February 7, 2023
To Members of Congress:
Each year, millions of new Americans retire from their jobs. Most of these retirees will have spent decades working hard to save as much money as they are able to in order to sustain them through a decade or more of retirement. The savings these Americans rely on are often managed by employer-sponsored plans (such as 401ks), for which the federal government established minimum standards and safeguards in the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).
A pernicious practice known as Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investing has emerged over the past several decades. Rather than prioritize the financial well-being and stability of retirees, ESG seeks to advance ideological goals related to environmental policy and other divisive subjects. While it is a tenet of a free society that people ought to be able to use their own money as they see fit (including advancing their own particular priorities), ESG is a misappropriation of retirees’ savings by money managers for their own political agendas. Most Americans think it’s a bad idea for companies to use their financial influence to advance a political or social agenda, as is the case in ESG investing.1
Forcing Americans into ESG investment is not only politically inappropriate, it is also financially irresponsible. According to research from the University of Chicago, mutual funds scoring highly on ESG factors are constantly outperformed by funds rated lowest for ESG.2 Moreover, 85 percent of the country does not even know what “ESG” is, and therefore would not be aware of the financial risks their retirement account managers are subjecting them to when they actively pursue ESG investment decisions.3
Under the Trump-Pence administration, the U.S. government protected retirees from this kind of abuse by issuing a rule clarifying that, under ERISA, the managers of retirement funds could not engage in ESG investment if it would have a negative impact on retiree’s savings or expose them to additional risks (“Financial Factors in Selecting Plan Investments”).
Tragically, on November 22, 2022, the Biden administration chose to undermine the Trump-Pence safeguards by issuing their own ERISA rule that would make it easier for retirement fund managers to imperil retirees’ savings. With 22 percent of Americans set to be relying upon their retirement savings and benefits in 2050, this policy of misappropriation cannot be allowed to stand.
Fortunately, Congress can overturn the Biden administration’s dangerous ESG rule through the Congressional Review Act (CRA). Under the CRA, the new Congress can review and disapprove of rules issued in the last 60 days of the previous Congress. There is a limited lookback period authorized under the CRA, so it is critical that Congress act quickly.
Today, Senator Mike Braun and Representative Andy Barr introduced joint resolutions which would block Biden’s ERISA rule and protect Americans from dangerous investment management practices. We, the undersigned organizations and officials, are calling on every member of the United States Congress to support these resolutions and stop Biden’s ideological embezzling of Americans’ retirement accounts.
1 “Daily Wire – ESG Survey,” Echelon Insights, Accessed January 4, 2023, http://echeloninsights.com/wp-content/uploads/Daily-Wire-May-2022-ESG-Survey-Topline.pdf.
2 Sanjai Bhagat, “An Inconvenient Truth About ESG Investing,” Harvard Business Review, March 31, 2022, https://hbr.org/2022/03/an-inconvenient-truth-about-esg-investing.
3 “ESG Monitor 2022,” SEC Newgate, Accessed January 4, 2023, https://globalstrategygroup.com/wp- content/uploads/2012/07/SEC-Newgate-ESG-Monitor-2022_Final.pdf.
Sincerely,
Paul Teller
Executive Director
Advancing American Freedom
James L. Martin Founder/Chairman 60 Plus Association
Melissa Ortiz Senior Advisor Able Americans
Dr. Carl Herbster President AdvanceUSA
Bethany Marcum
Chief Executive Officer Alaska Policy Forum
Lisa Nelson
Chief Executive Officer ALEC Action
Bob Carlstrom President AMAC Action
Michael Faulkender
Chief Economist
America First Policy Institute
Thomas Jones
President
American Accountability Foundation
Saulius “Saul” Anuzis
President
American Association of Senior Citizens
Phil Kerpen
President
American Commitment
Jameson Taylor, Ph.D.
Director of Policy & Legislative Affairs American Family Association
Tom DeWeese President
American Policy Center
Gary L. Bauer President American Values
Allen Hebert
Chairman
American-Chinese Fellowship
Richard Manning
President
Americans for Limited Government
Brent Gardner
Chief Government Affairs Officer Americans for Prosperity
Grover Norquist
President
Americans for Tax Reform
Robert Alt
President & CEO
The Buckeye Institute
John Toedtman Executive Director Caesar Rodney Institute
Ralph Benko Chairman
The Capitalist League
Ryan Ellis
President
Center for a Free Economy
Daniel J. Mitchell
President
Center for Freedom and Prosperity
Jeffrey Mazzella
President
Center for Individual Freedom
John Hinderaker
President
Center of the American Experiment
Shannon O. Royce, J.D. President
Christian Employers Alliance
Steve Goreham
Executive Director
Climate Science Coalition of America
Scott Parkinson
Vice President of Government Affairs Club for Growth
Richard Morrison
Senior Fellow
Competitive Enterprise Institute
Curt Levey
President
The Committee for Justice
Penny Y. Nance
CEO and President
Concerned Women for America LAC
The Honorable George K. Rasley, Jr. Managing Editor ConservativeHQ.com
Dr. Steven J. Allen (J.D., Ph.D.) Vice Chairman
The Conservative Caucus
James Edwards
Founder and Executive Director Conservatives for Property Rights
Steven J. Buri President Discovery Institute
Jerry R. Simmons
President/CEO
Domestic Energy Producers Alliance
Kristen A. Ullman President
Eagle Forum
Suzi Voyles
President
Eagle Forum of Georgia
Gayle Ruzicka President
Eagle Forum of Utah
Malon Wilkus
President
The Enterprise Supporting Climate Science
David D. Wallace, II President
Fair Energy Foundation
Ralph Reed
Chairman
Faith and Freedom Coalition
Paul Caprio Director
Family PAC Federal
Richard A. Viguerie Chairman
FedUp PAC
David Bozell President ForAmerica
Tarren Bragdon
President and CEO
Foundation for Government Accountability
Scott Shepard
Director
Free Enterprise Project
Adam Brandon President FreedomWorks
Travis Korson
Director of Public Policy Frontiers of Freedom
Victor Riches President & CEO Goldwater Institute
James Taylor President
The Heartland Institute
Jessica Anderson
Executive Director
Heritage Action for America
Collin Moseley
State Director
Illinois Freedom Caucus
Chris Miller
Member
Illinois House of Representatives
Heather R. Higgins
Chief Executive Officer Independent Women’s Voice
F. Vincent Vernuccio, J.D. President
Institute for the American Worker
Andrew Langer President
Institute for Liberty
Tom Giovanetti
President
Institute for Policy Innovation
Brian Balfour
Senior VP of Research John Locke Foundation
Sal Nuzzo
Senior Vice President
The James Madison Institute
Tucker Davis
President
Kentucky Coal Association
Kimberly P. Moser
Member
Kentucky House of Representatives
Morton Blackwell President Leadership Institute
Seton Motley Founder and President Less Government
Jason Isaac Director Life:Powered
Raymond E. “Ray” Garofalo, Jr. Member
Louisiana House of Representatives
L. Brent Bozell Founder and President Media Research Center
Tim Jones
Former Speaker
Missouri House of Representatives
David Ridenour
President
National Center for Public Policy Research
Paul Stam
Former Speaker Pro Tempore
North Carolina House of Representatives
Kevin Freeman Founder
NSIC Institute
Gerard Kassar
State Chairman
NYS Conservative Party
Lawrence G. Keane
SVP Government and Public Affairs NSSF
Justin Bis
Interim President Ohio Coal Association
Duvi Honig
Founder CEO
Orthodox Jewish Chamber of Commerce
Senator Rick Santorum Founder
Patriot Voices
Daniel Erspamer
Chief Executive Officer Pelican Institute
Rachel Gleason
Executive Director Pennsylvania Coal Alliance
Andre E. Cushing III Commissioner
Penobscot County, Maine
Fran Bevan
State Leader, Pennsylvania Phyllis Schlafly Eagles
William L. O’Brien
Chairman
Pine Tree Public Policy Institute
Horace Cooper
Chairman
Project 21 Black Leadership Network
Charles R. Gerow
Chief Executive Officer Quantum Communications
Matt Bell
Chief Executive Officer Reliable Energy, Inc
Mike Stenhouse
Chief Executive Officer
Rhode Island Center for Freedom & Prosperity
Paul Gessing
President
Rio Grande Foundation
Derek Kreifels
Chief Executive Officer
State Financial Officers Foundation (SFOF)
Andrew Roth
President
State Freedom Caucus Network
Kimberly Yee Treasurer
State of Arizona
Daniel Elliott Treasurer
State of Indiana
John M. Schroder Treasurer
State of Louisiana
David McRae Treasurer
State of Mississippi
Marlo Oaks Treasurer State of Utah
Riley Moore Treasurer
State of West Virginia
John Hostettler
Vice President of Federal Affairs States Trust
David Williams
President
Taxpayers Protection Alliance
Krissy Lilljedahl
Executive Administrator
Texas Mining and Reclamation Association
Greg Sindelar
Chief Executive Officer
Texas Public Policy Foundation
Donald L. Luskin
Chief Investment Officer TrendMacro
Frank Lasee
President
Truth in Energy and Climate
Chris Hamilton
President
West Virginia Coal Association
Elias Coop-Gonzalez
Member
West Virginia House of Delegates
Kathleen M. Sgamma President
Western Energy Alliance
Kyle Koenen
Policy Director
Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty
Carol Platt Liebau President
Yankee Institute
Nate Dunning
Chairman
Young Conservatives of Texas
Benjamin Zycher
Senior Fellow
American Enterprise Institute (For identification purposes only)
Sam Rohrer
President
American Pastors Network
(For identification purposes only)
E. Calvin Beisner, Ph.D.
President
Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation (For identification purposes only)