Notwithstanding Section 45308.1, in addition to any other investments as are authorized by this article, city retirement systems may in their discretion under the advice of proper counsel invest the assets of the retirement fund in an amount, determined on the basis of cost, not to exceed 10 percent of the assets in the first two years after the effective date of this section, not to exceed 15 percent during the third year after the effective date of this section, and not to exceed 25 percent thereafter, in common stock or shares, and not to exceed 2 percent of the assets in the first year after the effective date of this section, not to exceed 3 percent during the second year after the effective date of this section, and not to exceed 5 percent thereafter, in preferred stock or shares, of corporations created or existing under the laws of the United States, or any state, district, or territory thereof; provided that

(a) The stock is registered on a national securities exchange, as provided in the “Securities Exchange Act of 1934” as amended, or is listed on the National Market System of the NASDAQ Stock Market. The registration shall not be required with respect to the following stocks:

(1) The common stock of a bank which is a member of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and has capital funds, represented by capital, surplus, and undivided profits, of at least fifty million dollars ($50,000,000);

(2) The common stock of an insurance company which has capital funds, represented by capital, special surplus funds, and unassigned surplus, of at least fifty million dollars ($50,000,000);

(3) Any preferred stock.

(b) The corporation has total assets of at least one hundred million dollars ($100,000,000);

(c) Bonds of that corporation, if any are outstanding, qualify for investment of the retirement fund, and that there are no arrears of dividend payments on its preferred stock;

(d) The corporation has paid a cash dividend on its common stock in at least 8 of the 10 years next preceding the date of investment, and the aggregate net earnings available for dividends on the common stock of the corporation for the whole of that period have been equal to the amount of the dividends paid, and the corporation has paid an earned cash dividend in each of the last three years;

(e) The investment in any one company may not exceed 5 percent of the common shares outstanding; and

(f) No single common stock investment, based on cost, may exceed 2 percent of the assets of the fund.

(Amended by Stats. 1999, Ch. 470, Sec. 3. Effective January 1, 2000.)