This month the CalPERS Board will meet in-person at CalPERS Headquarters on Monday, March 13 through Wednesday, March 15.
Board meetings are open to the public and comments are welcome. You can submit comments by calling (800) 259-4105. You can also watch our live broadcast via webcast on the CalPERS website.
We’ll post a recording to the CalPERS YouTube channel approximately 48 hours after the meeting ends.
Full agendas are posted on our website, but here is a brief overview of the items the board will hear this month:
Monday’s Meeting
The Investment Committee will receive an update on the Global Public Equity’s Corporate Governance Program’s Proxy Voting and Corporate Engagements work streams (PDF). Drew Hambly, investment director of global public equity, will share the 2022 proxy season outcomes (PDF), which include corporate engagement, executive compensation accountability, corporate board diversity, climate risk oversight, and enhanced investor rights. He’ll also present our goals for the 2023 proxy season.
Tuesday’s Meeting
The Pension and Health Benefits Committee will review the 2022 Health Benefits Program Open Enrollment period results (PDF), which include the overall transfer rate for 2022, the health plans with the highest net gain or net loss, and complete details of member migration between plans.
The Health Benefits program will provide the committee with an update on the 2024-28 Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) Health Plan solicitation (PDF). The solicitation aims to implement strategies to transform health care purchasing so members have access to high-quality, equitable, and affordable health care.
The program is also seeking for the committee to approve health plan proposals for the 2024 plan year (PDF). The proposal includes benefit changes to Anthem Blue Cross’ Medicare Advantage plan, like covering personal emergency response system devices and in-home supportive services, and to adjust the UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage Edge Emergency Department copay to $50.
The program is requesting the committee to approve a one-year extension of the Pharmacy Benefit Manager contract with OptumRx (PDF) to administer pharmacy benefits for an additional year, through December 31, 2025. The one-year extension would help CalPERS better evaluate market prices and current pharmacy savings programs, avoid benefit disruption to members, and potentially improve current pricing.
The committee will also receive this year’s update to the retiree Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) (PDF). This May, all CalPERS retirees who retired in 2021 or earlier will receive an increase to their COLA. The annual rate of inflation measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) was 8% for 2022. Currently, 95% of CalPERS retirees have a 2% COLA. Read more information about the COLA.
Wednesday’s Meeting
The Board of Administration will hear a proposal to oppose Senate Bill (SB) 252 (Gonzalez) (PDF), as introduced on January 30, 2022, because of its divestment mandate on the CalPERS Board. SB 252 would prohibit the board from making new investments in fossil fuel companies and would require divesting from existing fossil fuel company investments on or before July 1, 2030. CalPERS’ investment policies generally prohibit divesting in response to divestment initiatives, but permit CalPERS to use constructive engagement, where consistent with fiduciary duties, to help divestment initiatives achieve their goals.
Marlene Timberlake D’Adamo, chief diversity, equity and inclusion officer, will present to the board the DEI Framework semi-annual update (PDF). She will share general information about the framework, like functional roles and responsibilities, along with recent achievements in five priority areas: culture, talent management, health equity, supplier diversity, and investments.
Next Board Meeting
The board will meet next on April 17-18, 2023. View the Board Meetings Calendar for the full schedule.