Despite Net Zero Commitments, CalPERS and CalSTRS Oil and Gas Bond Exposure Grows Since 2023

July 15, 2026

Contacts: 

  • Quinn Eide -Fossil Free California – Executive Director – quinn [at] fossilfreeca [dot] org
  • Hannah O Neill – Urgewald – Finance Research Team – Hannah.oneill [at] urgewald [dot] org

Sacramento, CA — July 15, 2026 —New analysis from Urgewald’s Investing in Climate Chaos 2026 project demonstrates that both CalPERS and CalSTRS reported higher bond holdings in fossil fuel companies listed on the Global Coal Exit List (GCEL) and Global Oil and Gas Exit List (GOGEL) compared to two years ago. 

CalPERS is the nation’s largest pension with $585 billion in assets under management in 2025. CalSTRS, by comparison, is the second largest US pension with $367.7 billion in assets under management in 2025. A substantial number of CalPERS and CalSTRS’ fossil fuel bonds mature after 2050—the date both pensions have pledged to reach net zero emissions. This is dangerous as most of the companies with such long-dated outstanding bonds are actively developing new fossil fuel assets.  

While the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) and California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS) tout their sustainable investments, their fossil fuel bond holdings have quietly grown according to recent data from Urgewald; 

Key findings:

  • CalPERS and CalSTRS continue to hold bonds in fossil fuel companies worth $9.5 billion and $1 billion respectively.
  • Compared with Urgewald’s 2024 Investing in Climate Chaos analysis, the reported value of both pension funds’ coal, oil, and gas bond holdings has grown.
  • Most of the fossil fuel companies held through bonds continue to pursue new oil and gas projects.

CalPERS leads the charge with an astonishing 33% or $2.4 billion increase in fossil fuel bonds between its 2023 and 2025 portfolio reporting dates. Of CalPERS’ total fossil fuel bond investments worth $9.5 billion, $1.9 billion are in bonds that mature after 2050, including $5 million which mature after 2075.  

Meanwhile, CalSTRS’s oil, gas, and coal bond holding was $192 million or 23% higher by the end of 2025 compared to their 2023 end of year disclosure. Similarly, CalSTRS has a net zero by 2050 target and is also committed to reducing their emissions by 50% by 2030—goals which will be difficult to meet while its financial exposure to expanding fossil fuel companies through bonds continues to increase. In fact, CalSTRS has $168 million in fossil fuel bonds that mature after 2050 including $19 million after 2075!

While both pensions promote their sustainable investment plans, they are simultaneously holding bonds in coal, oil, and gas companies, effectively placing a bet on the continued growth of a business model that depends on fossil fuel expansion.

It is time for CalPERS and CalSTRS to put a moratorium on new oil and gas bonds as a logical next step in reaching their net zero by 2050 goals and in protecting the health and safety of their beneficiaries—young and old.

QUOTES:

  • “For over a decade, we’ve been pushing CalPERS and CalSTRS to divest from fossil fuels, demanding that the California state pensions invest in the health and financial futures of our teachers and state employees. The California state pensions are greenwashing our destruction by funding the growth of the very oil and gas companies that are destroying our climate while touting their Net Zero Commitments. It’s time for CalPERS and CalSTRS to walk their talk and stop buying oil and gas bonds.” – Quinn Eide, Executive Director – Fossil Free California
  • “CalPERS and CalSTRS pay lip service to net-zero goals while investing billions of dollars in companies like Exxon, Chevron and TotalEnergies, whose oil and gas expansion plans are making it impossible to achieve these goals. Today’s fossil fuel investments lock in tomorrow’s heatwaves, droughts, floods and wildfires. California’s pension funds need to start investing for a safe future instead of supporting the growth of the fossil fuel industry,” – Heffa Schuecking, Director of Urgewald. 
  • “As a teacher, I dedicate my life to the futures of students. Meanwhile, my pension fund continues to invest in the EXPANSION of the very oil and gas industry that is threatening the health and futures of my students.” – Cory Jong, Middle School Teacher; Oakland Education Association Executive Board Member; Youth Vs Apocalypse Board President
  • “My job is to protect the state’s natural resources. I pay into CalPERS to fund my retirement, and I don’t want them to spend my money undoing the work I do every day. When the state buys bonds from fossil fuel companies, it’s literally lending them my money.” – Dan Fuchs, a state employee and soon-to-be CalPERS beneficiary
  • “Representing hundreds of health professionals throughout the SF Bay Area, we strongly urge CalPERS and CalSTRS to end their investments in fossil fuel companies to protect the health of our patients and communities from our rapidly unfolding climate catastrophe, and begin to restore the web of life that sustains us all.” – Robert M. Gould, MD; President, San Francisco Bay Physicians for Social Responsibility
  • “I am an 80 year old senior citizen, widow, grandmother, and great grandmother. I live on a fixed income in San Diego and pay 70% of my income on rent. Even though I am 80 years old, I have no choice but to work so I can keep a roof over my head. As a CalPERS beneficiary, I urge CalPERS to make investments in solutions that reduce emissions and protect our communities from the growing impacts of climate change. I want to make sure my grandchildren and great grandchildren have a healthy planet to grow up on.” – Barbara Pinto, CalPERS Beneficiary and ACCE Leader
  • “I am a CalPERS retiree angry that my pension is partially funded by fossil fuel companies that are driving us towards an unlivable planet for my children, grandchildren and humanity. There is ample evidence that investing in fossil fuels is extremely risky AND unnecessary for good financial returns. Myself and others have repeatedly given the board verified information on this, to no avail.  Wake up CalPERS!” – Sara Theiss, CalPERS beneficiary