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• CalPERS Presses For Financial Market Reform

CalPERS Presses For Financial Market Reform

CalPERS encourages and supports global reform to protect investor interests through legislative, regulatory, securities exchanges, and investor forums. Looking ahead, we believe the current market climate presents a window of opportunity for CalPERS to exhibit leadership in shaping market reform to protect investors from a future market meltdown of this magnitude. CalPERS believes that addressing certain reforms are critical and will contribute to the restoration of confidence in the capital market system. As a matter of importance, CalPERS has contributed to supporting the establishment of a regulatory financial market system designed to instill trust, integrity, and confidence in the investors, beneficiaries, and stakeholders of the global capital markets through the following action items:

• In conjunction with leading public pension funds and plan sponsors in the United States, developed financial regulation principles, aimed at restoring trust, the "Principles of Financial Regulation Reform" (PDF, 74 KB), which included the following key elements: 1) greater disclosure and transparency, 2) true regulatory independence, 3) an increased and effective shareowner voice in the capital markets, 4) earlier identification by regulators of issues that give rise to overall market risk that threaten global markets, and 5) the preservation of institutional investors' freedom to invest in the full range of investment opportunities.
  
  
• As an active member of the Council of Institutional Investors (PDF, 252 KB), CalPERS signed onto a letter urging U.S. Congressional leaders (PDF, 738 KB) to consider a number of key corporate governance improvements for inclusion in financial market regulatory reform legislation. The corporate governance improvements considered to have the greatest impact for financial market reform legislation include: 1) Majority Voting Standards in Director Elections, 2) Shareowner Access to the Proxy for the Purpose of Nominating Directors, 3) Abolishing the ability of Brokers to vote uninstructed broker proxy votes, 4) Establishing a board structure under the leadership of an Independent Board chairperson, 5) Board use of Independent Compensation Advisers, 6) annual Advisory Shareowner Vote on executive pay, 7) stronger executive compensation Clawback provisions, and 8) Severance pay limitations that ensure greater pay-for-performance alignment.
  

December 16, 2009
Letter to Senate Banking Committee
(PDF, 349 KB)

December 16th, 2009
The Government as Dominant Shareholder: How Should the Taxpayers' Ownership Rights be Exercised (Day 1)
Webcast of hearing includes Anne Simpson, CalPERS Senior Portfolio Manager- 1:24:26 hour with additional comments at 1:53

December 9, 2009
CalPERS to Congress: Back Wall Street Reform Legislation

November 3, 2009
Averting Financial Crisis: Regulatory Reform & Corporate Governance
(PDF, 47 KB)

October 30, 2009
Corporate Governance Best Practices (PDF, 36 KB)

July 15, 2009
Regulating Hedge Funds and Other Private Investment Pools (PDF, 55 KB)

March 10, 2009
CalPERS Presses For Financial Market Reform