Under the California Constitution, the Board of Administration has a fiduciary duty to act in the best interests of its members and employers. In addition, the Board is governed by policies, delegations, guidelines, and beliefs as outlined below. An overview of annual edits made to the board governance documents and policies can be found in the 2023 CalPERS Board of Administration Policy Updates (PDF).

• Board Education Policy, 2015 (PDF)
• Board Governance Policy, 2023 (PDF)
• Board Legal Sources of Authority (PDF)
• Communications with Prospective Vendors & Partners, 2008 (PDF)
• Delegation to Board President, 2005 (PDF)
• Gift Policy, 2012 (PDF)
• Insider Trading Policy, 2023 (PDF)
• Reviewing Allegations of Board Member Harassment Policy, 2018 (PDF)
• Representation on Corporate Boards of Directors Policy, 2019 (PDF)
• Statement of Incompatible Activities (PDF)
• Travel Policy, 2020 (PDF)
• Rules and Guidelines for the Conduct of Meetings, 2019 (PDF)

Actuarial

The CalPERS Actuarial Office is guided by the Board's actuarial policies to ensure the proper funding of CalPERS member benefits. The CalPERS Board of Administration adopts these policies at public hearings.

• Actuarial Amortization Policy, 2018 (PDF)
• Actuarial Assumptions Policy, 2019 (PDF)
• Actuarial Cost Method Policy, 2019 (PDF)
• Contribution Allocation Policy, 2019 (PDF)

Ethics

We're strongly committed to integrity and accountability in everything we do. The following policies have been established by the Board to guide staff in the safe and ethical performance of their responsibilities.

• Contract Activity Reporting Policy, 2019 (PDF)
• Fraud Prevention Policy (PDF)
• Insider Trading Policy, 2023 (PDF)

Financial

The CalPERS Financial Office is guided by policies adopted by the Finance and Administration Committee to ensure effective budget management and accounting activities for all funds and programs administered by CalPERS.

• Asset Liability Management Policy, 2020 (PDF)
• Budget Policy, 2022 (PDF)
• Discharge from Accountability Policy, 2017 (PDF)
• Funding Risk Mitigation Policy, 2024 (PDF)
• Treasury Management Policy, 2020 (PDF)
• Treasury Management Reserve Policy, 2020 (PDF)

Human Resources

The CalPERS Human Resources Office is guided by policies adopted by the Performance, Compensation, and Talent Management Committee to ensure proper hiring, termination, compensation, and long-term succession planning for key personnel.

• Compensation Policy for Executive and Investment Management Positions, 2023 (PDF)
• Harassment Prevention Policy, 2019 (PDF)

Investment

The CalPERS Investment Office is guided by policies adopted by the Investment Committee. The policies are adopted by the Committee in open public sessions.