JUNE, 2003
EX 99.CODE ETH
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:
- honest and ethical conduct, including the ethical handling of actual or
apparent conflicts of interest between personal and professional
relationships;
- 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;
- compliance with applicable laws and governmental rules and regulations;
- the prompt internal reporting of violations of the Code to an
appropriate person or persons identified in the Code; and
- 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.
* * * *
Each Covered Officer must:
- 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
- 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
- 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.
- There are some potential conflict of interest situations that should
always be discussed with the Compliance Officer, if material. Examples
are as follows:
(1) service as a director on the board of any public or
private company;
(2) any ownership interest in, or any consulting or employment
relationship with, any of the Company's service providers, other than
its investment adviser,
(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
(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:
(a) any non-cash gifts of nominal value (nominal
value is less than $100); and
(b) customary and reasonable meals and entertainment
at which the giver is present, such as the occasional business
meal or sporting event.
IV. DISCLOSURE AND COMPLIANCE
Each Covered Officer:
- should be familiar with his or her responsibilities in connection with
the disclosure requirements generally applicable to the Company;
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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.
- 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;
- 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
- is responsible to promote compliance with the standards and
restrictions imposed by applicable laws, rules and regulations.
V. REPORTING AND ACCOUNTABILITY
Each Covered Officer must:
- 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;
- annually thereafter affirm to the Board that he or she has complied
with the requirements of the Code;
- annually disclose affiliations and other relationships related to
conflicts of interest;
- 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
- 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:
- the compliance Officer will take all appropriate action to investigate
any potential violation of which he becomes aware;
- if, after investigation the Compliance Officer believes that no
violation has occurred, the Compliance Officer is not required to take
any further action;
- 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")
- 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
- 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.
VI. WAIVERS(2)
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.
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(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.
VIII. AMENDMENTS
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.
IX. CONFIDENTIALITY
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.
X. INTERNAL USE
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.