House hearing investigates 'collusion' between financial institutions and climate groups - NBC 15 WPMI

House hearing investigates 'collusion' between financial institutions and climate groups

The House voted to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over audio of President Joe Biden.

WASHINGTON (TND) — On Wednesday, the House GOP held a hearing examining ESG investing (environmental, social and governance investing) and the relationship between financial institutions and climate activist groups.

According to organizers, the goal of the hearing was to determine if current enforcement of antitrust laws is sufficient to deter "collusion to promote ESG-related goals in the investment industry." Democrats disagreed with the motives.

The hearing was a follow-up to the publication of a congressional report accusing some of Wall Street’s largest financial firms of colluding with activist groups to force companies to adopt certain climate policies which the lawmakers say harms American consumers.

“They’ll say it’s for a good cause we’re going to save the planet. Never mind that the cost of food is going to go up. The cost of fuel is going to go up. It’s going to be less airline flights, less cars, never mind all that. We’re saving the world," Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio.

One of the companies targeted in the report responded arguing ESG investing is a “common-sense approach driven by the pursuit of delivering the best long-term returns for their clients and beneficiaries.”

“Unlike the Republicans, businesses and investors recognize that climate change is real and they need to plan for it,” said Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y.

There’s an increasingly organized push to get politics out of business after companies like Target and Bud Light faced intense backlash and financial hits for entering the culture war debate last year.

Through the end of May shareholders have voted on 70 anti-ESG proposals at companies such as UPS and GE Aerospace. That’s up from seven such proposals voted on in 2020. So far none of these anti-ESG proposals have passed and most receive less than two percent of the shareholders' vote.

Half of the proposals were initiated by the National Center for Public Policy Research, a Conservative-backed think tank.

"To get corporations back to the middle ground. back to neutral, back away from making any sort of extreme, partisan, social commitments that aren’t directly related to the core business," said Scott Shepard, general counsel for NCPPR.