Author: James McAllister

  • SEC approves climate reporting rules

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    The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on March 6 approved its long-awaited final rules on climate reporting standards. As expected, the new rules eliminated requirements for Scope 3 emissions reporting and reduced Scope 1 and 2 requirements. In response to the SEC’s disclosure rules, ten states announced the same day that they would sue to…

  • West Virginia treasurer sends letter to financial institutions over ESG practices

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    West Virginia Treasurer Riley Moore (R) sent a letter on February 22, 2024, to six banks—including Citibank, TD Bank, and HSBC—warning that they may be ineligible for contracts with the state in 45 days unless they show that they do not illegally boycott fossil fuel companies. Ballotpedia tracks support for and opposition to the environmental,…

  • Financial institutions pull $14 trillion from ESG initiative

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    J.P. Morgan Chase and State Street Global Advisors—two of the largest asset managers in the world—withdrew on February 15 from Climate Action 100+, an asset manager initiative aimed at making companies reduce their carbon emissions through environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) investing. BlackRock, the largest asset manager in the world, announced it would reduce…

  • BlackRock CEO seeks firm’s removal from Texas prohibited asset manager list

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    BlackRock CEO Larry Fink petitioned Texas elected officials to remove the firm from the state’s prohibited asset manager list at an energy investment summit on February 6. BlackRock has not been eligible to manage public assets in Texas since August 24, 2022, when Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar (R) released a list of companies and funds…

  • Missouri Democrats continue pushback against rule opposing ESG

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    Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft (R) published a rule last July restricting the use of ESG in public investment strategies. The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) filed a lawsuit in August claiming that the regulation conflicted with federal law. Judge Stephen R. Bough of the U.S. District Court for the Western District…

  • State agriculture commissioners join ESG pushback

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    Agriculture commissioners from 12 states sent a letter on January 29 to the heads of six banks, arguing that ESG efforts to promote net-zero carbon policies would hurt farmers and inflate consumer food prices. Ballotpedia tracks support for and opposition to the environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) investing movement. To learn more about arguments…

  • State attorneys general continue pushback against federal ESG labor rule

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    Attorneys general from 26 states are opposing the implementation of the U.S. Department of Labor’s rule permitting ESG considerations in Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)-governed pension plans in court. The states filed an appeal late last week seeking to reverse the dismissal of their case. Ballotpedia tracks support for and opposition to the environmental,…

  • Recapping the top five stories of the pro-ESG movement in 2023

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    Ballotpedia’s Economy & Society newsletter on Jan. 16 recapped the following top five noteworthy developments supporting ESG from 2023: To read the full recap, click here. To read our breakdown of the biggest developments opposing ESG in 2023 click here. Ballotpedia tracks support for and opposition to the environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) investing…

  • Recapping the top five stories of the ESG pushback in 2023

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    Ballotpedia’s Economy & Society newsletter on Jan. 9 recapped the following top five noteworthy developments opposing ESG from 2023: To read the full recap, click here. Stay tuned for our breakdown of the biggest developments supporting ESG efforts in the Jan. 16 edition. Click here to subscribe to the newsletter. Ballotpedia tracks support for and…

  • House committee issues more subpoenas related to ESG practices

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    The House Judiciary Committee issued more subpoenas last week in its ongoing investigation into whether some finance companies may have violated antitrust laws through their ESG investing practices. The subpoenas include requests for information from the heads of BlackRock and State Street, specifically. Ballotpedia tracks support for and opposition to the environmental, social, and corporate…