Burlington’s Employee Retirement System will soon begin drawing up a plan to divest its portfolio from fossil fuel companies, as directed by the Burlington City Council in a resolution passed unanimously Monday night.
The council also chose to table a resolution that would ask voters on Town Meeting Day whether they supported a charter change to implement “just cause” eviction protections, which would protect tenants from evictions without reason.
The BERS divestment plan passed without debate. Councilor Jane Stromberg, P-Ward 8, was a primary sponsor of the resolution and said that addressing the impact of climate change was a central reason she ran for City Council.
Stromberg said the resolution gives Burlington an opportunity to reject fossil fuel investments that are perpetuating global warming impacts.
“The climate does not know politics, it does not know borders, and it certainly does not know how to mitigate the damage it itself is doing. But we do,” Stromberg said.
“Divestment from fossil fuels is not only one of the most impactful ways to combat the climate crisis,” she added. “It also serves as a concrete example for other institutions, companies and municipalities to follow suit.”
The city formed a divestment task force in 2014 to assess how the city could divest its assets from fossil fuels. In 2016, that task force found that BERS had about $3 million invested in fossil fuel companies, which accounted for about 2% of the city’s equity portfolio, according to the resolution’s language.
Under the resolution, BERS is required to report to the council no later than April 2021 with an updated summary of the city’s investments in fossil fuel companies and a plan to divest those assets.
Councilor Karen Paul, D-Ward 6, also spoke in support of the resolution. She pointed to the fragility of fossil fuel investments as green energy technologies take hold.
“One of the speakers in a public forum said that a lot of these are outdated industries. And, you know, they’re right. There are a lot of utilities that are now looking for alternative energy investments,” she said. “These industries are leading the way financially to allow more longer term stability in our pension plan.”
Eviction change tabled
The just cause eviction charter change ballot question stalled over dueling amendments introduced by Councilors Sarah Carpenter, D-Ward 4, and Zoraya Hightower, P-Ward 1.
Under the proposed charter change, landlords could only evict tenants if they weren’t paying rent, if rules of the lease were broken or if tenants were violating state laws. Currently in Vermont, tenants can be evicted without cause.
The councilors’ amendments proposed exemptions to the changes for owner-occupied units. Exemptions would also be allowed if the landlord wanted to sell, renovate or move into the unit. Carpenter’s proposal would also allow for a one-year probationary period, making just cause protections not applicable for the first year a tenant occupied a unit.
Carpenter and Hightower disagreed over the process for implementing the changes. Carpenter proposed that the exemptions be memorialized in the charter change. Hightower proposed that the exemptions be finalized in the ordinance writing process, which comes after the charter change is approved by the Legislature and signed by the governor.
Both councilors agreed that another meeting would be needed to reach consensus on the charter change language. The council approved a motion to finalize language at the next Community Development and Neighborhood Revitalization meeting, which will be held Nov. 30.
The council will pick back up on the just cause charter change proposal at its Dec. 7 meeting.
The body also approved a request from the Burlington Police Department to allocate $13,880 for a personnel analytics system that would transfer personnel files — use of force complaints, officer performance reviews — from hard copy collection to digital collection.
It was approved 10-2. Councilors Perri Freeman, P-Central, and Jack Hanson, P-East, voted against.
The system would help the department organize data, document trends and synthesize information, Murad said. The tool would bring more transparency and accountability to police personnel data.
Hanson is concerned that funding for the new data system would come from police salary savings, resulting from the council’s recent decision to reduce the force’s staffing levels by 30%. The savings are to be directed to other programs outside of law enforcement.
Freeman and Hightower said more data collection won’t result in the kind of transformative action needed to reform the police department. Freeman questioned why the city hasn’t done more to address police conduct problems.
“There are these public incidents that have caused incredible outcry and concern,” she said. “And yet leadership at the department has basically stood behind it and not really flagged it.”
Murad said the system would promote professionalism in the department and allow the Burlington Police Department to track how officers are performing and serving the community. The data will help supervisors push officers in the right direction, he said.
“It is not a platform that necessitates outcomes,” Murad said. “It’s a platform that allows tools for directing people and improving behavior through regular accountability.”