US SIF Releases Statement On House Committee On Education And Workforce Bill Markup

WASHINGTON, D.C., September 14, 2023 – The House Committee on Education and Workforce will hold today a committee markup on four bills amending the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). The proposed legislation, HR5337, HR5338, HR5339 and HR5340, seeks to reinstate the previous administration's “pecuniary/non-pecuniary” rules related to the incorporation of ESG factors in plan investments and proxy voting. Bryan McGannon, Managing Director of US SIF: The Sustainable Investment Forum, made the following statement:

“These bills seek to replace the sensible policy allowing retirement plan fiduciaries to consider all financially relevant information when making investment decisions with the ill-defined, unworkable “pecuniary/non-pecuniary” framework. Our members find the pecuniary versus non-pecuniary rules to be vague and not well suited to the realities of the investment industry. ESG data can be material to the risk and/or return of an investment. “Retirement fund and pension plan fiduciaries must consider all relevant data when making investment decisions and determining proxy voting decisions. We hope that the Committee will allow fiduciaries to fulfill their duty of prudence and loyalty in the consideration of all relevant data and ultimately, oppose the set of bills making this more difficult.”