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Wednesday, September 14, 2011

CalPERS board censures member after sexual harassment reprimand

The board of the California Public Employees' Retirement System has censured board member J.J. Jelincic after he was officially reprimanded for sexually harassing co-workers when he was an investment officer at the pension fund.

Last year CalPERS officials punished Jelincic. The reprimand was upheld last week by the state Personnel Board.

Jelinic on Wednesday declined to comment on the board's action. Earlier he called the charges and subsequent discipline "politically motivated."

As part of the board's reprimand, Jelincic was stripped until March 1 of his position as chairman of the pension fund's investment policy subcommittee and vice chairman of the health benefits committee. He also lost most of his board travel privileges for the same period.

"The CalPERS board does not condone harassment or similar conduct of any kind, and all our board members are expected to meet this standard," said Rob Feckner, president of the board.

Feckner was fined $400 by the state Fair Political Practices Commission on Tuesday for failing to report certain meals and other gifts he received from investment managers as required by state law.

In May 2010, the CalPERS board censured member Priya Mathur after the FPPC ruled that she did not submit legally required statements of economic interest in 2007 and 2008. Mathur was fined $7,000 by the state.

CalPERS board member Priya Mathur is fined $4,000

Scathing report alleges corruption at CalPERS

-- Marc Lifsher

Photo: The atrium in CalPERS' headquarters in Sacramento. Credit: Rich Pedroncelli / For The Times

Bank of America ramps up foreclosure proceedings

Bank of America Corp. is stepping up its foreclosure activity in states where a court order is not needed to take back a home. Bank of America is the nation’s largest mortgage servicer, and other big banks could follow suit, according to analysts.

“Nobody really wants to be a leader in foreclosed properties but, for better or worse, that is what Bank of America is,” said Guy Cecala, publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance Publications.

Bank of America has improved its repossession practices and has increased foreclosures in the so-called non-judicial states, such as California and Nevada, where a court order isn’t required to take back a home, spokeswoman Jumana Bauwens said. Such a pickup is necessary if the real estate market is to get over its long slump, she added.

“Strong gains like that from July to August demonstrate our progress,” Bauwens said. “We are seeing continued improvements in foreclosure volumes in many areas of the country, and that is a potential harbinger for housing market recovery.”

In California, Bank of America ratcheted up the number of notices of default on homeowners by 182.4% from July to August, according to a preliminary analysis by San Diego-based research firm DataQuick. The bank filed new foreclosure proceedings on 6,478 homes in the Golden State.

White House forecasts high unemployment through 2012

BofA, Chase must do more to help troubled homeowners, Obama administration says

-- Alejandro Lazo

Twitter.com/AlejandroLazo

Photo: Members of the Home Defenders League rally in front of a Bank of America branch in San Jose. Source: Associated Press

CalPERS board censures member

Last year CalPERS officials punished Jelincic. The reprimand was upheld last week by the state Personnel Board.

Jelinic on Wednesday declined to comment on the board's action. Earlier he called the charges and subsequent discipline "politically motivated."

"The CalPERS board does not condone harassment or similar conduct of any kind, and all our board members are expected to meet this standard," said Rob Feckner, president of the board.

Feckner was fined $400 by the state Fair Political Practices Commission on Tuesday for failing to report certain meals and other gifts he received from investment managers as required by state law.

CalPERS board member Priya Mathur is fined $4,000

Scathing report alleges corruption at CalPERS

-- Marc Lifsher

Photo: The atrium in CalPERS' headquarters in Sacramento. Credit: Rich Pedroncelli / For The Times

Defense contractors launch campaign to end military spending cuts

Seeking to whip up public support for what’s expected to be a hard-fought budget battle in Congress, a group of defense contractors launched a lobbying campaign urging an end to cuts in military spending.

The campaign, named Second to None, was introduced by the Aerospace Industries Assn. trade group Wednesday at the National Press Club in Washington. The group, which represents manufacturers and suppliers of aircraft, space systems and engines, warned of potential job losses and national security risks.

“While we do have a fancy logo, this campaign will not be your typical, glitzy, short term inside the Beltway blitz of advertising followed by deafening silence after one piece of legislation or another is finalized,” said Marion Blakey, chief executive of the association. “This will be a sustained effort, in states, cities and towns, as well as in Washington, to caution the American people and our leaders of risks associated with cutting defense further.”

According to the association, aerospace and defense supports 1 million direct jobs in the U.S. and affects another 2.9 million indirect jobs.

In the face of staggering federal deficits, Congress is in the process of examining deep cuts in the Pentagon budget on top of more than $350 billion in cuts slated over the next decade.

“Our position is: no more,” Blakey said. “Defense has been cut to the bone.”

The Aerospace Industries Assn. website says that the aerospace industry in 2011 is expected to hit record sales of $219.2 billion that reflect federal military spending, NASA outlays, foreign military sales and commercial sales.

But after a decade of heady growth amid one of the biggest military buildups in decades following Sept. 11, 2001, contractors expect a long stretch of cuts in weapons purchases and have been laying off employees in waves.

“This involves all AIA members big and small –- from the largest prime contractors to the smallest suppliers, all AIA members will have a voice in the campaign,” Blakey said.

The campaign's website is at SecondToNone.org.

Mini-drone maker AeroVironment swings to quarterly profit

Century City aircraft leasing firm files for public offering

-- W.J. Hennigan

twitter.com/wjhenn

Photo: Marion Blakey, chief executive of the Aerospace Industries Assn., takes part in the Reuters Aerospace and Defense Summit in Washington last week. Credit: Molly Riley / Reuters

UPS customized service gives alerts, delivery window

With Cyber Monday and the holiday shopping season fast approaching, UPS wants customers to receive their packages on the first try.

The parcel delivery company unveiled its new online alert system, UPS My Choice, to keep residential customers in the know.

The day before the item is arrives, regular users can receive phone, email or text messages offering a four-hour window for delivery. There’s an electronic signature release so packages can be left at the door and for $5, users can reroute the parcel to another location.

Premium members can shell out $40 a year to get a two-hour delivery window.

Making shipping more reliable could persuade even more consumers to spend. Last year’s holiday retail season, according to research company ComScore, broke records with $32.6 billion in online spending. Cyber Monday alone pulled in $1 billion.

More than 100 post offices in state slated for possible closure

-- Tiffany Hsu

Credit: Stephen Chernin / Getty Images

Feds: BofA improperly fired employee who exposed Countrywide fraud

Bank of America Corp. wrongly fired an internal investigator who exposed "widespread and pervasive wire, mail and bank fraud" at Countrywide Financial Corp., according to the U.S. Labor Department.

Finding that the employee was protected by whistle-blower law, the department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration ordered BofA to reinstate and pay the employee $930,000, including back wages, interest, compensatory damages and attorney fees.

Bank of America acquired Calabasas-based Countrywide in July 2008 and fired the whistle-blower shortly thereafter, OSHA said in a news release Wednesday.

In a statement, Bank of America said it would challenge the order. "The bank’s actions to dismiss were solely based on issues with the employee’s management style and in no way related to the employee’s complaints and the allegations made in the complaint," it said.

The federal agency didn't name the employee. It identified the worker only as an L.A.-area person who led internal investigations into Countrywide employees.

"It's clear from our investigation that Bank of America used illegal retaliatory tactics against this employee," OSHA Assistant Secretary David Michaels said in the news release.

"This employee showed great courage reporting potential fraud and standing up for the rights of other employees to do the same."

U.S. drops criminal probe of former Countrywide chief Angelo Mozilo

Investors wonder whether BofA cost-cutting plan is enough

--E. Scott Reckard

Photo: Countrywide Financial co-founder Angelo Mozilo, center. Credit: Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times

California sells out $5.4-billion debt deal at low end of yield estimates

Investors’ scramble to earn a reasonable return on their cash helped California sell out an offering of $5.4 billion in short-term notes earlier than expected -- and at the low end of expected yields.

The state said it completed the debt sale on Wednesday, one day ahead of schedule.

The notes were sold in two maturities: The $4.9 billion of securities maturing June 26, 2012 will pay an annualized yield of 0.40%; the $500 million in notes maturing May 24, 2012 will pay 0.38%.

The interest is exempt from state and federal income tax for California residents, so it’s equivalent to a higher taxable return, depending on an investor’s tax bracket.

When Treasurer Bill Lockyer launched the note sale on Tuesday he estimated that the final yield on the June notes would be between 0.40% and 0.55%. Investor demand was strong enough to allow Lockyer to pay the lower rate.

With short-term interest rates in general scraping rock-bottom, a 0.40% tax-free yield beats many of the alternatives for investors looking for a haven for their cash. One-year U.S. Treasury bills pay less than 0.10%.

Individual investors bought $3.55 billion of the notes, or almost two-thirds of the deal. Lockyer said. Institutional investors such as mutual funds bought the rest.

California and many other state and local governments issue so-called revenue anticipation notes, or RANs, at this time of year to bridge the gap between their cash needs and the arrival of tax revenue later in the fiscal year.

Lockyer had planned to sell RANs in August. But fearing that the debate in Washington over the federal debt ceiling might rile financial markets, he chose to borrow first from major banks to have the money in hand, and sell notes later to retire the bank loan.

Legislators vote to audit controversial bond agencies

California's long-term-debt rating outlook raised to "stable" by S&P

-- Tom Petruno

Photo: The Capitol in Sacramento. Credit: Los Angeles Times