Tag: environmental social and corporate governance investing
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Investor group urges SEC to oppose forced arbitration
On Nov. 6, 2025, the Council of Institutional Investors (CII) sent a letter to Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Paul S. Atkins opposing recent SEC actions related to mandatory arbitration clauses in public company registration statements. Mandatory arbitration provisions can limit investors’ ability to bring claims in court, pursue class actions, or rely on…
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Senator proposes limits on proxy voting in federal retirement plan
On Nov. 25, Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) proposed legislation affecting the federal Thrift Savings Plan (TSP), the retirement program for civilian federal employees and active-duty service members. The proposal would bar the firms that manage TSP assets—primarily BlackRock and State Street—from casting shareholder votes tied to those holdings. Cruz said he wants to stop the…
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Ninth Circuit halts California climate-disclosure rule
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued an order on Nov. 18 temporarily blocking enforcement of California’s climate-risk disclosure law, SB 261. The statute requires companies with more than $500 million in annual revenue to report climate-related financial risks starting Jan. 1, 2026. The court granted the request after the U.S. Chamber…
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Judge restricts ESG use in American Airlines 401(k) plan
U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor, appointed by President George W. Bush (R), issued a final ruling in Spence v. American Airlines Inc., siding partly with a pilot who sued the airline over ESG-linked retirement investments. O’Connor ruled that American Airlines breached its duty of loyalty under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) because it…
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Oklahoma judge pauses enforcement of anti-ESG law, state officials and groups respond
An Oklahoma judge on May 7 paused enforcement of a 2022 state law prohibiting the state from contracting with businesses the treasurer identifies as boycotting oil and gas companies. Following the enforcement pause, Attorney General Gentner Drummond (R) fired the legal team responsible for defending the law and blamed the team’s ineffectiveness on Treasurer Todd…
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Proposed labor rule defining requirements for investment advisers receives more than 8,900 comments
The Biden administration on November 3 released a proposed rule aiming to expand the definition of a fiduciary—someone who must act in the best interests of their clients—to include more types of financial professionals in certain situations. The proposal had received more than 8,900 public comments as of December 15. The rule is related to…
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Oklahoma pension system pushes back against treasurer’s ESG opposition
The Oklahoma Public Employees’ Retirement System (OPERS) recently voted to continue contracting with BlackRock and State Street—the managers of most of the state’s pension assets. Oklahoma Treasurer Todd Russ (R) published a letter arguing against the decision and saying it could violate state laws opposing ESG. OPERS last week responded to Russ’ letter with a…
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Senators ask Treasury for additional climate finance regulation
The Treasury Department released guidelines on Sept. 19 aiming to promote net-zero finance. The next day, six left-leaning senators, including Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen encouraging her to enact additional financial regulations related to climate and carbon emissions. Ballotpedia tracks support for and opposition to…
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Federal court rules in favor of Biden ESG retirement rule
Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas issued a ruling on Sept. 21 refusing to block the Biden Labor Department’s investment rule allowing ESG considerations in retirement plans governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). Texas and Utah are leading 24 other…
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Vanguard joins BlackRock in reducing support for ESG shareholder proposals
Fox Business reported on August 29 that Vanguard—the second largest asset manager in the world and the largest manager of passive funds—reduced its support for pro-ESG proxy proposals during the past shareholder season. The report followed news that BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager (measured by assets under management) also supported fewer ESG proposals. Ballotpedia…