SGI Celebrates 50 Years. Milwaukee, WI – On September 12th, the Seventh Generation Interfaith Coalition for Responsible Investment (SGI) will celebrate fifty years of service for people and the planet. Founded in 1973 by pioneers in corporate shareholder engagement, Fr. Michael Crosby, O.F.M., Cap., Sr. Alphonsa Puls, S.S.S.F., and Sr. Charlita Foxhoven, S.S.S.F., SGI members […]
Testimony to CalPERS 3/13/2023, Investment Committee Item 6b, by Jim McRitchie, a retired member. Note: Actual testimony was limited to 3-4 minutes. This version is slightly longer and includes links. (more…)
Ownership: Reinventing companies, Capitalism, and Who Owns What by Corey Rosen and John Case should be read by every director on the board of public pension funds. I (James McRitchie) am planning to send a copy to all the board members of CalPERS once newly elected members take office next year. In celebration of […]
CalPERS investments underperform. CalPERS underperformed for a decade, investment chief says in pitch for more risk. The country’s largest public pension system earned an average of 7.7% per year on its investments over the last 10 years. That’s 1.2% less than a hypothetical peer should have expected to earn in the same time period. To remedy the […]
Bruce Herbert on Vote counting, Chevron, and the changing tide of investor awareness. That’s a small fraction of Bruce Herbert’s focus at Newground Social Investment and some of what we will discuss on April 11, @ 11 am Pacific (2 pm Eastern). Register. CorpEngage.net houses links to scheduled Corporate Accountability Forums and a growing number of […]
ICCR Proxy Resolutions and Voting Guide now includes all proposals filed so far for the 2022 season by Corporate Governance. I could not be more delighted, since this is the group that is most responsible for inspiring my own work! ICCR has published its Guide every year since 1974. The 2022 Guide discusses 436 resolutions filed by […]
CorpGov.net 2021. We said goodbye to the Trump administration, filed shareholder proposals, held weekly discussions on corporate accountability in 2021, helped shape the SEC’s repeal of several Staff Legal Bulletins, the proposed N-PX rulemaking, and sued the SEC to overturn rules that harm the rights of Main Street investors. It was a productive year at […]
Spring 2021 CorpGov.net Proxy Proposal results are in, as reported below. New SEC rules will delay needed ESG reforms, so we worked in cooperation with more groups and filed more proposals than ever. We still averaged more than a 50% vote in favor. (more…)
Corporate Accountability Fall 2021: Restoring the Balance. This is your chance to discuss the issues with Nell Minow, Michae O’Leary, Andy Behar, Josh Zinner, Doug Chia, Bruce F. Freed, Heidi Welsh, Jon Lukomnik, Tim Smith, Christina Sautter, Rick Alexander, Karen E. Woody, Sanford Lewis. Spring will include Leo Strine Jr, Brandon Rees, Jackie Cook, David […]
Academy of Management 2021, #AOM2021. I was a discussant at a symposium entitled, Synergizing Corporate Activism Research: Building a Shared Understanding of an Evolving Phenomenon (session 913) This post is mostly for my future reference but readers may also find parts interesting. I welcome contact from those attending #AOM2021 who are interested in collaborating with investors. […]
Restore shareholder proposal rights to the pre-Trump era level. That is the objective of the complaint (pdf 2021 06 15 ICCR Complaint) filed this morning in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia challenging the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC’s) recent amendments to the rule governing the filing of shareholder proposals. The revised […]
The Giant Shadow of Corporate Gadflies, by Yaron Nili and Kobi Kastiel, (download at SSRN) is one of the more objective reviews of the recent influence of “gadflies” on corporate governance in America. It might have been even better if the authors had discussed their work with the subjects of their study – the gadflies. (Disclosure: […]
Halt Corporate Political Spending. That is the recommendation of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), a coalition of investors representing over $US 2 trillion in assets under management. ICCR released a statement to the CEO members of the Business Roundtable (BRT) urging them to refrain from political spending. Take a six-month break and assess inherent […]
Trump celebrates labor day. Many who actually labor cringe at his repulsive words and actions. There are far instances too many to mention. Below are a few that are top of mind. (more…)
ESG Rulemaking by DOL – comments are in. Several investor organizations and financial industry firms released an analysis of the more than 8,700 public comments on the Department of Labor’s (DOL) proposed rulemaking on the consideration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations in ERISA-governed retirement plans. There is overwhelming opposition to the “Financial Factors […]
SEC Staff COVID-19 Guidance was announced, probably at least in part, driven by a Rule14a-8 Coronavirus Letter Marh 11 pdf from the ICCR, US SIF and the Shareholder Rights Group. Guidance discusses virtual meetings, updating the time, date or location of a stockholder meeting and eliminates the federal securities law requirement that such change require […]
What 2020 shareholder resolutions can we expect to see in our proxies this year? Two of the most frequent compilers and filers are ICCR and As You Sow. Plus I also tell you about my own below. (more…)
SEC Release File No. S7-23-19 comments are due today. This Release and that of File No. S7-22-19 are the most dangerous I have seen during my twenty-five years of blogging. Both would make corporations less accountable to their owners and the public. Both would help turn corporate governance into a more democratic-free zone. Thousands of comments opposing […]
2020 ESG Proposal Lists Updated Our 2020 ESG proposal lists have been updated, thank to Lynn Jokela (bio) who posted something the other day at TheCorporateCounsel.net about how to find “other companies who are receiving the same shareholder proposals.” Presumably Jokela was focused on corporate counsel. Of course, our readers, primarily investors, also want to know who […]
Extension sought by Josh Zinner of ICCR for SEC comment period on potentially explosive rulemakings of critical importance to all shareholders. Shareholders would do well to follow his lead by joining him in requesting a 120 day comment period for these complex rules. (more…)
Constructive engagement is, supposedly, the primary reason for the SEC’s proposed new rules. As Chairman Clayton noted, Today’s proposed amendments follow from the staff’s extensive experience with shareholder proposals and recognize the significant changes that have taken place in our markets in the decades since these regulatory requirements were last revised, including, in particular, the […]
Investors ask SEC to rescind no-action policy recently announced. Additional resources and commentary regarding the new SEC No-Action Policy are included below the letter. Click for PDF. (more…)
Below is an ICCR letter to the BRT from Josh Zinner commending them on their recent acknowledgement of the value of stakeholders and asking them to reassess their opposition to shareholder resolutions. I have added a few links to the ICCR letter to the BRT. I look forward to hearing more from Josh today at the […]
SEC Proxy Process Video: November 15, 2018 In the interest of documenting important events in corporate governance, I am here bookmarking the SEC Proxy Process Video from November 15, 2018, for future reference. Read transcript by downloading the following pdf: SEC TranscriptShareholderProposalsRoundtable. (full day) SEC Proxy Process Video (Click to View) (more…)
Investor Response to Chamber: Letter Representatives of hundreds of investors with trillions of dollars in assets delivered a letter to the SEC on November 9, 2017, An Investor response to U.S. Chamber’s Proposal to Revise SEC Rule 14a-8 (report). We noted with interest the November 1, 2017, guidance contained in Staff Legal Bulletin No. 14I. […]
The Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility, a coalition of institutional investors representing $200 billion in invested capital that engage corporations on the environmental and social impacts of their operations, sent a letter yesterday to all U.S. Senators urging them not to pass the Financial CHOICE Act. The proposed legislation, which passed the House and is currently […]
New policy responds to investor requests for greater transparency at Allergan, including spending at the state and local levels and participation in industry trade associations. (more…)
Shareholders of Wells Fargo $WFC and members of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility today announced that they have filed multiple resolutions as a result of fraudulent activities uncovered by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Wells Fargo recently reported a $185 million settlement with the CFPB due to widespread and systemic illegal acts of […]
On September 29, 2016 Tim Smith, Walden Asset Management’s director of ESG Shareowner Engagement, will be honored at the annual event of the Interfaith Center for Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) for his decades-long, indefatigable leadership shaping the landscape of shareholder advocacy for more just and environmentally sound business policies and practices. Tim is the first secular […]
Lobbying disclosure is sought by shareholder resolutions filed at 50 companies by 66 institutional and individual investors. Corporate lobbying disclosure remains a top shareholder proposal topic for 2016. At least 66 investors have filed proposals at 50 companies asking for lobbying reports that include federal and state lobbying payments, payments to trade associations used for […]
ICCR’s Board of Directors announced that Josh Zinner will be assuming the role of ICCR’s new Chief Executive Officer, effective January 4th2016. Josh Zinner comes to ICCR with 20 years’ experience as a non-profit leader, coalition-builder and policy advocate. For the past eight years Josh has co-directed the New Economy Project, an organization that works with community groups […]
Leadership transitions are the ideal time to think about what it means to lead. What is the role of leadership in building the “just and sustainable corporate world” the ICCR community envisions in its mission statement? During an interactive panel on Oct. 1, 2015, five dynamic leaders explored the role of corporate responsibility and the capital […]
The Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), a coalition of 300 investors with assets under management of over $100 billion, Calvert Investments and Christian Brothers Investment Services, commend Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) and Congressman Chris Smith (R-NJ) for her introduction of The Business Supply Chain Transparency on Trafficking & Slavery Act of 2015 in the […]
This is the second in a multi-part series on the 25th annual SRI Conference on Sustainable, Responsible, Impact Investing held November 9–11, 2014 at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. See also Video Friday: What is Sustainable, Responsible, Impact Investing?, Violating Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Increases Industry Risks, Surveys: Nonprofit Board Members & SRI 2014 Conference Attendees, Sustainable, Responsible, Impact Investing: Part 1. The Agenda […]
Below are some notes I took during the morning sessions at the Corporate Directors Forum 2014, held on the beautiful campus of the University of San Diego, January 26-28, 2014. This year, I was only able to attend on January 27th. The program was subject to the Chatham House Rule, so there will be little in the way of attribution […]