CALIFORNIA | LOCAL
April 30, 2012 | By Sam Allen, Los Angeles Times
State pension officials have concluded that the city of Vernon improperly boosted the benefits of nearly two dozen employees, including some attorneys who were erroneously granted generous "public safety" retirement packages usually reserved for police officers and firefighters. The findings are likely to result in pension cuts for some city officials and cap what CalPERS described as one of the farthest-reaching investigations in the system's history. It comes as Gov. Jerry Brown and the state Legislature debate significant changes in public pensions to ease the state's fiscal crisis.
BUSINESS
April 24, 2012 | By Marc Lifsher, Los Angeles Times
SACRAMENTO — Federal securities regulators sued a former chief executive and a former director of the California Public Employees' Retirement System, accusing them of scheming to defraud an investment firm of $20 million. The Securities and Exchange Commission alleged that former CEO Federico Buenrostro Jr., 62, and former director Alfred J.R. Villalobos, 68, fabricated documents requested by Apollo Global Management, a New York private equity firm. Apollo had hired Villalobos, a close friend of Buenrostro, as a so-called placement agent to secure billions of dollars of investments from the country's largest public pension fund.
BUSINESS
April 23, 2012 | By Marc Lifsher
SACRAMENTO - Federal securities regulators sued a former chief executive and a former director of the country's largest public pension fund, accusing them of scheming to defraud an investment firm of more than $20 million in fees. The Securities and Exchange Commission filed the lawsuit Monday against the former CEO, Federico Buenrostro Jr., and the former CalPERS board member, Alfred J.R. Villalobos, alleging that they fabricated documents provided to Apollo Global Management in New York.
BUSINESS
March 24, 2012 | By David Sarno, Los Angeles Times
Medco Health Solutions has agreed to pay $2.75 million and change its internal procedures to settle claims that it paid millions in bribes to win a contract to provide prescription drugs to members of the California Public Employees' Retirement System. The settlement was the latest development in a case that began in 2004 and involved allegations of dealings between the then-head of CalPERS, Federico Buenrostro Jr., and a paid Medco consultant and former CalPERS board member, Alfred J.R. Villalobos, who helped secure the $26-million contract in 2006.
BUSINESS
March 15, 2012 | By Marc Lifsher, Los Angeles Times
Bowing to the realities of a volatile stock market and a weak investment climate, the nation's largest public pension fund lowered its benchmark assumed rate of return. The board of the California Public Employees' Retirement System voted 9 to 1 to reduce its expected, average annual return on its investments to 7.5% from 7.75%. That was a quarter of a percentage point higher than what had been recommended by CalPERS' chief actuary, Alan Milligan. In addition to lowering the assumed rate of return, which had been previously approved by a CalPERS committee, the board also agreed to reduce its assumed average annual inflation rate to 2.75% from 3%. The changes, which kick in for the state government and school districts July 1, will cost the state general fund $167 million in higher pension costs in the next budget year.
BUSINESS
March 14, 2012 | By Marc Lifsher
Bowing to the realities of a volatile stock market and a weak investment climate, the board of the nation's largest public pension fund lowered its benchmark assumed rate of return. The board of the California Public Employees' Retirement System voted 9-1 Wednesday to reduce its expected average annual return from 7.75% to 7.5%. That was a quarter of a percentage point higher than what had been recommended by its chief actuary, Alan Milligan. The board also agreed to reduce its assumed average annual inflation rate from 3% to 2.75%.