US companies will have a harder time blocking climate change and human rights petitions from annual shareholder votes following changes at the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The US regulator on Wednesday revoked policies concerning shareholders that were adopted during the Trump administration. The move is a win for environmentalists and other socially-conscious investors who file resolutions to pressure companies to reform their business practices.
Previously, the SEC said companies could exclude shareholder climate proposals that ask them for certain timelines and targets for their greenhouse gas emissions. But in future, “we would not concur in the exclusion of similar proposals that suggest targets or timelines so long as the proposals afford discretion to management as to how to achieve such goals”, the SEC said.