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First on FOX: Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey this week has investigated two of the nation’s leading representative advisory companies in parallel, claiming that he violated the state’s consumer protection laws by waiving fiduciary obligations and misleading consumers about prioritizing ideology over investor interests.
In a civil investigation request sent to Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), Bailey allegedly violated the state consumer protection law by ensuring that the customer’s proxy voting recommendation is based solely on data and research and is completely neutral. But at the same time, Bailey argues that published documents from companies show that their proxy voting recommendations are designed to advance DEI and environmental causes, whether or not they harm returns from investors.
Glass Lewis and ISS are two foreign-owned powers that manage about 97% of the US proxy advisory market, according to an April report by the House Financial Services Committee. Companies specialize in providing voting recommendations to institutional investors such as pension funds, retirement plans, and mutual funds on how to vote during corporate shareholder meetings. These votes often include decisions related to board member elections, executive fees, company policies, and other proposals.
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Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has denounced two major misleading consumer representative advisory firms by hiding prioritizations in DEI and ESG policies, even at the expense of investor returns. (istock;Getty Images)
“Missouri people deserve an answer as to why the invisible power brokers who control many American companies are pushing the left-wing worldview at the expense of millions of honest investors,” Bailey said. “These are foreign actors who manipulate the US economy and we won’t thrive on them any more. We are following sources. These proxy advisors hold corporate hostages with the fundamental ideology of America.
In the enforcement petition, Bailey was sent to the state circuit court to force the company to comply with new probes. The Attorney General points to statements from both the ISS and Glass Lewis website, which claim to provide “objective and fair provisions” respectively, “based on research and data.” At the same time, Bailey points to internal company documents that include many sections on the importance of moving forward with the causes of DEI and ESG, such as a document entitled Glass Lewis’ 2025 Benchmark Policy Guidelines.
“This means Glass Lewis’ statement that it provides “research and data” that allows customers to make informed investment decisions is false,” Bailey wrote in an enforcement petition against Glass Lewis.
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Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey will address media members in an old post office building in downtown St. Louis on Thursday, February 2, 2024 (Vanessa Abbbitt/St. Louis Postdispatch/Tribune News Service)
Similarly, in the ISS, Bailey points to statements from companies that claim IT will provide customers with “objective and fair products” while also creating an internal company report that includes a commitment to recommend a vote in favor of the proposal. [greenhouse gas] Emissions. ”
In addition to allegedly misleading consumers about corporate priorities, Bailey accussed Glass Lewis and the ISS of not omitting or disclosing important information on the weight of DEI and ESG standards when recommending votes.
Bailey’s investigation requires a variety of internal documents and communications to determine whether Glass Lewis or the ISS violated the state’s consumer protection law through misleading claims and lack of transparency.
The Florida Attorney General says he is “notifying” the state’s awakened company.
The proxy advisory firm is a key player in the American financial system and provides recommendations to institutional investors on how to vote on key shareholder resolutions and proposals. (AP Photo/Mark Lenihan, File)
“The ISS and Glass Lewis are hurting consumers and misleading institutional investors by promoting radical political agendas rather than focusing on maximizing returns. By taking legal action against both companies, Attorney General Bailey does the right thing and accepts responsibility for the racist Dei Quotas, Clumate nonprof’s statement to Fox News Digital.
“Such a deception is not only financially reckless, but also illegal and we have to meet the consequences,” Hild continued. “This necessary investigation will help you to abandon your fiduciary duties in order to deliberately abandon these activist proxy advisors in the name of promoting ESG fraud.”
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Neither Glass Lewis nor the ISS asked for comment on repeated requests from Fox News Digital.
Earlier this year, Glass Lewis served as a similar civil investigation demand by the Republican Attorney General of Florida. The move followed another similar 2023 request for information by 21 state attorney generals, including then-Bailey.
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