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1 week ago | 
news.ballotpedia.org | James McAllister
Trump issues executive order opposing state ESG policiesApril 18, 2025 at 1:12 AMPresident Donald Trump (R) issued an executive order last week directing U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate and block enforcement of state laws promoting ESG policies. Trump argued such laws conflict with national security and economic interests. The order lays the groundwork for federal legal challenges against state ESG laws.
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2 weeks ago | 
news.ballotpedia.org | James McAllister
Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti (R) last week closed his investigation into whether Wells Fargo coordinated with other financial institutions to promote net-zero climate policies in violation of antitrust laws. The investigation was part of a broader effort by Republican attorneys general to challenge coordination among financial institutions on climate policy. Skrmetti closed the case after the bank announced plans to move away from net-zero commitments.
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2 weeks ago | 
news.ballotpedia.org | James McAllister
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced last week that it voted to end its defense of the Biden-era corporate emissions reporting rules. The decision indicates the majority of current SEC commissioners do not support the implementation of the rules.
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4 weeks ago | 
news.ballotpedia.org | James McAllister
Florida attorney general investigates proxy advisorsMarch 27, 2025 at 8:32 PMFlorida Attorney General James Uthmeier (R) announced last week that his office is launching an antitrust investigation into Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), the two largest proxy advisory firms. ISS and Glass Lewis control over 90% of the proxy advisory market and can influence how institutional investors, including pension funds, vote in corporate elections—particularly on ESG issues.
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1 month ago | 
news.ballotpedia.org | James McAllister
Hagerty introduces bill prohibiting foreign ESG rule enforcementMarch 19, 2025 at 11:29 AMSen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), a member of the Senate Banking Committee, introduced a bill—the PROTECT USA Act—that he says will protect American companies from the European Union’s (EU) ESG reporting requirements. Republicans and American business organizations have argued the EU’s ESG regulations would hurt and force compliance on U.S. companies.
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1 month ago | 
news.ballotpedia.org | James McAllister
State Street removes diversity goalsMarch 14, 2025 at 11:58 AMState Street removed corporate board diversity requirements from its 2025 proxy voting guidelines in a Feb. 28 update. Proxy voting refers to the process through which shareholders who do not physically attend corporate shareholder meetings vote on company issues such as executive pay packages, board membership, and other shareholder and management proposals. Typically, proxy voting occurs over the phone, by mail, or online.
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1 month ago | 
news.ballotpedia.org | James McAllister
Democratic state financial officers support ESG in letter to regulatorsFebruary 28, 2025 at 10:15 AMSeventeen Democratic state financial officers sent a letter to the acting heads of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Department of Labor (DOL), asking them to not restrict the use of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors in financial decisions.
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2 months ago | 
news.ballotpedia.org | James McAllister
Judge issues second decision upholding Biden ESG labor ruleFebruary 19, 2025 at 7:08 PMU.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk upheld the Biden administration’s Labor Department rule allowing the use of ESG investment considerations in ERISA-governed retirement plans for a second time. The decision again rejected the legal challenge from 26 Republican attorneys general.
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2 months ago | 
news.ballotpedia.org | James McAllister
Oklahoma launches effort to oppose corporate DEIFebruary 12, 2025 at 7:17 AMOklahoma Treasurer Todd Russ (R) announced plans to oppose corporate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs through shareholder proposals using its $2 billion Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust. DEI is typically associated with the social component of ESG. Treasurer Russ has argued corporations should be politically neutral and avoid using corporate money for DEI and ESG goals.
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2 months ago | 
news.ballotpedia.org | James McAllister
Republican state officials request ESG clarificationFebruary 5, 2025 at 8:12 AMTwenty-two Republican state financial officers—treasurers, auditors, and a comptroller—sent a letter Jan. 28 asking the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to issue new rules clarifying and updating ESG policies enacted or proposed during the Biden administration.
