The CFACT chapter at Indiana University, Bloomington organized a letter writing campaign to the Governor in order to support legislation aimed at limiting the use of ESG investing. “ESG” investing stands for “Environment, Social, and Governance,” and takes private or public funds to support leftist agendas as opposed to maximizing investment returns.
CFACT, and the IU Bloomington chapter, are very concerned by this practice, and looked for opportunities to make an impact. That’s when Kyle Reynolds, club president, found HB 1008, sponsored by State Representative Ethan Manning. The bill would prohibit those managing Indiana’s state pension funds from considering ESG factors, and would require them to only make those decisions that would maximize financial returns, in good faith of the pensioners relying on such funds.
“Choosing companies for investment on the basis of their ESG scores is not a growth maximizing or overall sound investment strategy,” the letter to Governor Holcomb reads. “Corporations that choose to comply with increasingly stringent ESG standards incur significant costs that negatively impact profits, and ultimately, reduce returns for the shareholders of those firms. And, by not considering companies with low ESG scores, fund managers are losing out on potential investment opportunities that could yield high returns.”
“Our group sent out statements in support of the legislation to our State Senator, State Representative, and Governor urging them to support the bill,” Kyle Reynolds explained.
As of this writing, the bill is still progressing through the legislative process and is working its way through the Senate. CFACT will continue to monitor the progression of this important piece of legislation.
Great work to Kyle and all the CFACT members to proactively get involved in the legislative process!
