Notwithstanding any other provision of the law, every local agency in this state owning common stock shall, when returning proxies to a corporation, vote each proxy that is returned to the corporation. Nothing in this section shall prohibit a local agency in this state owning common stock from abstaining on a corporate or shareholder proposal and notifying the corporation in writing of the local agency’s desire to abstain on a corporate or shareholder proposal.
As used in section “local agency” includes every county, city, city and county, district, and authority, and each department, division, bureau, board, commission, agency, instrumentality or pension or retirement system of any of the foregoing.