Source: Penelope Lemov, Governing, November 13, 2014
Pension plans want to support environmental projects, but there is one thing holding them back…. Girard Miller, chief investment officer of the Orange County Employees Retirement System (OCERS) noted that many pension plans are interested in investments that can boost funding for new infrastructure, especially when those projects are environmentally friendly. The problem, Miller said, is that pension investment officials “don’t want tax-exempt paper in their portfolios.”
Why? Since pension plans are already tax exempt, they can’t claim the tax exemption. That leaves, he says, “a mismatch between available pension capital and the public sector’s infrastructure financing needs, especially for projects that lack a revenue source.”
Is there a fix? Miller talked about one in a recent interview, which has been edited for clarity and length….