SEC Names CalPERS To Investor Advisory Committee

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) said today it was honored to be named a member of the U.S. Security and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) newly formed Investor Advisory Committee.  Joe Dear, CalPERS Chief Investment Officer, will represent the pension fund on the committee.

CalPERS joins 21 others on the Advisory Committee, including Anne Sheehan, Director of Corporate Governance for the California State Teachers' Retirement System, and Ann Yerger, Executive Director of the Council of Institutional Investors. The committee was established under 2010’s Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The appointments were made by SEC Chair Mary L. Schapiro.

Early this year, CalPERS and other institutional investors representing more than $1.6 trillion in assets urged the SEC to adopt a proactive agenda that protects investors and promotes fair, efficient markets and capital formation. The appointment of the Investor Advisory Committee was one of six initiatives outlined by the group in “An Investor’s Framework for the Future.”

“This is a wonderful honor and a responsibility that we take very seriously,” said Anne Stausboll, CalPERS Chief Executive Officer. “On behalf of CalPERS and all investors, we applaud SEC Chair Mary Schapiro for her commitment to investors by making these appointments to the Advisory Committee.”

Under Dodd-Frank, the Investor Advisory Committee is charged with advising the SEC on regulatory priorities; the regulation of securities, trading strategies and fee structures; the effectiveness of disclosure; and initiatives to protect investors and promote confidence in the financial markets.

“The formation of this group is one more critical step to protecting and strengthening shareowner rights and investor confidence in the financial markets. The Investor Advisory Committee will help ensure that the SEC hears the investors’ perspective on regulatory matters.  Investor input is crucial to making sure that we don’t forget the painful lessons we learned from the recent financial crisis,” said Dear.  “I’m honored to be part of this historic effort.”

CalPERS is the nation’s largest public pension fund with approximately $235 billion in assets, providing retirement benefits to more than 1.6 million State, public school, and local public agency employees, retirees, and their families, and health benefits to more than 1.3 million members. The average CalPERS pension is $2,332 per month. The average benefit for those who retired in the most recent fiscal year that ended June 30, 2011, is $3,065 per month. For more information about CalPERS, visit www.calpers.ca.gov.