California's giant pension fund kicked the tobacco habit. Now it's reconsidering

The Sacramento Bee: CalPERS kicked the cigarette habit 16 years ago. Now it appears ready to reverse course.

The staff of the California Public Employees’ Retirement System, after an eight-month study, is recommending that the nation’s largest public pension fund drop its ban on investing in tobacco stocks. CalPERS’ investment committee is expected to vote on the recommendation next Monday.

Simply put, CalPERS needs the money. Its decision to dump its tobacco stocks in 2000, at a time when the industry was struggling under the weight of numerous lawsuits, has been a financial blunder, according to a lengthy staff memo to the CalPERS board.

Read article