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Regulation

Attorney General Orders Kentucky Governor to Release Pension Analysis

Ruling states Bevin violated public access laws upon November refusal.

By Chris Butera

Gov. Matt Bevin’s administration is in hot water as a ruling from the office of Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear states the governor broke the law when he refused to release an actuarial analysis showing the cost of his proposed pension reform.

According to Kentucky.com, Bevin’s office withheld an analysis of his reform plan’s impact on state and local pension system employees in November, following the release of a financial analysis on teacher’s pensions that he also did not want released. When Bevin blocked his own release, the attorney general said he violated the Kentucky Open Records Act, a series of laws which guarantee public access  to government body public records at all levels in the state.

Because the final report of Bevin’s analysis, performed by Michigan firm GRS, had been given to Kentucky, Beshear’s office is now calling for Bevin’s analysis to be released. Should he refuse, he will have to challenge the attorney general’s  ruling in circuit court.

“We look forward to Governor Bevin’s prompt release of the actuarial analysis and further confirmation that his pension bill would be harmful to this state and taxpayers,” Ellen Sueholtz, coordinator of Kentucky’s Public Pension Coalition, which filed the records request, told Kentucky.com. “Unfortunately, so far this year, we’ve seen a similar lack of transparency from the governor on pension proposals.”

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Home > News > Newsmakers > Norges Bank Open to More Japanese Real Estate Deals
Newsmakers

Norges Bank Open to More Japanese Real Estate Deals

Largest SWF ready for multiple 100 billion-yen agreements each year.

By Chris Butera

After dipping its toe in Japan’s real estate pool last year, the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund’s property investment arm is considering wading deeper into the waters.

According to Bloomberg Markets, the $1 trillion Norges Bank ‘s Real Estate Management is eager to produce several 100 billion yen ($912 million) deals in Japan each year, should the right offers present themselves.

The fund began investing in real estate in 2010, beginning in Europe before navigating into the US and Japan. Bloomberg reports that Deutsche Asset Management has said that Japanese real estate “currently offers higher yield spreads over domestic government bonds than other global cities, such as London and New York.”

In a 92.8 billion yen ($852 million) deal in December as part of a joint venture with Tokyu Land Corp., Norges Bank had acquired a 70% share of a retail and office portfolio. The other 30% went to Tokyu, with which Norges Bank Real Estate Management CEO Karsten Kallevig would consider making more deals, as well as other partners.

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“We’d love to do more with Tokyu Land, but we would also be very happy to do more with others,” Kallevig told Bloomberg. “It’s hard to find one partner who has the same, let’s call it ambition, as we have.”

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