Investors are ramping up their scrutiny of medium-term emissions reduction targets and are planning to hold boards accountable if they don’t pass muster. Proxy advisory firm ISS’s recent benchmark survey results show that a significant number of 188 investors told ISS that a lack of “realistic” medium-term emissions reduction targets for Scope 1 and 2…
With climate change-related greenhouse gas (GhG) emission disclosures under consideration at the SEC and increased shareholder pressure for ESG transparency, this CompanyIQ report reviews current trends in Russell 3000 10-K Scope 1, 2, and 3 discussions. Using our CompanyIQ platform, we analyzed the 10-Ks filed by R3000 companies for the 12-month period of August 2021…
Leonel Rondon was killed in September 2018 after a control line on a century-old natural gas pipeline in Lawrence, Massachusetts, failed, detonating a home and sending its chimney crashing down onto the car he was sitting in. The explosion that killed 18-year-old Rondon was one of several and, as it was later revealed, resulted from…
A group of 64 investors holding $9.8 trillion in assets under management this month formed an initiative aimed at companies with a high water footprint to pressure them on valuing and reducing the material, financial risks linked to water and, in turn, to better guard global freshwater resources. The investor group, led by Ceres, plans…
Plastic use and the risks associated with it are garnering more heat from stakeholder groups, including shareholders, the federal government, the United Nations and ESG accounting standard setters, which have targeted single-use plastics. Boards should ensure that appropriate internal stakeholders are prepared for increased focus on the issue, which has generated popular shareholder proposals this…
California utility Pacific Gas & Electric Company recently published a climate strategy report that highlights a new category of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that the company calls Scope 4. According to PG&E, the category accounts for the emissions it enabled its customers to reduce. “As a utility that provides gas and electric service to millions…
Using the CompanyIQ® SEC disclosures database, we analyzed how Russell 3000 companies have elected to provide board-level oversight of ESG issues. With data from the latest available annual general meeting (AGM) year, we found that: 64% disclosed board-level ESG oversight. 83% assign oversight to a board committee, rather than the full board. The Nominating &…
The climate-change related shareholder proposals popping up in 2022 proxies are far more prescriptive or “constraining” than the ones BlackRock supported last year, the asset manager said in a report earlier this month, noting they “may not promote long-term shareholder value.” Sources say that’s a key reason many climate proposals have struggled to get the…
Several climate-related shareholder proposals went to a vote last week at S&P 500 companies, and most of them failed to garner more than 15% of the vote. While it is unusual for first-time proposals to win high levels of support at annual meetings, the focus on environmental issues among investors and proxy advisors had suggested…
The average S&P 500 board of directors cost their companies $3.3 million in compensation with the average per board member pay hitting nearly $325,000 in fiscal year 2020. This represents a nearly 11% increase in compensation since 2016. We used our CompanyIQ® Director Compensation database to analyze board compensation trends for the past five compensation…