US SIF Forum 2021, like most conferences during the past year, will be virtual. I’ll be there, wearing my five-finger shoes, trying to report on your observations. Will we still recognize each other? No problem. Look for the tag #USSIF2021. Encrusted reified assumptions are crumbling. Beta-activism building back better will take creative thought and cooperative […]
SEC to Protect Shareholder Rights in 2021 Shareholder rights in 2021 will strengthen if recent speculation is realized. U.S. Senate Democrats aim to undo Trump-era shareholder voting rights rule. Shareholder Rights in 2021: History As discussed elsewhere on CorpGov.net (Review: Carl Gershenson). After its founding, the SEC was largely a champion of shareholder rights, requiring companies […]
SEC Trampled Rights. September 23 was a bad day for shareholders, society, and the environment. It was an action typical of the Trump Administration, where political appointees work counter to the missions of regulatory bodies. The only significant “support” for the amendments from shareholders came from a few fake letters, which Chairman Clayton read into […]
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 […]
The 2019 Moskowitz Prize Winners were named at the annual SRI Conference last week. The prestigious prize is the only global award recognizing outstanding quantitative research in sustainable and responsible investing. Since its launch in 1996 by Berkeley Haas and US SIF, its winners have explored shareholder activism, socially responsible mutual funds, and social responsible investing as a catalyst […]
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…)
Rule 14a-8 process is defended by investors representing $525 billion in assets under management. Many thanks to US SIF for coordinating this vital effort. It is good to remind the SEC that their mission is to protect investors, not to protect companies from their investors. (more…)
Training for Sustainable Investing was a topic at the most recent Morningstar Conference in Chicago. (#MICUS) I would like to learn more the education of investment advisors in #ESG, #SRI, #corpgov issues. Interest in sustainable investing was high at the conference due to fund flows and client inquiries. However, I only saw a couple of […]
American values were recognized as at risk in 1932 when Adolf Berle and Gardiner Means argued that with dispersed shareholders, ownership has been separated from their control. (The Modern Corporation and Private Property) Ironically, concentration of equities under the umbrella of three or four indexed funds presents an opportunity to end that divide and make companies […]
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…)
US SIF study documents environmental, social, and governance — ESG assets — under management surging. ESG assets now account for one in every four investment dollars. Demand for ESG asset focus is coming from real people. In contrast, the Main Street Investors Coalition [funded by the National Association of Manufacturing (NAM)], insists on “maximizing performance ahead of […]
Trump’s clean power roll back could lead to millions of deaths around the world if the US abrogates its leadership and all such efforts to address climate change. Investors, businesses and scientists express their dismay. The executive order drew a rebuke from the European Union. “Now, it remains to be seen by which other means the […]
The Global Sustainable Investment Alliance (GSIA) released its biennial Global Sustainable Investment Review 2016, showing that global sustainable investment assets reached $22.89 trillion at the start of 2016, a 25% increase from 2014. Sustainable investment encompasses the following activities and strategies: Negative/exclusionary screening, Positive/best-in-class screening, Norms-based screening, Integration of ESG factors, Sustainability themed investing, Impact/community investing, and […]
The Department of Labor (DOL) rescinded Interpretive Bulletin 2008-2 relating to the Exercise of Shareholder Rights and replaced it with Interpretive Bulletin 2016-01 which reinstates the language of Interpretive Bulletin 94-2 with some modifications. US SIF supports this change as IB 2008-2 was not only inconsistent with prior guidance, but may have discouraged ERISA plan fiduciaries from […]
US SIF Foundation Releases 2016 Biennial Report on UA Sustainable, Responsible and Impact Investing Trends. Sustainable, responsible and impact investing (SRI) assets now account for $8.72 trillion, or one in five dollars invested under professional management in the United States according to the US SIF Foundation’s biennial Report on Responsible and Impact Investing Trends 2016, […]
Sustainable, responsible and impact, SRI investors, have influenced the investment industry, companies, governments and other actors to address environmental, social and governance (ESG) challenges in four major areas, according to The Impact of Sustainable and Responsible Investment, a report released today by the US SIF Foundation. Influence of SRI Investors Drawing upon a range of data, surveys and examples, the report […]
The US SIF Foundation’s Center for Sustainable Investment Education will provide a training on the Fundamentals of Sustainable and Responsible Investment. The classroom training will be held at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, CO on Tuesday, November 3 from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM followed by lunch from 1:00 – 1:30 PM. This training will […]
In response to proxy access proposals filed this year, both Whole Foods Market (WFM) and H&R Block (HRB) have adopted proxy access. While I had filed standard proposals seeking the ability of shareholders with 3% of shares held for 3 years to be able to nominate up to 25% of the board, both companies adopted […]
I think most Americans have a very limited attention span when it comes to investing, the SEC and especially corporate governance. When I came across SECDisclose.org earlier this week, I was delighted with a series of videos they have uploaded on dark money and with their byline: Because the S.E.C. shouldn’t stand for “S-E-C-RET.” In a few paragraphs below lifted […]
This is the last in a multi-part series on the main program of 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, 25th Annual Conference on […]
The 25th annual SRI Conference on Sustainable, Responsible, Impact Investing was held November 9–11, 2014 at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. I’ve been working with many of the organizers, sponsors and participants for years but this was my first time to the SRI annual conference. I attend a lot of conferences every year but this […]
What is Green Investing? “Green Investing” is the phrase I use to describe the process of aligning your investments with your values, social as well as environmental. Many people don’t know that they own companies in their mutual funds and retirement plans that conflict with their beliefs. Financial advisors who specialize in this area use […]
Key Characteristics of Prominent Shareholder-sponsored Proposals on Environmental and Social Topics, 2005-2011, released by the IRRC Institute (IRRCi) and researched by Ernst & Young LLP finds environmental and social (E+S) shareowner proposals are gaining increased support from investors at US companies. Download the report, presentation, press release and even replay the webinar from IRRCi’s website. (more…)