Gov. Bill Ritter today signed into law the nation’s toughest targeted divestment bill aimed at ending the suffering in Darfur. HB 1184, supported by a broad bipartisan coalition of lawmakers, cuts the financial ties between the state’s public pension funds and companies that support the Sudanese government responsible for the atrocities in Darfur.

“This bill is especially meaningful to me because of my time in Africa,” Gov. Ritter said. “Colorado has no business supporting companies that facilitate genocide. Targeted investment can help insure our pension funds are redirected in a responsible way, and by joining with other states we can send a strong message that what is happening in Darfur is unacceptable.”

The genocidal government of Sudan is heavily reliant on foreign investment, and spends more than 70 percent of its oil revenue on a military force that perpetuates genocide.

HB 1184 requires pension funds to maintain a list of companies that either directly or indirectly help the Sudanese government commit genocide. After an expedited engagement period, the pension funds would be required to divest from companies that do not change their business practices in Sudan. The funds would be prohibited from future investment in offending companies until the atrocities cease.

Here is the text of HB-1184

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 19th, 2007 at 6:04 pm and is filed under Elected, 2007 Legislative Session. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.