More Detail on the Upcoming Regents Meeting

Click on chart to enlarge. See below in text for discussion.

We now have more detail on the agenda of the upcoming Regents meeting. The various agenda attachments are now included on the Regents' website. Some highlights below:

The Investments Subcommittee is discussing a proposal to create an investment fund for the use of campuses for endowment-type funds that don't require short-term liquidity (and therefore low returns):

http://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/sept18/i1attach1.pdf

According to the proposal, "the Office of the Chief Investment Officer (OCIO) shall incorporate environmental sustainability, social responsibility, and governance (ESG) into the investment evaluation process as part of its overall risk assessment in its investments decision-making. ESG factors are considered with the same weight as other material risk factors influencing investment decision-making." (Whatever that means.)

It might be noted that the pension fund has been earning less than its "policy benchmark" over the last 3 years: http://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/sept18/i2.pdf (p. 3)

At Compliance and Audit, we learn that the Academic Senate endorses adding time frames to privilege and tenure reviews involving sexual harassment consistent with the state auditor's recommendations:

http://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/sept18/c5.pdf

The Public Engagement Committee at the moment has links to various agenda items that produce error messages at this writing. The Regents' secretary has been notified.

Academic and Student Affairs will include discussion of a detailed report on Native American remains and burial objects now subject to federal regulation on the various campuses including UCLA:

http://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/sept18/a3.pdf

There is also a detailed report on student and faculty diversity. See above for a chart from that report. The report is at:

http://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/sept18/a2.pdf

Readers of this blog may recall the episode in which cuts to retiree health care suddenly appeared on the Regents agenda and then were yanked. There had been no consultation with the Senate or anyone else before the item appeared. A committee was established to look at the matter and as yet there has been no official recommendation to the Regents. However, in Finance and Capital Strategies, we find this statement:

Costs attributable to health benefits for covered retirees and their dependents are likely to rise more quickly as larger cohorts of UC employees decide to retire. UC, like the State overall, can anticipate faster increases in its retiree population as members of the baby boom generation reach retirement age. (PPIC refers to this trend as the “silver tsunami.”) The University continues to explore ways to control costs associated with health benefits for this growing population.

Source: http://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/sept18/f3.pdf  (p. 7)

At Governance and Compensation, it is reported that continuing plans to narrow salary ranges of UCOP execs will be reported to the Regents in March 2019, in keeping with state auditor recommendations:

http://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/sept18/g9.pdf