The Armenian National Committee of America - Western Region reports that AB 1597, known as the Divestment from Turkish Bonds Act, passed the California State Senate with a vote of 36-0, as reads the announcement on ANCA official Facebook page.

“Thank you Assemblymember Adrin Nazaran for introducing it and seeing it through and Senators Anthony Portantino and Scott Thomas Wilk for helping ensure its passage through the Senate this evening.

The measure, which calls for California divestment from Turkey due to their ongoing denial of the Armenian Genocide, was first developed by the Armenian Youth federation and the Armenian Students' Associations, which secured unanimous support of all nine UC campuses. The ANCA-WR has worked closely with the AYF, the ASAs, and supporters in the CA State Legislature to advance the legislation”, ANCA said in a post.

Currently, CalPERS and CalSTRS have invested more than $500M in Turkish government-owned or controlled investment vehicles, predominantly in Turkish government bonds.