March 24, 2023 |
Photo – Wyoming State Capitol Building – Bigfoot99 file photo
Two anti-ESG bills died during the 2023 legislative session, but Wyoming has joined Florida and 17 other states to fight so-called “Woke Capitalism.”
The Alliance Against Environmental, Social, and Governance calls for the participating states to develop policies that will undermine ESG investment policies used by some of the nation’s biggest fund companies.
The first line of attack is divesting state pension funds from ESG linked investments. The goal is to undermine what the alliance called the “proliferation of woke ideology” in investment funds.
Member states are laying out individual strategies, as well. The movement follows President Joe Biden’s veto of a bill that would have barred the Labor Department rule allowing leftist cultural values, such as anti-carbon sentiments, to guide investment decisions rather than fiduciary concerns.
During an appearance Thursday before the Legislature’s Management Council meeting, State Treasurer Curt Meir laid out the broad outlines of how Wyoming will work the system. Meir said the state will use a formula developed by Florida, which will bind investment managers to contract.
The state treasurer said the policy change will be added to the State Loan and Investment Board’s agenda for a vote at its next meeting.
The statement released by the 19-state coalition pushing back against the White House over the ESG issue says, “We, as freedom loving states, can work together and leverage our state pension funds to force change in how major asset managers invest the money of hardworking Americans. Ensuring corporations are focused on maximizing shareholder value, rather than the proliferation of woke ideology.”
Treasurer Meier said the strategy is showing results already. Some investment funds, including Black Rock, are dialing back their progressive-oriented investment strategies to keep the state funds in their portfolios.
The Wyoming state senate passed two anti-ESG bills this session, but the House did not hold a hearing on either one, after the House Appropriations Committee recommended the bills do not pass.
Meanwhile, a 25-state lawsuit against the Labor Department and Joe Biden over the administration’s ESG rule is continuing in the courts.
