Kentucky’s state treasurer has come up with a list of nearly a dozen financial firms it accuses of boycotting energy companies and warned that the state could divest from them in a matter of months.
Kentucky State Treasurer Allison Ball’s office announced on Tuesday the names of the 11 firms, which include behemoths such as BlackRock, Citigroup, HSBC, and JPMorgan. The news was disseminated in a notice to all state government entities, which must notify Ball within 30 days whether they are conducting business with the listed firms.
Ball told the Washington Examiner during a Tuesday interview that last year, the Kentucky legislature passed a bill that empowers Ball’s office to identify firms that “boycott” energy companies. The firms will be subject to divestment after 120 days, although Ball said she hopes they decide to change their policies, so the state won’t have to do so.
“We’re a fossil-fuel producing state, so it’s very important to us,” Ball said.
REPUBLICANS AIM TO TURN ESG INTO 2024 LIABILITY FOR DEMOCRATS
“I hope that we get some changes from people, and that’s ultimately what we want,” she said. “We hope that they’ll make some changes. … I’m hopeful that in the next few months, we’ll see some different behavior from them.”
The move follows similar ones from states such as West Virginia and Texas, which have been at the forefront of pushing back on corporate environmental, social, and governance initiatives.
West Virginia made waves last year when it deemed five financial institutions ineligible for state banking contracts on the grounds that they “boycott” fossil fuel companies. The shift away from fossil fuels is part of the larger corporate move toward the prioritization of ESG goals.
ESG proponents argue that is a way that finance and business can help reform society, such as by mitigating the effects of climate change. Those who oppose ESG say it distorts the economy, as well as America’s culture.
Ball, noting the strong coal and fossil fuel industries in the state, said she has been talking to constituents a lot more about ESG over the past several months and that the topic seems to be resonating with them.
The ESG pushback, championed by Republican-led states, has borne some results. West Virginia’s pressure was enough to change course for one firm, U.S. Bancorp, according to West Virginia Treasurer Riley Moore. He said U.S. Bank changed its no-lending policy to the fossil fuel industry so that it was removed from the list of firms ineligible for state banking contracts.
While many of the big banks have been targeted, BlackRock and its CEO Larry Fink have received outsize criticism from the GOP and anti-ESG crusaders.
Last month, Florida’s chief financial officer said the state would divest some $2 billion from the money manager, the largest such state divestment from BlackRock yet over its stance on environmental and social goals.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“As major banking institutions and economists predict a recession in the coming year, and as the Fed increases interest rates to combat the inflation crisis, I need partners within the financial services industry who are as committed to the bottom line as we are — and I don’t trust BlackRock’s ability to deliver,” said Florida CFO Jimmy Patronis.
States such as South Carolina, Utah, Arkansas, Missouri, Louisiana, and others have also divested or announced planned divestments of hundreds of millions of dollars from BlackRock and Fink.
