SARBANES-OXLEY ACT
CODE OF ETHICS FOR PRINCIPAL EXECUTIVE AND
SENIOR FINANCIAL OFFICERS OF CAM/U.S. REGISTERED INVESTMENT COMPANIES
| I. |
Covered
Officers/Purpose of the Code |
This
code of ethics (the “Code”) for Citigroup Asset Management’s (“CAM’s”) U. S. registered
proprietary investment companies (collectively, “Funds” and each a, “Company”) applies to
each Company’s Chief Executive Officer, Chief Administrative Officer, Chief Financial
Officer and Controller (the “Covered Officers”) for the purpose of promoting:
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honest
and ethical conduct, including the ethical handling of actual or apparent
conflicts of interest between personal and professional relationships; |
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full,
fair, accurate, timely and understandable disclosure in reports and documents
that the Company files with, or submits to, the Securities and Exchange
Commission (“SEC”) and in other public communications made by the Company; |
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compliance
with applicable laws and governmental rules and regulations; |
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the
prompt internal reporting of violations of the Code to an appropriate person
or persons identified in the Code; and |
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accountability
for adherence to the Code. |
Each
Covered Officer should adhere to a high standard of business ethics and should be
sensitive to situations that may give rise to actual as well as apparent conflicts of
interest.
| II. |
Administration
of Code |
The
Regional Director of CAM Compliance, North America (“Compliance Officer”) is responsible
for administration of this Code, including granting pre-approvals (see Section III below)
and waivers (as described in Section VI below), applying this Code in specific situations
in which questions are presented under it and interpreting this Code in any particular
situation.
| III. |
Covered
Officers Should Ethically Handle Actual and Apparent Conflicts of Interest |
Overview.
A “conflict of interest” occurs when a Covered Officer’s private interest interferes with
the interests of, or his service to, the Company. For example, a conflict of interest
would arise if a Covered Officer, or a member of his family, receives improper personal
benefits as a result of his position with the Company.
Certain
conflicts of interest arise out of the relationships between Covered Officers and the
Company and already are subject to conflict of interest provisions in the Investment
Company Act of 1940 (“Investment Company Act”) and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940
(“Investment Advisers Act”). For example, Covered Officers may not individually engage in
certain transactions (such as the purchase or sale of securities or other property) with
the Company because of their status as “affiliated persons” of the Company. The
compliance programs and procedures of the Company and its investment adviser are designed
to prevent, or identify and correct, violations of these provisions. This Code does not,
and is not intended to, repeat or replace these programs and procedures, and such
conflicts fall outside of the parameters of this Code (see Section VII below).
Although
typically not presenting an opportunity for improper personal benefit, conflicts arise
from, or as a result of, the contractual relationship between a Company and the
investment adviser of which the Covered Officers are also officers or employees. As a
result, this Code recognizes that the Covered Officers will, in the normal course of
their duties (whether formally for a Company or for the adviser, or for both), be
involved in establishing policies and implementing decisions that will have different
effects on the adviser and a Company. The participation of the Covered Officers in such
activities is inherent in the contractual relationship between the Company and the
adviser and is consistent with the performance by the Covered Officers of their duties as
officers of a Company. Thus, if performed in conformity with the provisions of the
Investment Company Act and the Investment Advisers Act, such activities will be deemed to
have been handled ethically. In addition, it is recognized by the Funds’ Boards of
Directors\Trustees (“Boards”) that the Covered Officers may also be officers or employees
of one or more other investment companies covered by this or other codes.
Other
conflicts of interest are covered by the Code, even if such conflicts of interest are not
subject to provisions in the Investment Company Act and the Investment Advisers Act. The
following list provides examples of conflicts of interest under the Code, but Covered
Officers should keep in mind that these examples are not exhaustive. The overarching
principle is that the personal interest of a Covered Officer should not be placed
improperly before the interest of the Company.
* * * *
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Each
Covered Officer must: |
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not
use his personal influence or personal relationships improperly to influence
investment decisions or financial reporting (e.g. through fraudulent
accounting practices) by the Company whereby the Covered Officer(1) would
benefit personally to the detriment of the Company; or |
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not
cause the Company to take action, or fail to take action, for the individual
personal benefit of the Covered Officer rather than for the benefit of the
Company; and |
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not
use material non-public knowledge of portfolio transactions made or
contemplated for the Company to trade personally or cause others to trade
personally in contemplation of the market affect of such transactions. |
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There
are some potential conflict of interest situations that should always be
discussed with the Compliance Officer, if material. Examples are as follows: |
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(1)
service as a director on the board of any public or private company;
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(2)
any ownership interest in, or any consulting or employment relationship with,
any of the Company’s service providers, other than its investment
adviser,
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(3)
a direct or indirect financial interest in commissions, transaction charges
or spreads paid by the Company for effecting portfolio transactions or for
selling or redeeming shares other than an interest arising from the Covered
Officer’s employment, such as compensation or equity ownership; and
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(4)
the receipt of any gifts or the conveyance of any value (including
entertainment ) from any company with which the Company has current or
prospective business dealings, except:
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(a)
any non-cash gifts of nominal value (nominal value is less than $100);
and
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(b)
customary and reasonable meals and entertainment at which the giver is
present, such as the occasional business meal or sporting event.
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| (1) |
Any
activity or relationship that would present a conflict for a Covered Officer would
also present a conflict for the Covered Officer if a member of a Covered Officer’s
family (spouse, minor children and any account over which a Covered Officer is deemed
to have beneficial interest) engages in such an activity or has such a relationship. |
| IV. |
Disclosure
and Compliance |
Each Covered Officer:
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should
be familiar with his or her responsibilities in connection with the
disclosure requirements generally applicable to the Company; |
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should
not knowingly misrepresent, or knowingly cause others to misrepresent, facts
about the Company to others, whether within or outside the Company, including
to the Company’s directors and auditors, and to governmental regulators
and self-regulatory organizations; |
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should,
to the extent appropriate within his or her area of responsibility, consult
with other officers and employees of the Funds and the investment adviser
with the goal of promoting full, fair, accurate, timely and understandable
disclosure in the reports and documents the Funds file with, or submit to,
the SEC and in other public communications made by the Funds; and |
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is
responsible to promote compliance with the standards and restrictions imposed
by applicable laws, rules and regulations. |
| V. |
Reporting
and Accountability |
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Each
Covered Officer must: |
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upon
adoption of the Code (or thereafter as applicable, upon becoming a Covered
Officer), affirm in writing to the Board that the Covered Officer has
received, read, and understands the Code; |
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annually
thereafter affirm to the Board that he or she has complied with the
requirements of the Code; |
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annually
disclose affiliations and other relationships related to conflicts of
interest; |
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not
retaliate against any other Covered Officer or any employee of the Funds or
their affiliated persons for reports of potential violations that are made in
good faith; and |
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notify
the Compliance Officer promptly if he knows of any violation of this Code
(failure to do so is itself a violation of this Code). |
In
rendering decisions and interpretations and in conducting investigations of potential
violations under the Code, the Compliance Officer may, at his discretion, consult with
such persons as he determines to be appropriate, including, but not limited to, a senior
legal officer of the Company or its investment adviser or its affiliates, independent
auditors or other consultants, subject to any requirement to seek pre-approval from the
Company’s audit committee for the retention of independent auditors to perform
permissible non-audit services. The Funds will follow these procedures in investigating
and enforcing the Code:
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the
Compliance Officer will take all appropriate action to investigate any
potential violation of which he becomes aware; |
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if,
after investigation the Compliance Officer believes that no violation has
occurred, the Compliance Officer is not required to take any further action; |
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any
matter that the Compliance Officer believes is a violation will be reported
to the Directors of the Fund who are not “interested persons” as
defined in the Investment Company Act the (“Non-interested Directors”) |
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if
the Non-interested Directors of the Board concur that a violation has
occurred, it will consider appropriate action, which may include review of,
and appropriate modifications to, applicable policies and procedures;
notification to appropriate personnel of the investment adviser or its board;
or a recommendation to dismiss the Covered Officer; and |
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any
changes to or waivers of this Code will, to the extent required, be disclosed
as provided by SEC rules |
The
Compliance Officer shall submit an annual report to the Board describing any waivers
granted.
A
Covered Officer may request a waiver of any of the provisions of the Code by submitting a
written request for such waiver to the Compliance Officer, setting forth the basis of
such request and explaining how the waiver would be consistent with the standards of
conduct described herein. The Compliance Officer shall review such request and make a
determination thereon in writing, which shall be binding.
In
determining whether to waive any provisions of this Code, the Compliance Officer shall
consider whether the proposed waiver is consistent with honest and ethical conduct and
other purposes of this Code.
| VII. |
Other
Policies and Procedures |
This
Code shall be the sole code of ethics adopted by the Funds for purposes of Section 406 of
the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the rules and forms applicable to registered investment
companies thereunder. Insofar as other policies or procedures of the Funds, the Funds’ investment
advisers, principal underwriters, or other service providers govern or purport to govern
the behavior or activities of the Covered Officers who are subject to this Code, they are
superseded by this Code to the extent that they overlap or conflict with the provisions
of this Code. The codes of ethics of the funds and the investment advisers and principal
underwriters under Rule 17j-1 of the Investment Company Act and the Citigroup Code of
Conduct and Citigroup Statement of Business Practices as well as other policies of the
Fund’s investment advisers or their affiliates are separate requirements applying to
the Covered Officers and others, and are not part of this Code.
| (2) |
For
purposes of this Code, Item 2 of Form N-CSR defines “waiver” as “the
approval by a Company of a material departure from a provision of the Code” and
includes an “implicit waiver,” which means a Company’s failure to take
action within a reasonable period of time regarding a material departure from a
provision of the Code that has been made known to an executive officer of the Company. |
Any
amendments to this Code, other than amendments to Exhibits A, B and C must be approved or
ratified by a majority vote of the Board, including a majority of Non-interested
Directors.
All
reports and records prepared or maintained pursuant to this Code will be considered
confidential and shall be maintained and protected accordingly. Except as otherwise
required by law or this Code, such matters shall not be disclosed to anyone other than
the appropriate Board and Company and their respective counsel, counsel to the
non-Interested Directors or independent auditors or other consultants referred to in
Section V above.
The
Code is intended solely for the internal use by the Funds and does not constitute an
admission, by or on behalf of any Company, as to any fact, circumstance, or legal
conclusion.