Author: James McAllister
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Indiana lawmakers join ESG pushback
Members of the Indiana General Assembly’s House Financial Institutions Committee on February 2 passed a bill that would require the state to remove all pension funds from management by financial firms that support ESG or consider ESG criteria in investments: “A House committee on Thursday approved a bill requiring the state’s public pension system to…
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U.S. weekly unemployment insurance claims fall to 183,000
New applications for U.S. unemployment insurance benefits fell 3,000 for the week ending January 28 to a seasonally adjusted 183,000. The previous week’s figure was unrevised at 186,000. The four-week moving average as of January 28 fell to 191,750 from an unrevised 197,500 as of the week ending January 21. The number of continuing unemployment…
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States sue Biden administration over ESG in retirement plans
Twenty-five states announced on January 26 that they had filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration alleging that, in their view, the Department of Labor’s new rule allowing for the consideration of ESG factors in Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)-governed retirement investments increased portfolio risk and violated the law: “A group of 25 states…
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U.S. weekly unemployment insurance claims fall to 186,000
New applications for U.S. unemployment insurance benefits fell 6,000 for the week ending January 21 to a seasonally adjusted 186,000. The previous week’s figure was revised up from 190,000 to 192,000. The four-week moving average as of January 21 fell to 197,500 from a revised 206,750 as of the week ending January 14. The number…
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Montana governor announces ban on ESG considerations in state investments
The office of Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte (R) released the following statement on January 18 announcing that Montana has joined several other states in prohibiting non-financial considerations, including considerations related to ESG, in the state’s investments: “Governor Greg Gianforte and the Montana Board of Investments today announced the State of Montana has reaffirmed its commitment…
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West Virginia Senate passes unemployment insurance indexing bill
The West Virginia State Senate on January 23 passed a bill 27-5 that would index the length of unemployment insurance benefits to the state’s unemployment rate. During times when the unemployment rate is below 5.5%, unemployed workers could collect a maximum of 12 weeks of benefits. For each 0.5% increase in the unemployment rate, the…
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Virginia governor expresses concerns about ESG investing
Virginia Gov. Glen Youngkin (R)—who worked for most of his career in financial services (private equity), where he eventually became co-CEO of the Carlyle Group— signaled last week that he, like many of his Republican colleagues, has some concerns about ESG: “Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, who ran one of the nation’s biggest investment firms before…
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Kentucky threatens to divest from 11 banks over ESG policies
Kentucky State Treasurer Allison Ball (R) on January 2 issued a statement notifying 11 banks that their environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) policies amounted to energy boycotts that harmed the state’s economy according to definitions passed into law last spring. The statement says the banks have 90 days to stop what Kentucky argues are…
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Kentucky threatens to divest from 11 banks over ESG policies
Kentucky State Treasurer Allison Ball (R) on January 2 issued a statement notifying 11 banks that their environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) policies amounted to energy boycotts that harmed the state’s economy according to definitions passed into law last spring. The statement says the banks have 90 days to stop what Kentucky argues are…
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U.S. weekly unemployment insurance claims fall to 204,000
New applications for U.S. unemployment insurance benefits fell 19,000 for the week ending December 31 to a seasonally adjusted 204,000. The previous week’s figure was revised down from 225,000 to 223,000. The four-week moving average as of December 31 fell to 213,750 from a revised 220,500 as of the week ending December 24. The number…