May 20, 2024

CORREA, NADLER ASK TEXAS AND FLORIDA FOR INFORMATION ABOUT EFFECTS OF STATE LAWS AGAINST RESPONSIBLE INVESTMENT

WASHINGTON — Today, Ranking Member Lou Correa, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Administrative State, Regulatory Reform, and Antitrust, and Ranking Member Jerrold Nadler, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, sent letters to the Attorneys General and chief financial officials of Texas and Florida seeking information about how their states’ laws against responsible investing have affected everyday taxpayers and retirees.

Texas and Florida are among more than a dozen states that have recently enacted laws aiming to penalize investors’ use of environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) factors, including risks related to climate change. These laws blacklist firms from state contracts and investments for employing prohibited factors.

As the members write, “A growing body of evidence demonstrates that these policies threaten public employees’ retirement savings and leave taxpayers on the hook for higher fees and increased borrowing costs.”

The Republican Majority on the House Judiciary Committee has been investigating the investment community’s use of ESG factors since the beginning of the 118th Congress. To ensure the Committee benefits from a full understanding of these investment practices, the letter asks the officials to provide information about their laws restricting responsible investment.

The members write, “In short, when states substitute politics for the reasoned judgment of investment professionals, taxpayers foot the bill—along with teachers, firefighters, and others who served their states and depend on well-managed public pension funds to safeguard their retirement savings.”

The letters ask the state officials to reply by May 30.

The Florida letter can be viewed here and the Texas letter can be viewed here.