This week in responsible investing, multiple analyses made clear that anti-responsible investing campaigns hurt everyday Americans.
S&P showed the real losers of anti-responsible investing laws are small municipalities, detailing how towns in Texas, Florida, and Oklahoma are dealing with their states’ new, confusing laws:
From “Wall Street thrived, small towns lost as anti-ESG campaign raged in 2023”: In Texas, the municipal bond market is in turmoil after the state’s attorney general, Ken Paxton, issued an advisory in October to state and local government agencies asking them to be on the lookout for bond underwriters that may “boycott energy companies, discriminate against firearm entities or associations, or boycott Israel.” Paxton’s letter included a list of 22 companies he accused of violating Texas laws passed in 2021 to protect such interests.
In Texas, business leaders are beginning to express more frustration with the state’s anti-ESG law, which comes on the heels of JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon saying the law is bad for business.
From “Texas’ ‘Fair Access’ law hurts state’s business-friendly reputation, raises borrowing costs”: Nonsensical enforcement of Fair Access laws that target certain financial institutions due to their corporate governance policies could threaten the pro-growth groundwork we have laid by tightening our municipal bond market, costing Texas taxpayers, municipalities and businesses.
And finally, both sides of the responsible investing fight are ramping up for 2024, but this year, attacks won’t go unanswered:
From “Both sides are bracing for escalation in the war over ESG”: Anti-ESG forces will be looking to build on what they see as successful efforts to silence financial firms that had been publicly promoting the transition away from fossil fuels, while those on the other side are angling to protect and advance policies meant to stem global warming. Unlocking America’s Future, a political nonprofit, launched an eight-figure campaign heading into 2024 to promote ESG and “strike back against well-funded attacks targeting American businesses, investors, and consumers.”
Read more below:
ICYMI: Well-Funded Attacks on Responsible Investing (ESG) Won’t Go Unanswered
