Florida outlaws investments in Iran or Sudan-linked companies

Florida became the first state in the United States on Friday to outlaw pension fund investments in any companies doing business with Iran's energy sector and with Sudan.

Several other states have divested pension funds with companies doing business in Sudan and some states have general policies against such investments. But none had put the action into law.

"It's not just what's right for Florida. This is what's right for America, it's right for the world," Governor Charlie Crist said after signing the bill. "It says that Iran, the world's leading sponsor of terror, we will not stand idly by anymore. And to Sudan and the genocide that is occurring there, we will not stand idly by and let that happen anymore, not Florida."

About $1 billion of Florida state money is currently invested with companies that do business with Sudan and Iran's energy sector, said state Senator Ted Deutch, the bill's sponsor.

While the state has about $134 billion in its pension account, the fourth largest in the United States, the measure also covers an additional $16 billion in state money that Florida invests in various markets.

Under the new law, companies will first be given an opportunity to stop doing business with the two countries before state funds are pulled. Deutch said the state should be fully divested within a year.

"Tens of billions of dollars nationwide are invested in companies that are making it easier for the Iranian government to develop nuclear weapons and to make it easier for Iran to produce weapons that are being used against our troops," Deutch said, referring to claims that roadside bombs used in Iraq are being made with Iranian know-how.

Florida's move has also spurred other states to explore similar legislative action, said Christopher Holton, vice president of the Center for Security Policy in Washington.

"The Florida legislation is absolutely precedent-setting," Holton said. "It's a basic moral issue. Do we really want any of our investment dollars going to our enemies? ... Doing business with Iran is like doing business with Nazi Germany or Imperial Japan in 1942."

Sudan, where the government and its militia allies are accused of pursuing a genocide campaign in the Darfur region, has attracted worldwide attention recently with movie stars and politicians pushing for aid and assistance.

Last year, Missouri adopted a policy to blacklist the four nations from receiving any investments from its pension funds. California, the state with the largest U.S. pension fund, has already banned its pension dollars from being invested in companies doing business with Sudan. A bill in the Legislature there now would also ban state funds from being invested in Iran's energy- or defense-related sectors.

Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, New Jersey and Oregon have also begun to divest public pension funds from Sudan.