The general public has grown steadily more aware of how corporations affect people and the planet.  More companies now offer “green” products and services, make their supply chains more transparent, and have sustainability departments, but there is an acute need for still greater corporate oversight.

People see corporations pursuing profit while benefitting from human trafficking, modern slavery, child labor, and environmental exploitation and destruction. They see the influence of corporate lobbying and donations to political campaigns on public policy. They see excessive CEO compensation and enrichment of big business as the gap grows between the richest and the poorest. They see too many companies ignoring or responding slowly and weakly to the climate crisis—and even seeking continued profit from fossil fuels—despite the imperative for a clean energy economy.

That’s why it is shocking that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has proposed changes to the shareholder proposal rule that will make it far more difficult for investors to file resolutions with companies.  Thousands of individual consumers and investors have given a resounding “no” to the changes because they would result in less corporate oversight, when we need more to advance societal well-being and correct abuses. 

Public demand for corporate accountability strengthens our economy and protects human and environmental health.  Companies that work to improve their practices and take action to address environmental, social, and corporate governance risks are better positioned for success over the long term. Understanding the unique corporate oversight role that individual and institutional investors play, through the shareholder resolution process, people want the current shareholder proposal process upheld.

By locking many shareholders out of this process, and undermining the ability of investors to keep issues of concern in front of management and fellow investors, the SEC promotes a world run even more than it is today by unaccountable corporations. It is opposition to that outcome—the erosion of democracy, the loss of protections for the public, and increased environmental degradation—that has motivated people to denounce the SEC’s attack on shareholder rights.

The shareholder resolution process raises crucial issues facing our society and world that touch the lives of people everywhere, such as the climate emergency, human rights, labor rights, pay disparities based on gender and minority status, and prescription drug costs. Not surprisingly, though short-sighted, many corporations and their associations would like to weaken the shareholder process that promotes shareholder democracy, identifies risks, and shines a spotlight on corporate complicity with exploitative practices.

Americans for Financial Reform, As You Sow, Green America, and Public Citizen together generated over 18,000 individual consumer and investor signers on statements urging the SEC not to weaken the shareholder resolution process that has worked well for decades. Consumers and investors are united in seeking an economy that will thrive over the long term, build prosperity for all, and secure our environmental heritage for future generations.

That is what is truly at stake.

Fran Teplitz
Executive Co-Director, Green America