California\u2019s two biggest pension funds have invested more than $2.7 billion with companies contracting with Immigration and Customs Enforcement or the Department of Homeland Security, a new analysis shows.<\/p>\n
CalPERS, the statewide megafund for public employees, has put some $1.6 billion into tech firm Palantir, weapons manufacturers General Dynamics and L3Harris, and telecommunications companies AT&T and CACI, according to an analysis<\/a> conducted by nonprofit advocacy and research group Stand.earth that was released Thursday. <\/p>\n CalSTRS, which funds public school teacher pensions, has invested $1.1 billion into these companies.<\/p>\n The pension funds\u2019 largest contributions were to Palantir, with CalPERS investing $734 million and CalSTRS investing $625 million. <\/p>\n Data involved in the analysis was drawn from quarterly filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as of December 2025.<\/p>\n Richard Brooks, who leads research at Stand.earth focused on the financial sector, pointed to the seeming contradiction of teachers in California, a sanctuary state, witnessing first-hand the government\u2019s aggressive immigration enforcement break up students\u2019 families while their retirement funds grow.<\/p>\n \u201cThere should be an alignment between where money is being invested and the types of values that people of the state embrace,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople\u2019s hard-earned savings are going to enable ICE to rip families apart. It\u2019s very egregious to me that California\u2019s biggest two pensions have chosen to turn a blind eye to this.\u201d<\/p>\n Palantir has for years provided data-analytics software for federal immigration enforcement, and earlier this year signed a new $1 billion purchasing agreement<\/a> with the Department of Homeland Security.<\/p>\n CalPERS spokesperson James Scullary said the pension fund does not comment on individual holdings, but that it considers \u201cenvironmental, social and governance matters.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cWhen issues are identified, we work to analyze the situation, gather relevant facts and seek a resolution,\u201d Scullary said. <\/p>\n CalPERS, with more than $550 billion in assets, is the largest pension fund in the U.S., with investments earning 11.6%<\/a> in returns in the last fiscal year.<\/p>\n Both CalPERS and CalSTRS said that investment portfolios seek to minimize risk and maximize returns. <\/p>\n CalSTRS spokesperson Barbara Zumwalt said the fund takes \u201ca long-term view of investing to manage opportunities and risks across a global portfolio.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cEverything we do at CalSTRS is grounded in our mission to secure the financial future of California\u2019s current and retired public school teachers,\u201d Zumwalt said. <\/p>\n According to the CalSTRS website, approximately 10% <\/a>of a California educator\u2019s gross annual compensation is invested into CalSTRS\u2019 pension fund.<\/p>\n For two years a group of teachers in Los Angeles, San Diego, Berkeley and elsewhere in California called CalSTRS Divest has been pushing the pension fund to relinquish its holdings in Palantir as well as other companies involved<\/a> in Israel\u2019s U.S.-backed war in Gaza, such as aerospace and defense company Lockheed Martin, heavy machinery company Caterpillar Inc. and weapons manufacturer Elbit Systems.<\/p>\n Andrea Pritchett, 62, a middle school teacher in Berkeley involved in the group said Palantir is a focal point \u201cbecause the harms it inflicts on people abroad are also related to the harms [the company has] been inflicting on people within this country.\u201d<\/p>\n Members of CalSTRS Divest say that such investments conflict with the fund\u2019s own stated policies,<\/a> which consider whether a company or industry makes a product that is highly detrimental to human health. But, Pritchett said there has been little movement from CalSTRS thus far. <\/p>\n \u201cTheir response has been that their fiduciary responsibility outweighs any other consideration,\u201d Pritchett said.<\/p>\n The two California pension funds have also declined to divest from fossil fuel companies. Both CalPERS and CalSTRS unveiled sustainable investments strategies <\/a>to increase holdings in low-carbon assets and other climate solutions several years ago, but continue to invest in multinational oil giants such as ExxonMobil and Chevron. <\/p>\n