What’s the story? Three major banks announced over the last several days that they are leaving the Net-Zero Banking Alliance. Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, and Bank of America indicated they would exit the group. Why does it matter? The announcements follow similar actions from Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo last month. They are part of a…
BlackRock—the world’s largest asset manager—announced Jan. 9 that it is leaving the Net-Zero Asset Managers Initiative (NZAM), a United Nations-affiliated group promoting emission reductions. NZAM announced Jan. 13 that it is suspending operations and removing the commitment statement and list of signatories from its website. The group said in a statement it will reevaluate its…
SEC Chairman Gary Gensler announced Nov. 21 that he will leave his position effective Jan. 20, 2025, at the end of Joe Biden’s (D) presidency. Trump will name his replacement. Gensler promoted policies supportive of ESG investing as chairman, including a set of rules requiring climate-related corporate disclosures. Most commentators believe Trump’s replacement will likely…
Twenty-four Republican attorneys general sent a letter on Sept. 16 to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) asking the agency to block the California Air Resources Board’s (CARB) Advanced Clean Fleets regulation, which would require fleet owners operating in the state to use electric trucks. The attorneys general argue California’s regulation impacts national transportation industries and…
Alabama State Auditor Andrew Sorrell (R) argued in an op-ed published Oct. 13 that ESG threatens farmers—especially those in his state. Sorrell said environmental regulations and corporate policies would increase farming costs and damage large agricultural industries. Ballotpedia tracks support for and opposition to the environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) investing movement. To learn…
The SEC has paused enforcement of its rule requiring corporate climate disclosures, but companies are still preparing to comply with ESG standards, especially from the European Union. Some companies are already starting to report ESG data in response to uncertainty over when regulations will become enforceable, according to a recent Fortune piece. Ballotpedia tracks support…
Supporters of Washington Initiative 2066 submitted 431,063 signatures on July 3, 2024, for a ballot initiative to prohibit restrictions on natural gas access. To qualify for the ballot, 324,516 of the signatures must be valid. If validated, Initiative 2066 would be the first Initiative to the People to qualify for the Washington ballot since 2018.…
Two federal judges in Texas and Kentucky ruled against the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) greenhouse gas emissions rule, which would require states to set goals to reduce vehicle emissions. Judge James Wesley Hendrix of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas ruled on March 27, 2024, that the FHWA did not…