Home California CA Lawmakers Push State to Divest from Companies Building Trump’s Border Wall

CA Lawmakers Push State to Divest from Companies Building Trump’s Border Wall

by ECT

(SACRAMENTO, CA) – Assemblymembers Phil Ting (D-San Francisco), Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher (D-San Diego), and Eduardo Garcia (D-Coachella) announced legislation requiring the state’s pension funds to divest from companies involved in the construction of the president’s wall along the United States-Mexico border.  The announcement follows the request for proposals for border wall prototypes issued Friday by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

“Californians build bridges not walls.  This is a wall of shame and we don’t want any part of it.  Immigrant stories are the history of America and this is a nightmare,” said Ting.  “Asian Americans know the pains of being blocked from immigrating to the United States.  We endured that indignity under an act of Congress for decades.  We must stand together and fight this wall because it symbolizes weakness and hate to the world.”

“The state’s contracting and investment practices should reflect the values of our state,” said Gonzalez Fletcher.  “It’s clear the people of California don’t want to invest in the hateful values that the Trump wall represents.”

“It is counterproductive to invest in projects that will not serve the best interest of all Californians.  It is the responsibility of the legislature to safeguard our values and create opportunities for economic growth, rather than to bar them,” stated Garcia.  “We cannot build up our dreams if our resources are being used to build a wall.”

Assembly Bill (AB) 946 enacts the Resist the Wall Act.  It requires the California Public Employee Retirement System (CalPERS) and the California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) – the nation’s first and second largest pension funds – to liquidate within 12 months any investments in companies involved in the construction of the president’s wall.  The bill also requires the two pension funds to report to the Legislature and the Governor by January 1, 2019 with a list of companies from which they have liquidated investments or plan to do so.

The president’s 2018 Budget Blueprint, released last week, includes $2.6 billion for the Department of Homeland Security to plan and build a physical border wall consistent with his January 25, 2017, Executive Order on immigration.  A leaked internal Department of Homeland Security report found the wall will cost up to $21.6 billion and take over three years to build.  The Pew Research Center found that 62 percent of Americans oppose the wall and 68 percent believe it will either not have much of an impact or lead to a minor reduction in immigration.

CalPERS investments are valued at nearly $312 billion.  CalSTRS investments are valued at nearly $202 billion.

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7 comments

Barry Mar 21, 2017 - 7:05 am

Some of the dumbest legislation I’ve ever read. We are talking about the retirement system and ensuring retirement for a huge amount of workers. They should want the best accounts and funding possible regardless of where the money is coming from. This is nothing more than pandering and why the democratic party should be removed from office. They are hurting their own investors over principal.

Build a wall = jobs = democrats say no.
Investments that could net return = democrats say no.

Sounds like no+no = idiots.

Old Pittsburg/Antioch Hwy Border Mar 21, 2017 - 7:09 am

Here is a breakdown of the impact of this decision. CalPERS sells all stocks that do business with the construction of the wall. The pension fund suffers tremendous losses from the sale. The California tax payer has to pay to make up for these losses due to legislation passed decades ago requiring the transaction. The California tax payer is the middle class. The impact on everyone is higher costs and less retirement and possible real bankruptcy of the one great state. The sad thing is we will not be told we are living under third world conditions because we did not want to enforce the immigration law our congress refuses to change.

Stan Mar 21, 2017 - 9:00 am

Idiots. They just don’t get it. These people are not lawmakers if they cannot uphold laws. Maybe it’s time for some of them to divest from politics. Adios.

Joey American Mar 21, 2017 - 10:15 am

A sad time for America when the citizens have to pay political incompetent lawmakers to fight our own laws. What a complete waste of money and resources. Vote these anti American politicians out of office now.

Anthony Mar 21, 2017 - 3:30 pm

When are we going to purge these morons out of office. Democrats are party of illegals, criminals, islamic terrorist and so on. They don’t represent American citizens in any way. Vote them out. But the illegals they register to vote keep voting them in. We need DHS to investigate the voter fraud here in CA thats giving all power to these frauds!

Meo Mar 21, 2017 - 11:45 pm

You must have to be a real dummy to be a member of the California assembly. Every BAD politician is a member of this political body. Gives new meaning for too much time on ones hands….small minded people run for assembly positions. It’s nothing more than an ego blast.

Two words; Jim Frazier

Paul Thomas Mar 23, 2017 - 8:37 am

Trump hired the bailout lawyer from Goldman Sachs to lead the SEC. “Drain the swamp” LOL

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