York City’s five public pension funds will more than double investments in climate change to over $6 billion by the end of 2021.
This surpasses the goal set in September 2018 to double the then-$2 billion investment across all asset classes to reach $4 billion of investment in companies that generate related revenue, according to Mayor Bill de Blasio and Comptroller Scott Stringer.
The funds, which constitute the nation’s fourth-largest pension plan, were valued at $247 billion as of December. On Friday they approved allocations identified by the comptroller’s Office Bureau of Asset Management that bring the aggregate investments, including new commitments, to more than $6 billion across the portfolio of all five pension funds.
Categories include climate mitigation, adaption and resiliency such as renewable energy, energy efficiency, sustainable waste management, green buildings, and pollution prevention. It also includes companies that are measurably helping transition to a low-carbon economy consistent with goals established by the Paris Climate Accord.
This move, the mayor and comptroller said, builds on three of the pension funds’ $4 billion divestment from securities related to fossil fuel companies — expected to be one of the world’s largest.
De Blasio, Stringer and the trustees set a goal to double investments in climate change components such as wind, solar power, energy efficient technologies and more from roughly $2 billion, or 1% of assets, at the time to about $4 billion, or 2% of assets, by the end of 2021.
“The climate crisis must be met head-on and from all fronts. This multi-billion investment in green tech and divestment from fossil fuels is a winning combination for our planet, our city and our pensioners,” de Blasio said Tuesday. “Our pension trustees are meeting the moment.”
Stringer is the investment advisor to, and custodian and a trustee of, the pension funds.
“Investing in clean energy, resilient infrastructure, and environmental justice is the right way to accelerate our economic recovery with good-paying jobs,” said Daniel Zarrilli, the city’s chief climate policy advisor.
The pension funds are the New York City Employees’ Retirement System; the Teachers’ Retirement System of the City of New York; the New York City Police Pension Fund; the New York City Fire Pension Fund; and, the New York City Board of Education Retirement System.
Each of the retirement systems has its own board of trustees which, working with the Bureau of Asset Management and the board’s consultants, decided actions based on factors including economic risk, return, performance and beneficiary distributions.
