I hope you and your family are well in this challenging time. I am heartened that New Yorkers are pulling together to fight this health pandemic. I am also encouraged that we are not forgetting that other crises loom. As we seek to build out a green and healthy future, I'm writing today to urge you to show your support for the Fossil Fuel Divestment Act - A1536A. 

Fossil fuel companies are becoming an increasingly financially risky investment. If Comptroller DiNapoli had divested a decade ago, the New York State Common Retirement Fund would be $22 billion richer today. In the past year, the Fund lost $1.5 billion on just 16 tar sands and fracking companies. In spite of this, DiNapoli continues to keep billions invested in the fossil fuel industry.

The real return on the Fund's dirty energy investments are climate disasters like Superstorm Sandy and the poisoning of local communities’ air and water — both of which disproportionately affect low-income communities and communities of color.

While the Comptroller is slowly reviewing the performance of a handful of coal companies including some that have recently faced bankruptcy, the state pension fund continues to invest and risk billions in the likes of Exxon and fracked gas and tar sands companies. With the Comptroller failing to act fast enough, and financial risk increasing, it’s appropriate for New York legislators to act as responsible fiduciaries and step in to mandate the divestment of the fund.  

As a New Yorker, I'm calling on you to do what's fiscally and morally right: support the Fossil Fuel Divestment Act and pull New Yorkers' money out of the industries that are destroying our communities and climate. If you already are a sponsor of the Fossil Fuel Divestment Act, please urge your colleagues in the Assembly to join you. Thank you.