Skip to main content
Statement

STATEMENT: New Hampshire State House Votes Down Bill Making ESG Criteria a Felony

February 8, 2024

Washington – Today the New Hampshire State House voted to kill HB1267, a bill that would make it a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison for knowingly using ESG criteria to determine investment strategies for state funds. Following a national wave of pushback criticizing the legislation as punitive, short-sighted, and just plain “stupid,” state representatives rejected the measure. 

“Bills like HB1267 that attempt to ban ESG practices threaten American jobs, retirement savings, and economic opportunity. Voting this bill down sends an important message to corrupt billionaires that their coordinated campaign to block responsible investing is not what the American people want,” said Kyle Herrig, spokesperson for Unlocking America’s Future.

These attacks on responsible investing hurt everyday Americans, resulting in billions of dollars of losses from pensions and harm to local economies. 

  • The Kansas State Division of the Budget projected reduced returns of $3.6 billion over 10 years for the Kansas Public Retirement System if anti-ESG investment restrictions were adopted. 
  • The Arkansas Public Employees Retirement System estimated that they could lose $30 million to $40 million per year due to an anti-ESG bill that would require the State Treasurer and public entities to divest assets from certain institutions that use ESG-related metrics. The Arkansas Teacher Retirement System estimated that the system could lose an additional $7 million or more per year as a result of the legislation. 
  • An analysis by the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago found that Texas municipalities will be paying $300 million to $500 million in additional interest because of the state’s anti-ESG law – and that’s just on the $31.8 billion borrowed in the first eight months after the law went into effect.   
  • An analysis by the economics consulting firm ESI for the Sunrise Project found that taxpayers in six states — Kentucky, Florida, Louisiana, Oklahoma, West Virginia, and Missouri — could be on the hook for up to $700 million in excess interest payments if restrictions on sustainable investing are implemented.