View Aon resolution

Responding to a shareholder proposal filed by New York City Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr. on behalf of New York City 's five Pension Funds, the Aon Corporation has agreed to establish a committee to review the corporation's operations in Iran .

In a letter to the Comptroller's Office, Aon Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Patrick G. Ryan promised that “a senior management level committee will be designated to review Aon's operations in Iran with a particular reference to potential financial and reputational risks.” That review will generate a report to be sent to the City by Dec. 31.

“Aon's decision is a significant victory for the City's Pension Funds,” Comptroller Thompson said. “This is an issue that is likely to continue to be raised with respect to U.S. corporations operating overseas, and I am pleased that Aon has recognized the need to develop a comprehensive strategy in this area.”

“Shareholders and all New Yorkers demand that U.S. companies with global operations act responsibly,” said New York City Public Advocate and New York City Employees' Retirement System Chair Besty Gotbaum. “NYCERS and the other pension funds in the City are protecting shareholders by making sure companies in which they invest review their operations with potential terrorist nations.  I am pleased that Aon has agreed to join the growing list of companies reviewing their business dealings."

Late last year, the New York City Police Pension Fund, Fire Department Pension Fund, NYCERS, Teachers' Retirement System and Board of Education Retirement System filed shareholder proposals with Aon of Chicago, Illinois, Cooper Cameron of Houston, Texas, and General Electric of Fairfield, Conn. Additionally, the Fire Department Pension Fund, Police Pension Fund and Board of Education Retirement System submitted a proposal to the Halliburton Company.

In letters to each company, Thompson wrote that: “ U.S. law currently restricts trade and investment activity by American companies with countries that are designated by the U.S. State Department as sponsors of terrorism. While the sanction does not apply to the foreign or off-shore subsidiaries of U.S. corporations, so long as the U.S. parent companies are neither directly nor indirectly involved, we believe that American companies should nonetheless adhere to the spirit as well as the letter of the law.”

Since then, General Electric and Cooper Cameron have agreed to sever ties with Iran , while Halliburton most recently notified the Comptroller that it would not seek any new business with Iran . Previously, as a result of the funds' efforts, ConocoPhillips in 2003 agreed to “regularly review operations in sensitive countries” and “comply with the letter and the spirit of all U.S. Government restrictions on business activities” in those regions.

The Comptroller now will withdraw the resolution, which was submitted with Aon last Fall amid heightened concerns about corporate ties to states sponsoring terrorist activity.

In its decision to file the proposal with Aon, the City cited a research made available to the Comptroller by the Conflict Securities Advisory Group of Washington , D.C. That research stated that Aon had ties to Iran 's finance sector via two subsidiaries– Mahamy Co. Plc and United Iranian Insurance Services Plc. Tehran.

The City's Pension Funds have 997,575 shares worth more than $25 million in Aon.

The trustees of the city's five pension boards are:

New York City Fire Department Pension Fund: Comptroller Thompson, Mayor Michael Bloomberg; New York City Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta (Chair); New York City Finance Commissioner Martha E. Stark; Stephen Cassidy, President, James Slevin, Vice President, Robert Straub, Treasurer, and John Kelly, Brooklyn Representative and Chair, Uniformed Firefighters Association of Greater New York; Peter Gorman, President and Captains' Rep., Nicholas J. Visconti, Chiefs' Rep., and Stephen J. Carbone, Lieutenants' Rep., Uniformed Fire Officers Association; and, Joseph Gagliardi, Marine Engineers Association.

New York City Police Pension Fund: Comptroller Thompson; Mayor Bloomberg; Commissioner Stark; New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly (Chair); Patrick Lynch, Patrolmen's Benevolent Association; Michael Palladino, Detectives Endowment Association; Edwin Mullins, Sergeants Benevolent Association; Anthony Garvey, Lieutenants Benevolent Association; and, John Driscoll, Captains Endowment Association.  

NYCERS: Comptroller Thompson; Commissioner Stark (Chair); New York City Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum; Borough Presidents C. Virginia Fields (Manhattan), Helen Marshall (Queens), Marty Markowitz (Brooklyn), Adolfo Carrion (Bronx), and James Molinaro (Staten Island); Lillian Roberts, Executive Director, District Council 37, AFSCME; Roger Toussaint , President Transport Workers Union Local 100; and, Carroll (Carl) Haynes, President, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Local 237.

TRS: Comptroller Thompson; Commissioner Stark (Chair); Deputy Chancellor Kathleen Grimm, New York City Department of Education; and, Sandra March, Melvyn Aaronson and Mona Romain, all of the United Federation of Teachers.

BERS: Schools Chancellor Joel Klein, Alan Aviles, Phillip Berry, David Chang, Tino Hernandez, Souza Kappner, Richard Menschel and Marita Regan; Borough President appointees Jesse Mojica (Bronx), Martine Guerrier (Brooklyn), Jacquelyn Kamin (Manhattan), Michael Flowers (Queens) and Joan Correale (Staten Island); and employee members Thomas J. Malanga, International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 891, and Milagros Rodriguez of District Council 37, Local 372.

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