Following up on his earlier, groundbreaking anti-terror legislation, California State Assemblyman Joel Anderson has put forth Assembly Concurrent Resolution 79 (ACR 79), which pressures the University of California to pull its investments in foreign companies doing business in the Islamic Republic of Iran. ACR 79 recently unanimously passed the Assembly Appropriations Committee and now heads to the full Assembly for action.
UC’s retirement plan portfolio, which is worth more than $44 billion, may have as much as $2 billion invested in Iran.

Last year the California Legislature unanimously passed AB 221, which called on the state public employees and teachers retirement systems to divest from the Islamic Republic of Iran. Seventeen states subsequently passed or are considering similar legislation.

Three cheers for Anderson, who correctly notes that it is “fiscally responsible to avoid investing in that risky environment” and that, from the standpoint of human rights, “it is simply the right thing to do.”