Magaziner Says He Will Cut RI’s Pension Fund Investment in Fossil Fuels Nearly 50% by Summer

Magaziner Says He Will Cut RI’s Pension Fund Investment in Fossil Fuels Nearly 50% by Summer

Rhode Island General Treasurer Seth Magaziner announced this week that the state’s pension fund is cutting nearly 50% of the investment in companies that engage in the production and distribution of fossil fuels. 

The changes in the investment fund’s makeup will be completed by this summer, said Magaziner’s office.  

“To continue delivering on the promise of retirement security for all 60,000 members of the Rhode Island pension system, and for all taxpayers, we must invest in the economy of the future,” said Magaziner. “As we celebrate Earth Day this week, I was pleased to announce that the pension fund has made significant progress towards this goal with a near-fifty percent reduction in the fund’s exposure to fossil fuels by this summer. I believe that over the course of the next decade, the pension fund’s exposure to fossil fuels can approach zero as the world shifts toward cleaner and more sustainable energy sources.”  

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Magaziner’s office claims that the “Back to Basics investment strategy, the Rhode Island pension fund has consistently outperformed its peers and reached an all-time high of more than $9.5 billion. In order to continue to strengthen the fund’s performance, the fund must continue to invest in clean energy and not in the large-scale burning of fossil fuels.”

Magaziner’s office did not disclose the state’s ranking or which “peers” it outperformed.  

“Good policies that reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, like decreasing the exposure to fossil fuels in the Rhode Island pension fund, are important steps towards facing the climate challenge, protecting our environment, our health, and our state’s fiscal health. There is big economic opportunity in continuing to disinvest in fossil fuels and reinvest in clean energy, and in adaptation and resilience to protect the people and places we love,” said Priscilla De La Cruz, President of the Environment Council of Rhode Island.

Magaziner made the announcement at Save the Bay's offices in Providence and was joined by group's Executive Director Jonathan Stone and De La Cruz.