Administration August 5, 2010
MA Adds Iran Divestment Law
August 5, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick has signed a bill requiring public pension money be divested from companies doing business with Iran.
Reported by Rebecca Moore
The Boston Globe reports the new law would require the state to divest pension investments from foreign oil and gas firms with active investments of more than $20 million in the country. The House and Senate both endorsed the measure before sending it to Patrick’s desk in the final days of the Legislature’s formal session, the news report said.
A previous bill mandated that the state stop investing in companies supporting the Sudanese government, leading the state pension fund to divest $54 million of holdings in eight companies (see Bay State to Liquidate $54M in Sudan-Related Equities).