Subcommittee continues review of socially responsible investment options for city portfolio
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Summary
Commissioners reported continued engagement with community members and the city’s investment manager (PFM) to evaluate socially responsible investment (SRI) criteria and possible changes to the City of Davis investment policy; staff will collect additional PFM detail and prepare a memo for the commission.
A Fiscal Commission subcommittee provided an update on its ongoing review of socially responsible investment (SRI) practices and their applicability to the city’s portfolio. The subcommittee said it has reached out to community members and several Northern California cities and received preliminary responses.
The subcommittee reported staff contacted the city’s investment manager, PFM, to ask how any SRI screens or changes might affect returns and to request details about what investable securities PFM considers, whether human-rights frameworks are used, and what restrictions currently exist. The subcommittee said it has received a response on many items and will request additional detail.
Why it matters: commissioners said they want to understand tradeoffs between SRI criteria and portfolio returns, to determine what policy changes are feasible without harming the city’s fiscal position. The subcommittee noted that public commenters on previous occasions had raised concerns about fossil-fuel exposure and other corporate practices.
Next steps: staff and the subcommittee will draft a memo summarizing PFM’s responses, comparisons with peer cities, and potential policy options for the full commission’s review; any formal recommendation would go to council if adopted by the commission.