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Opposition to environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) investing

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What is ESG?

ESG investing is an asset management approach that considers the environment, social issues, and corporate governance practices. It's a type of stakeholder investing, which argues shareholder returns should not be the only goal. Stakeholder investing contrasts with traditional approaches that exclusively consider financial factors like balance sheets, income statements, and valuations to maximize risk-adjusted returns (also known as shareholder investing).

Environmental, social, and corporate governance
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• What is ESG?
• Enacted ESG legislation
• Arguments for and against ESG
• Opposition to ESG
• Federal ESG rules
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• Economy and Society: Ballotpedia's weekly ESG newsletter


This article documents a selection of state, federal, academic, media, and think tank activity opposing environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) and the ESG investing movement.

Most opposition to ESG investing in public policy comes from Republican government officials. To learn more about policy support for ESG, click here.

Use the list below to learn more about the types of activity opposing ESG:

State government activity opposing ESG investing

This section contains a selection of state government activities opposing ESG investing, especially in the management of public funds such as pensions. The section is organized by the type of state office or branch of government. Click a link below to learn more about how different types of state officials are opposing ESG.

Gubernatorial activity opposing ESG investing

This section tracks a selection of gubernatorial activity opposing ESG investing, including activity related to the divestment of state funds from asset managers that consider ESG criteria in their investment decisions and other support for policies that oppose ESG investing. Click the links below to read the full stories.

  • Utah officials send letter to S&P over ESG indicators: In late March 2022, S&P Global released a credit indicator report on the state of Utah that went beyond traditional versions of such reports. S&P, among other things, rated corporate ESG preparedness, including an ESG component in its reports on each of the 50 states. On April 20, Utah Governor Spencer Cox (R), Senators Mike Lee (R) and Mitt Romney (R), all of the state’s congressmen, along with its treasurer and attorney general, sent a letter to S&P, arguing that the ESG component of its report was inherently political and therefore unfair.[11]

State financial officer activity opposing ESG investing

This section tracks a selection of state financial officer (SFO) activities opposing ESG investing. SFO opposition to ESG can include the building of lists of companies that are ineligible to contract with the state due to ESG commitments, the divestment of state funds from certain asset managers that do not solely consider financial factors in their investments, and the writing of letters, opinions, or other guidance documents that discuss an SFO's policy approach opposing ESG. Click the links below to read the full stories.

  • Republican states pressure financial firms on ESG practices: Twenty-six (26) state financial officers sent letters to financial services companies July 29, 2025, asking them to stop using ESG considerations in their investment practices.[12]
  • Republican state officials request ESG clarification: Twenty-two Republican state financial officers—treasurers, auditors, and a comptroller—sent a letter January 28, 2025, asking the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to issue new rules clarifying and updating ESG policies enacted or proposed during the Biden administration.[14]
  • Alabama auditor argues ESG hurts agriculture: Alabama State Auditor Andrew Sorrell (R) argued in an op-ed published October 13, 2024, that ESG threatened farmers—especially those in his state. Sorrell said environmental regulations and corporate policies would increase farming costs and damage large agricultural industries.[15]
  • State treasurers argue corporations should focus on shareholder value: A group of Republican state treasurers sent a letter on August 28, 2024, asking the Business Roundtable to change its 2019 statement defining the purpose of corporations. The treasurers argued the definition deprioritized shareholder interests in profit and risk management and promoted ESG investing.[17]
  • Louisiana Treasurer pushes back against Bank of America: Louisiana Treasurer John C. Fleming (R) in August 2024 recommended against approving Bank of America as a fiscal agent in the state. Fleming alleged the bank denied financial services to religious organizations and other customers and potential customers based on politics. Bank of America responded, denying the allegations.[18]
  • Indiana treasurer adds BlackRock to state ESG watchlist: Indiana Treasurer Daniel Elliott (R) announced June 21, 2024, that he added BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager at the time, to “a state watchlist, accusing the firm of making illegal environmental, social or governance (ESG) commitments,” according to the Indiana Capital Chronicle. The decision was related to a 2023 state law banning ESG in state pension investments.[19]
  • Oklahoma adds Barclays as restricted business: Oklahoma Treasurer Todd Russ (R) announced on May 3, 2024, that Barclays boycotted fossil fuel companies under the state’s legal definition and was therefore restricted in its ability to do business with the state.[20]
  • State treasurers question independence of BlackRock board members: Daily Mail reported on August 8, 2023, that fifteen state treasurers, with the aid of the State Financial Officers Foundation, sent a letter to BlackRock suggesting that the company’s board members had potential conflicts of interest that could interfere with their ability to make decisions that would benefit shareholders.[26]
  • SFOs send letters and questionnaires inquiring about ESG at firms: Twenty-one state financial officers signed letters on May 15, 2023, that were sent to large asset management firms and two proxy advisory services (Glass-Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services, who combined represent 95% of the proxy advisory business), requesting answers to questions about the use of ESG and the justification for doing so as legal fiduciaries of their clients’ money.[27]
  • West Virginia continues ESG pushback, turns attention to proxy advisory services: West Virginia State Treasurer Riley Moore (R), one of the first state officials to push back against ESG investing in general and asset management giant BlackRock in particular, did an interview on January 25, 2023, with The Epoch Times in which he discussed his support for a state bill opposing ESG by requiring that publicly owned shares be voted in the best financial interests of pension plan participants and not in line with the recommendations of proxy advisors.[31]
  • Kentucky threatens to divest from 11 banks over ESG policies: On January 2, 2023, Kentucky State Treasurer Allison Ball (R) issued a statement notifying 11 banks that their environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) policies amounted to energy boycotts that harmed the state’s economy according to definitions passed into law in 2022. The statement said the banks had 90 days to stop what Kentucky argued were energy company boycotts or face divestment from the state.[32]
  • Arizona divests from BlackRock over firm’s ESG policies: On December 8, 2022, Arizona Treasurer Kimberly Yee (R) announced that the state’s Investment Risk Management Committee had completed its review of BlackRock – including Larry Fink’s own letters – and had decided to proceed with removing its funds from BlackRock’s management because of the firm’s ESG positioning.[34]
  • State Financial Officers Foundation announces campaign opposing ESG: At a semi-annual meeting in Washington, D.C., attended by more than two dozen state officials, the State Financial Officers Foundation (SFOF) and its state financial officer members held a press conference to announce the launch of a retail-oriented, constituent-targeted ESG campaign and website called “Our Money, Our Values”.[36]
  • Louisiana treasurer announces plan to divest state funds from BlackRock: On October 5, 2022, Louisiana Treasurer John Schroder (R) announced that he had joined a growing number of state public officials who either pulled their state’s investments from BlackRock and other ESG-fund providers or threatened to do so. In his letter to BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, also dated October 5, Schroder said that, in his words, the firm’s “blatantly anti-fossil fuel policies would destroy Louisiana’s economy.”[39][40]

State administrative board activity opposing ESG investing

This section tracks a selection of state administrative board (including boards for pensions and other funds) activity opposing ESG, especially as ESG investing relates to state public pension plans. Board activity includes creating policies prohibiting ESG considerations in investments and ending contracts with businesses and asset managers that violate guidelines. Click the links below to read the full stories.

  • Indiana committee adopts ESG-skeptic proxy guidelines: Indiana’s Deferred Compensation Committee voted unanimously in May 2025 to adopt ESG-skeptic proxy voting guidelines from Bowyer Research, offered through Institutional Shareholder Services. State comptroller and committee chair Elise Nieshalla (R) argued the move ensured the state’s proxy votes promoted retirees’ financial interests—not ESG initiatives.[46]
  • Texas education fund pulls $8.5 billion from BlackRock: The Texas Permanent School Fund (TPSF) on March 19, 2024, pulled roughly $8.5 billion from BlackRock’s asset management. Texas State Board of Education Chairman Aaron Kinsey (R) argued that BlackRock supported ESG and was ineligible to manage public funds under a state law prohibiting public contracts with companies that illegally boycott the fossil fuel industry. BlackRock responded with a thread on Twitter/X and a letter to Kinsey and the TPSF, arguing the move was not in the best financial interest of the school fund. The move brought the total of Republican state funds withdrawn from BlackRock’s management to more than $13 billion.[50][51][52]
  • Indiana contracts with investment advisory firm opposed to ESG: The Indiana Capital Chronicle reported on March 20, 2023, that Indiana, which was among the states trying to limit considerations of ESG in the investment of state funds, contracted with Strive Advisory in November 2022 to help its pension system “strengthen its investment policy statement and proxy voting policies.”[54]

Attorney general activity opposing ESG investing

This section tracks a selection of attorney general activities opposing ESG, including investigations of companies over ESG concerns, letters to federal agencies over ESG rulemaking, and opinions related to state laws surrounding the definitions of fiduciary responsibilities. Click the links below to read the full stories.

  • Florida files lawsuit against proxy advisors: Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier (R) filed a lawsuit on November 20, 2025, against Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis, alleging violations of state consumer protection and antitrust laws. The complaint, filed in the 14th Judicial Circuit, claimed the firms misled investors and used their market position to shape proxy voting toward environmental, social, and governance considerations. The suit followed ongoing federal inquiries into the same firms and coincided with broader scrutiny of how proxy voting influenced corporate governance and retirement-plan decisions.[58]
  • State attorneys general send letter opposing EU ESG compliance: A coalition of 16 state attorneys general sent letters to large corporations including Microsoft, Alphabet, and Meta warning that compliance with the European Union’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSRDDD) could expose them to “lawsuits and government enforcement actions.”[59]
  • Texas AG launches investigation of proxy advisory services: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) announced his office was investigating Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis, the two largest proxy advisory firms, for “potentially misleading institutional investors and public companies by issuing voting recommendations that advance radical political agendas.” The announcement followed a U.S. district court injunction pausing the state’s law regulating proxy advisors.[60]
  • Texas attorney general blames ESG for wildfires: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) said that his office was investigating Xcel Energy Inc. and two contractors for causing wildfires that burned parts of the state last year. Paxton said, “It is unconscionable that utility companies might have sacrificed infrastructure maintenance, public safety and the well-being of our Texas communities for radical ESG and DEI goals.”[61]
  • State attorneys general send letter to SBTi: Twenty-three state attorneys general sent a letter in August 2025 to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), requesting information about the group and its members, warning that “the SBTi, and financial institutions that commit to the SBTi standards ‘risk violating federal and state antitrust laws as well as state consumer protection laws.’” Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird organized the letter. All of the 23 signees were Republicans.[62]
  • Florida attorney general launches investigation of climate groups: Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier (R) announced July 28, 2025, an investigation into two climate groups—the Climate Disclosure Project (CDP) and the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi)—over alleged deceptive trade practices and antitrust violations. Uthmeier argued SBTi “sells companies validation of their climate goals—then directs them back to CDP to report their progress, creating what appears to be a profit-driven feedback loop.” CDP cofounded SBTi.[63]
  • Missouri attorney general investigates proxy advisory services: Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey (R) announced in early July 2025 his office was investigating Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis, the two largest U.S. proxy advisory firms, alleging they prioritized political agendas over fiduciary duties in their voting recommendations.[64]
  • Fifteen state AGs ask Business Roundtable to stop DEI: Fifteen state attorneys general sent a letter on April 15, 2025, to Business Roundtable, an organization of chief executive officers (CEOs), asking the organization and its member companies to withdraw their support for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives.[65]
  • Florida AG ends contracts with ESG and DEI-connected law firms: Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier (R) issued a memo April 8, 2025, saying his office would no longer contract with outside law firms involved in ESG or DEI initiatives, which he argued were discriminatory and biased.[66]
  • Florida attorney general investigates proxy advisors: Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier (R) announced in March 2025 that his office was launching an antitrust investigation into Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), the two largest proxy advisory firms.[67]
  • Texas sends letter opposing financial firm DEI policies: Ten states, led by Texas, requested information from BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, and others regarding their diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies. The January 23, 2025, letter argued business and investment decisions based on race, sex, and other diversity criteria violated financial firms’ fiduciary duty to focus on maximizing shareholder value.[68]
  • Tennessee and BlackRock reach disclosure deal: Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti (R) announced January 17, 2025, that his office reached an agreement with BlackRock requiring the firm to disclose more about its proxy voting decisions and its reasons for voting against management recommendations on ESG resolutions. The agreement settled a lawsuit Skrmetti’s office filed in 2023. Skrmetti argued the settlement agreement “assures that the money Tennesseans invest with BlackRock is managed consistent with the funds’ disclosures.”[69]
  • Eleven states sue asset managers, alleging antitrust violations: Eleven Republican-led states on November 27, 2024, sued BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street—the Big Three passive asset managers—arguing the firms violated antitrust laws. The states said the firms' collective ESG engagement hurt coal production, raising consumer energy costs.[70]
  • State attorneys general sue over SEC climate disclosure rule: State attorneys general in 10 states, led by West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey (R) and Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr (R), filed a lawsuit against the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) after the agency released regulations requiring publicly traded companies to submit standardized climate risk and carbon emissions disclosures. The suit alleged the regulations were not clearly tied to the SEC's statutory authority and possibly violated the First Amendment.[72]
  • Tennessee sues BlackRock, alleging false statements related to ESG investment considerations: Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti (R) filed a lawsuit against BlackRock on December 18, 2023, alleging that BlackRock made misleading statements regarding the extent to which the company considered ESG factors in investments, preventing consumers from making informed investment choices.[74]
  • State lawyers seek to block U.S. Department of Labor ESG rule: Twenty-five states asked a federal judge in Texas on May 16, 2023, to block the implementation of the Biden Labor Department’s rule on the use of ESG in retirement investment plans that fall under ERISA. The states argue that the Biden rule was not created properly because the previous rule (enacted under the Trump administration) was, in their view, improperly invalidated.[79]
  • Louisiana attorney general launches ESG investigation: Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry (R) launched an investigation on April 25, 2023, into Climate Action 100+, which described itself as “an investor-led initiative to ensure the world’s largest corporate greenhouse gas emitters take necessary action on climate change.” Landry’s office said the investigation aimed to determine whether some asset management companies that were part of the initiative violated their fiduciary duties by focusing on ESG investment factors.[81]
  • Tennessee joins open letter opposing ESG: Tennessee joined the original group of state attorneys general on April 10 who signed an open letter to asset managers arguing that those managers had a legal responsibility to seek maximized returns based on financial (not ESG) considerations in the investment of state funds.[82]
  • States send letter to asset managers opposing ESG: Attorneys general from 21 states signed and sent a letter on March 30, 2023, to some of the biggest and best-known asset management companies (AMCs) in the country. The letter threatened state divestment from AMCs that incorporated ESG policies into their investment strategies.[83]
  • State attorneys general continue the pushback against ESG: Bloomberg Law argued on February 13, 2023, that state attorneys general were the new players in the state-level pushback against ESG after state financial officers (like treasurers and auditors) dominated most of the state-level pushback in 2022.[84]
  • State attorneys general sue SEC over ESG fund disclosure rules: Texas and three other states filed a lawsuit in February 2023 against a Securities and Exchange Commission rule requiring funds to disclose additional information about their votes on ESG shareholder proposals and requiring other corporate meeting disclosures related to ESG.[85]
  • States sue Biden administration over ESG in retirement plans: Twenty-five states announced on January 26, 2023, that they had filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration alleging that, in their view, the Department of Labor’s rule allowing for the consideration of ESG factors in Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)-governed retirement investments increased portfolio risk and violated the law.[86]
  • State attorneys general file motion to oppose Vanguard utility company stock purchases: On November 29, 2022, 13 Republican state attorneys general filed a motion asking the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to hold a hearing on ESG-mutual-fund player Vanguard’s plans to purchase large numbers of shares in public utility stocks. The states said they were concerned that, as an ESG advocate, Vanguard might engage in environmental activism with its stakes in the utilities.[89]
  • 19 state attorneys general announce investigation into ESG investing practices of six banks: Fox Business reported on October 19, 2022, that attorneys general from 19 states announced that they were launching an investigation into the involvement of six large American banks with the United Nations’ Net-Zero Banking Alliance. Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt (R) said, “We are leading a coalition investigating banks for ceding authority to the U.N., which will only result in the killing of American companies that don’t subscribe to the woke, climate agenda.”[90]
  • 18 states join Missouri attorney general investigation over Morningstar ESG: Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt (R) began an investigation of Morningstar, Inc. and its ESG-ratings subsidiary, Sustainalytics, for alleged consumer protection violations. Specifically, Schmitt’s scrutiny focused on accusations that Sustainalytics used sources in developing and implementing its ESG ratings that violated state laws prohibiting discrimination against Israeli companies. Schmitt's office announced that it had been joined in its inquiry by attorneys general in 18 other states.[93]
  • Kentucky’s attorney general says ESG is inconsistent with state law: Kentucky Treasurer Allison Ball (R) asked Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron (R) “[w]hether 'stakeholder capitalism' and 'environmental, social, and governance' investment practices in connection with the investment of public pensions funds" were "consistent with Kentucky law governing fiduciary duties.” The Attorney General’s office replied on May 26, 2022, arguing ESG was inconsistent with fiduciary responsibility in the state.[94]
  • Louisiana attorney general issues guidance opposing ESG investing in state pensions: Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry (R) issued guidance in August 2022 arguing that asset managers like BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street violated their fiduciary duties under state law through their ESG commitments.[97]

Secretary of state activity opposing ESG investing

This section tracks a selection of secretary of state activities opposing ESG, including cease and desist orders over ESG activity, fines over misleading ESG policies, and statements and arguments from officials. Click the links below to read the full stories.

Agriculture commissioner activity opposing ESG investing

This section tracks a selection of agriculture commissioner activities opposing ESG, including investigations of companies over ESG effects on agriculture, letters to banks over ESG activities, and studies on the economic impacts of ESG. Click the links below to read the full stories.

  • State agriculture commissioners join ESG pushback: Agriculture commissioners from 12 states sent a letter on January 29, 2024, to the heads of six banks, arguing that ESG efforts to promote net-zero carbon policies would hurt farmers and inflate consumer food prices.[102]

State legislative activity opposing ESG investing

See also: State legislative approaches opposing ESG investing, Enacted state ESG legislation by trifecta status, 2020-2025

This section lists noteworthy examples of legislative activity opposing ESG investing. To learn more about the six types of legislative approaches opposing ESG and for a full list of bills since 2020, click here.

Click the links below to read the full stories.

  • Texas legislature passes bill requiring proxy advisor disclosures: The Texas legislature passed a bill June 2, 2025, requiring proxy advisory firms to disclose when their shareholder vote recommendations at Texas-based companies incorporated ESG or other non-financial considerations.[103]
  • North Carolina bill would bar banks from denying farmers over ESG: North Carolina Rep. Neal Jackson (R) introduced a bill February 12, 2025, that proposed prohibiting financial institutions from denying services to farmers based on ESG considerations.[105]
  • Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs argues for anti-ESG law: The Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs ran an article arguing Oklahoma’s anti-ESG law financially helped the state and its pension beneficiaries.[107]
  • ESG critics testify in favor of Texas anti-ESG law: Two ESG opponents—William Hild (the executive director of Consumers’ Research) and Eric Bledsoe (a senior fellow at the Foundation for Government Accountability)—gave testimonies before the Texas Senate on October 17, 2024. They argued the state’s anti-ESG laws produced positive results and said non-ESG investment funds tended to outperform investments that considered other factors.[108]
  • Alabama Senate advances bill opposing ESG boycotts: The Alabama State Senate on May 18, 2023, passed a bill that proposed prohibiting state contracts with businesses that boycotted certain companies and industries (like fossil fuel or mining companies) based on ESG criteria.[116]
  • Alabama Senate committee advances bill opposing ESG: The Alabama Senate Committee on Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development overrode objections from the state’s bankers and Democrats and advanced an ESG bill that proposed preventing state entities from doing business with financial companies that boycotted specific sectors of the economy.[117]
  • Florida advances bill opposing ESG: The Florida Senate passed a bill on April 19, 2023, that proposed prohibiting the state and local governments from using ESG in debt financing and investing. The bill advanced to Governor Ron DeSantis (R) for consideration.[121]
  • South Carolina House advances bill opposing ESG: A bill in South Carolina that proposed requiring the state pension system to consider only pecuniary factors in its investments and to exercise its shareholder proxy rights passed the state House on April 13, 2023, and advanced to the Senate.[122]
  • Kansas bill opposing ESG passes legislature: Kansas lawmakers approved a bill on April 6, 2023, prohibiting ESG considerations in public pension investments. Some measures that were proposed, like certain restrictions on private ESG investing and on public investments in foreign companies, did not make it into the final bill. The bill was sent to the governor for consideration.[123]
  • Anti-ESG bill advances out of Indiana Senate committee: The Indiana Senate Pensions and Labor Committee advanced a bill April 5, 2023, that proposed prohibiting ESG considerations in public investments. The Senate bill contained several exemptions that did not appear in the bill when it was first introduced. Some suggested the changes would water down the legislation.[124]
  • Utah legislators discuss plans to oppose ESG: The Salt Lake Tribune reported on February 24, 2023, that Utah legislators last week voiced their frustrations with ESG investment tactics and pledged to oppose what Rep. Ken Ivory (R) described as “an effort to weaponize capital.”[130]
  • Indiana lawmakers join ESG pushback: Members of the Indiana General Assembly’s House Financial Institutions Committee on February 2, 2023, passed a bill to require the state to remove all pension funds from management by financial firms that supported ESG or considered ESG criteria in investments.[131]
  • Texas state senators hold hearings for two of the three biggest ESG asset managers: The Texas Senate held hearings on ESG, fossil fuel boycotts, and other related investment and banking matters. The hearings featured, among others, representatives from BlackRock and State Street, two of the three largest passive asset management firms. Kevin Stocklin, a writer at the Epoch Times, penned a news analysis arguing that the memberships of both asset managers in organizations like the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative require them to use their shares to compel companies towards environmental goals, even though representatives from both companies said in the hearings that they did not participate in such activities:[132]

State government litigation opposing ESG investing

This section tracks activity in state courts opposing ESG mandates. For example, if a judge strikes down a state law requiring businesses in a state to meet certain diversity requirements, it may appear here. Click the links below to read the full stories.

  • State judge dismisses lawsuit opposing ESG investments in NYC pension plans: New York State Judge Andrea Masley on July 3, 2024, dismissed a lawsuit brought against New York City public pension funds opposing the system’s divestment from fossil fuels. Judge Masley ruled the plaintiffs—including four city employees—did not have standing to sue and did not sufficiently demonstrate that the fossil fuel divestment injured them.[138]
  • California corporate diversity law ruled unconstitutional: On September 30, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) signed Assembly Bill 979, which added a section to the California Corporate Code. The section mandated that every corporation in the state had to have at least one person of a racial or sexual minority on its board of directors by the end of 2021. The law was challenged in court and ruled unconstitutional.[141]

Federal government activity opposing ESG investing

This section tracks a selection of federal government activities opposing ESG investing. Federal opposition to ESG includes congressional oversight of ESG mandates from regulators like the SEC, opposition to laws and regulations that force diversity or ESG reporting requirements on businesses, opposition to ESG investment considerations in the management of Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)-governed pension plans, and investigations into banks and officials that support ESG.

Click a link below to learn more about how different federal approaches opposing ESG:

Legislation, legislative hearings, legislative letters, and committee investigations opposing ESG investing

This section tracks a selection of federal legislative activities opposing ESG investing, including legislation, legislative hearings, and committee investigations opposing ESG investing:

  • House subcommittee addresses proxy advisory firms: The House Financial Services Subcommittee on Capital Markets held a hearing in April 2025 on proxy advisory firms, which guide institutional investors on how to vote their shares. Critics argued the firms had conflicts of interest and supported ESG.[142]
  • Republicans ask SEC to drop ESG rules: The House Financial Services Committee sent a letter on March 31, 2025, to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) asking the agency to rescind several Biden-era climate-related rules, including a rule that proposed requiring additional ESG fund disclosures and a finalized rule requiring ESG-labeled funds to invest at least 80% of their assets in ESG-related securities.[143]
  • Rep. Barr re-introduces anti-ESG legislation: Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.) reintroduced the Ensuring Sound Guidance Act on March 27, 2025, which proposed requiring investment advisors to prioritize factors he said directly affected financial returns over ESG considerations. It marked the first time Congress considered such anti-ESG legislation with unified Republican control of both chambers and the presidency.[144]
  • Republicans respond to Europe’s ESG regulations: Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), a member of the Senate Banking Committee, introduced a bill—the PROTECT USA Act—that he said would protect American companies from the European Union’s (EU) ESG reporting requirements. Republicans and American business organizations argued the EU’s ESG regulations would hurt and force compliance on U.S. companies. Hagerty’s bill proposed prohibiting foreign governments from enforcing the rules against some American businesses and nullifying foreign court judgments against protected companies.[145]
  • House Republicans argue against ESG in financial services report: The House Republican Environmental, Social, and Governance Working Group released a report on ESG. The report argued the Biden administration promoted ESG initiatives to advance environmental and social policies without congressional support. It also proposed anti-ESG policies related to proxy voting, shareholder proposals, ESG ratings, and other topics.[146]
  • House Judiciary Committee report alleges organizations colluded to force ESG policies: The House Judiciary Committee released an interim report on June 11, 2024, alleging that several organizations, investors, and asset managers colluded to force American corporations to adopt ESG policies, violating laws that prohibit anti-competitive behavior. The report specifically referred to Ceres, Climate Action 100+, the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative, the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS), and the Big Three asset managers (BlackRock, State Street, and Vanguard), among others in its allegations. The Judiciary Committee followed up its report with a hearing on ESG and related matters on June 12, 2024.[149][150]
  • House Judiciary Committee probes Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero: The House Judiciary Committee interviewed at least two leaders of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ), a global network of financial firms supporting ESG in June 2024. Reuters also reported that the committee requested interviews with several other GFANZ officials and affiliated individuals, including billionaire and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.[151]
  • House subcommittee holds hearing on SEC climate rule: The House Financial Services Committee’s Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee held a hearing on March 18 aimed at assessing the potential costs associated with the SEC’s climate emissions reporting rule. A video of the hearing from C-Span can be found here. Consumers Research, an organization opposed to ESG, highlighted parts of the hearing on its Twitter/X feed.[154]
  • House Republicans continue pushback against ESG considerations in retirement plans: House Republicans again pushed back on the Biden administration’s rule allowing ESG considerations in investments governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). The House Ways and Means Committee held a hearing on the matter on November 7. The Republicans on the committee released a statement after the hearing arguing that, in their view, opposing ESG was important for maximizing retirement savings.[157]
  • House Judiciary Committee subpoenas ESG supporters: The House Judiciary Committee on November 1, 2023, subpoenaed organizations that supported ESG to investigate whether the groups had violated antitrust laws, according to the committee, including As You Sow and the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ).[158]
  • House GOP passes four more bills opposing ESG out of committee: House Republicans on September 14, 2023, passed four ESG bills out of the Education and Workforce Committee, bringing the total number of ESG bills passed out of committee at that point in 2023 to seven. The move followed the lead of the House Financial Services Committee, which advanced its own slate of bills opposing ESG in August 2023.[160]
  • House Republicans consider next ESG actions: House Republicans held hearings, issued statements, and passed out of committee various bills related to ESG in July 2023. The discussion turned in September 2023 to how they intended to move forward with their plans to oppose ESG.[161]
  • House Judiciary Committee requests ESG documents from California pension system: House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) requested documents in late 2022 from the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) and Ceres, a nonprofit group that advised CalPERS on environmental matters. The committee was seeking information about CalPERS’ ESG efforts and the effect they had on investments and returns. Bloomberg reported on August 17, 2023, that CalPERS had been complying with the request, turning over thousands of pages of documents in the preceding months.[162]
  • House GOP working group issues ESG agenda: The Republican ESG House Working Group issued a memo on June 23, 2023, detailing its agenda for the 118th Congress (2023-24), which focused on increasing oversight of proxy voting and large asset management firms.[167]
  • House Republican introduces bill opposing ESG in retirement funds: Congressman Andy Barr (R, Ky.) introduced a bill on June 21, 2023, opposing the Biden Labor Department’s rule allowing the use of ESG in retirement plan investments. Both chambers previously passed a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution overturning the Labor Department rule, but President Joe Biden (D) vetoed that legislation. Congressman Barr introduced the bill in response.[168]
  • House Republicans hold ESG hearing: On June 6, 2023, the House Oversight Committee held a hearing on ESG and the risks that its Republican-led members believed it posed to the nation’s financial infrastructure.[169]
  • House Oversight Committee holds ESG hearing: The House Oversight Committee on May 10, 2023, held a hearing on ESG. Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) criticized ESG in his opening statement. Among other things, Chairman Comer said that he intended to hold more oversight hearings to investigate ESG policy.[171]
  • House fails to overturn veto of ESG legislation: The U.S. House of Representatives on March 23, 2023, failed in its attempt to overturn President Joe Biden’s (D) veto of the Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution Congress had sent to his desk that sought to block a Labor Department rule permitting ESG considerations in retirement plans.[172]
  • Critics in Congress blame ESG for Silicon Valley Bank failure: California regulators shut down Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) on March 10, 2023, making it the second-largest bank failure in American history at the time. In the wake of the collapse and the fear of contagion, some in politics and the media criticized the bank’s loans to ESG-related companies and its in-house ESG policies. For example, Congressman James Comer (R-Ky.), the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, said SVB was “one of the most woke banks” in America.[174]
  • Congress makes plans to lead federal opposition to ESG in 2023: From state treasurers divesting pension and operating funds from BlackRock and other ESG providers to state attorneys general investigating the same providers over the impact of ESG on assorted policy matters, state officials led the pushback against environmental, social, and corporate governance investing in 2022. But the shift in control of the House of Representatives after the 2022 election had Republican elected officials making plans to increase their visibility and activity opposing ESG at the federal level as well.[181]
  • Republicans map out their agenda on ESG and antitrust: Some members and committees started laying out their ESG agendas ahead of the 118th Congress. Among those were members of the Judiciary Committee, who wanted to understand better how ESG and ESG-related organizations fit into the existing body of antitrust legislation and regulation.[182]
  • House Financial Services Committee members plan legislation on ESG and ERISA-governed pension plans: House Financial Services Committee members congressmen Andy Barr (R-Ky.) and Mike Braun (R-Ind.) launched an effort to address one of the issues at the heart of the intersection of the federal government with ESG-world, namely the question of ESG usage in ERISA (the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974)-governed retirement plans. In 2020, the Trump Administration’s Department of Labor issued a rule limiting the use of ESG factors in ERISA-governed plans and only allowed such considerations if investment managers needed to decide between otherwise equally financially sound investments. Early in the Biden presidency, that rule was overturned and replaced by an ESG-friendly rule. Barr and Braun introduced legislation to oppose the Biden Labor Department’s rule:[183]

Federal lawsuits opposing ESG investing

This section lists a selection of activity in federal courts opposing ESG investing:

  • Ninth Circuit halts California climate-disclosure rule: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued an order on November 18, 2025, temporarily blocking enforcement of California’s climate-risk disclosure law, SB 261. The statute required companies with more than $500 million in annual revenue to report climate-related financial risks starting Jan. 1, 2026. The court granted the request after the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and several business groups sought emergency relief while the broader appeal proceeded. The decision did not extend to California’s emissions-reporting statute, SB 253. That law remained scheduled to take effect June 30, 2026, for Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, which covered direct emissions and emissions from purchased electricity, steam, heating, or cooling. Scope 3 reporting—covering supply-chain and customer-related emissions—was still set to begin in 2027. The court did not provide additional reasoning in its one-page order.[189]
  • Exxon files federal suit against California ESG disclousure requirements: *Exxon Mobil filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California in October 2025, challenging California ESG disclosure requirement laws under the First Amendment, arguing the requirements required the company "to trumpet California’s preferred message even though Exxon Mobil believes the speech is misleading and misguided."[190]
  • Judge restricts ESG use in American Airlines 401(k) plan: U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor, appointed by President George W. Bush (R), issued a final ruling in Spence v. American Airlines Inc., siding partly with a pilot who sued the airline over ESG-linked retirement investments. O’Connor ruled that American Airlines breached its duty of loyalty under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) because it allowed non-financial goals to influence its 401(k) plan. O’Connor ordered the airline to remove ESG considerations from its retirement plan, appoint independent benefits committee members, and bar non-financial proxy voting. However, he found no breach of the duty of prudence and did not award monetary damages, saying the plaintiffs showed no financial loss.[191]
  • Judge rules American Airlines violated fiduciary duties: U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor ruled January 10, 2025, against the ESG considerations in American Airlines' retirement plan. O’Connor argued the ESG investments did not align with the company’s legal obligation to make investments solely for the financial benefit of retirees. He said federal law prohibited non-financial considerations in investments, “no matter how noble it might view the aim.”[192]
  • Court rules against Nasdaq diversity rule: The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled December 11, 2024, that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was wrong to approve the Nasdaq stock exchange’s 2021 rule establishing diversity requirements for all listed companies. The court agreed with the plaintiffs who alleged the SEC overstepped its legal authority in approving the rule.[193]
  • Suits against SEC consolidated and assigned to Eighth Circuit: Nine lawsuits against the Securities and Exchange Commission’s final rule on climate disclosures for publicly traded companies were consolidated on March 21, 2024, and assigned to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit through a lottery process. Sixteen of the court’s 17 justices were appointed under Republican presidents at the time of the consolidation.[195]
  • Appeals court pauses implementation of SEC climate rule: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on March 15, 2024, temporarily blocked the implementation of the SEC’s 2024 final rules on emissions data reporting while the courts considered lawsuits alleging the regulations exceeded the SEC’s authority.[196]
  • NCPPR sues the SEC, alleging bias: The National Center for Public Policy Research (NCPPR), a nonprofit organization, on April 28, 2023, filed a lawsuit against the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), alleging that the Commission was biased against NCPPR because the organization filed shareholder proposals that were opposed to ESG.[198]

Federal executive and agency activity opposing ESG investing

This section lists a selection of federal executive (and presidential candidate) and agency activity opposing ESG investing:

  • FTC investigates ISS and Glass Lewis: On November 12, 2025, the Federal Trade Commission launched an antitrust investigation into ISS and Glass Lewis. The inquiry examined whether the firms’ competitive practices and shareholder voting recommendations violated federal antitrust laws. Investigators told Glass Lewis in late September 2025 that they were reviewing whether the firm and others engaged in unfair methods of competition related to advice on climate- and social-related shareholder proposals. Glass Lewis stated that the inquiry remained non-public and emphasized that it had not been accused of legal wrongdoing.[199]
  • SEC chair argues against ESG shareholder proposals: Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Paul Atkins argued in October 2025, "In the past few proxy seasons, perhaps nothing has epitomized the politicization of shareholder meetings more than shareholder proposals focused on environmental and social issues."[200]
  • U.S. ambassador to EU speaks against ESG rules: U.S. Ambassador to the EU Andy Puzder told Bloomberg News that the Trump administration would defend American companies from EU regulations it considered unfair. Puzder said the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) were examples of rules that hurt American companies.[201]
  • SEC chair criticizes EU ESG rules: During an address to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Capital Markets Roundtable in Paris, SEC Chair Paul Atkins said the European Union’s climate and ESG disclosure requirements imposed undue costs on U.S. companies and asked OECD nations to focus on financial considerations rather than ESG factors.[202]
  • EPA proposes ending emissions reporting: On September 13, 2025, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a proposed rule to eliminate the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP), which required fossil fuel producers to disclose carbon emissions. Administrator Lee Zeldin said the reporting program went beyond what the Clean Air Act required.[203]
  • Department of Labor releases agenda, including ESG retirement plan rule: The Department of Labor (DOL) announced September 4, 2025, plans to issue a rule governing the use of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors in retirement plans covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). The department’s Employee Benefits Security Administration listed the issue in its semi-annual regulatory agenda as being in the Final Rule Stage.[204]
  • SEC signals further retreat from climate disclosure rules: The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reiterated in a July 2025 status report that it would not defend or revisit the Biden-era climate disclosure rules and asked the Eighth Circuit to decide the case. The agency declined to say whether it would enforce the rules if they were upheld in court. The status report also said a majority of commissioners believed the rule exceeded the SEC’s statutory authority.[205]
  • Labor Department says Citi’s racial equity program violates civil rights laws: The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) issued an advisory opinion in July 2025 arguing Citigroup’s racial equity program violated federal civil rights laws. The program was created to cover investment management fees for minority-owned businesses. The department’s opinion reversed a 2022 advisory letter that approved the initiative.[206]
  • SEC withdraws proposed ESG rules: The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) withdrew two ESG-related proposed rules in June 2025—one that would have expanded ESG disclosure requirements and another that would have revised the shareholder proposal submission process.[207]
  • Labor Department drops defense of ESG rule: The Department of Labor (DOL) filed court documents in May 2025 indicating it would stop defending a Biden-era rule allowing ESG considerations in retirement plans. The agency said it planned to propose a new rule to replace it.[208]
  • Federal government weighs in on Texas antitrust suit against Big Three: The U.S. Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission filed a statement of interest in May 2025 in an 11-state, Texas-led lawsuit alleging BlackRock, State Street, and Vanguard colluded to suppress coal production, violating antitrust laws. The statement argued ESG-related coordination among asset managers could raise valid antitrust concerns.[209]
  • ESG critic appointed to Labor Department: The Department of Labor in May 2025 appointed Justin Danhof—a critic of ESG investing and a proxy voting and corporate engagement expert—as a senior policy advisor in the Employee Benefits Security Administration. Danhof’s appointment brought an anti-ESG voice into a role shaping guidance for retirement plans.[210]
  • Fannie Mae closes ESG department: Fannie Mae—the Federal National Mortgage Association, a government-sponsored enterprise (GSE)—shut down its ESG department, firing over 30 employees, including Laurel Davis, head of the company’s mission and impact program. The closure followed similar moves at Freddie Mac and reflects a broader shift away from ESG and DEI initiatives promoted during the Biden administration. Leadership changes at the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), including President Trump’s appointment of Bill Pulte as director, contributed to the shift.[211]
  • Trump issues executive order opposing state ESG policies: President Donald Trump (R) issued an executive order April 8, 2025, directing U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate and block enforcement of state laws that promoted ESG policies. Trump argued such laws conflicted with national security and economic interests. The order laid the groundwork for federal legal challenges against state ESG laws. It reversed the dynamic under the Biden administration in which Republican-led states filed legal challenges against federal ESG policies.[212]
  • SEC ends defense of climate reporting rules: The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced March 27, 2025, that it voted to end its defense of the Biden-era corporate emissions reporting rules. The decision indicated the majority of SEC commissioners at the time did not support the implementation of the rules. Acting SEC Chair Mark Uyeda said the commission wanted to end its “defense of the costly and unnecessarily intrusive climate change disclosure rules.”[213]
  • Acting SEC chairman pauses defense of ESG rule: Acting SEC Chairman Mark Uyeda asked a federal court February 11, 2025, to stop proceedings in a case challenging the commission’s proposed climate disclosure rules. Uyeda said in a press release, “The Rule is deeply flawed and could inflict significant harm on the capital markets and our economy.”[214]
  • Trump announces pick for next SEC chairman: President-elect Donald Trump announced in December 2024 that he would nominate Paul Atkins as Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chairman. Atkins’ views on ESG differed from those of SEC Chairman Gary Gensler. For example, Atkins wrote a letter opposing the SEC’s 2022 proposed climate disclosure rules, arguing they overstepped the agency's delegated authority.[216]
  • Former President Trump joins opposition to ESG: Former President Donald Trump (R) released a video on February 24, 2023, confirming his opposition to ESG. In the video, Trump said he wanted to see what he viewed as political considerations kept away from Americans’ retirement investments.[220]
  • SEC commissioner shares ESG concerns: SEC Commissioner Mark Uyeda on January 27, 2023, gave a speech in which he addressed what he viewed as the failures of ESG. Some analysts claimed that Uyeda’s remarks put forth a legislative and legal roadmap for ESG opponents to follow.[221]

Intellectual and scholarly opposition to ESG and the ESG investing movement

This section tracks a selection of books, editorials, academic and scholarly articles, think tank white papers, and other intellectual activity and works opposing ESG investing. Click a link below to jump to a section:

Books

This section tracks a selection of books opposing or arguing against ESG investing. Click the links below for more information on each book.

  • Capitalist Punishment: How Wall Street is Using Your Money to Create a Country You Didn’t Vote For (2023) is a book by entrepreneur and political commentator Vivek Ramaswamy pushing back against President Joe Biden's (D) support for policies promoting ESG investing.[222]
  • Sustainable: Moving Beyond ESG to Impact Investing (2022) is a book by Terrence Keeley, a former BlackRock senior adviser, to express his concerns with the ESG investing model.[223]

Editorials, op-eds, and columns

This section tracks a selection of editorials, op-eds, and columns opposing or arguing against ESG investing.

  • RealClear Energy, "Terrence Keeley: Why ESG Investments Are Self-Defeating": Terrence Keeley—an ESG critic and former Blackrock senior adviser—argued that ESG investments were self-defeating in an interview at RealClear’s 2024 Energy Future Forum.[225]
  • RealClear Policy, "Canada’s Glass Lewis Shouldn’t Force Leftwing Politics on U.S. Companies": Derek Kreifels—the CEO of the State Financial Officers Foundation (SFOF) and an ESG opponent—argued in an op-ed June 26, 2024, that Glass Lewis' pick for its CEO hiring in May showed that the company aimed to force “Leftwing Politics on U.S. Companies.”[226]
  • Wall Street Journal: "Diversity Was Supposed to Make Us Rich. Not So Much": Wall Street Journal columnist James Mackintosh argued June 28, 2024, that a 2015 study linking executive diversity to corporate profitability was flawed and irreplaceable.[227]
  • Bloomberg Law: "Big Index Funds Need to Be Passive, Not Political: Editorial": Bloomberg’s editorial board argued in a May 2, 2024, opinion piece that passive investment funds should not actively vote the shares they hold or engage with corporate executives. The editors wrote that funds should allow end investors (who own shares of the fund) to vote their own proxies or default votes to mirror the preferences of company management or other shareholders.[228]
  • The Political Forum Institute: "The GOP’s ESG Strategy": Stephen Soukup, an ESG opponent and the author of The Dictatorship of Woke Capital, argued that some House Republicans were, in his view, already planning for Chevron’s reversal and preparing for a larger congressional role in SEC oversight.[229]
  • VoxEU: "Smoke and mirrors: A look inside ESG fund portfolios": Gianpaolo Parise and Mirco Rubin, professors from the EDHEC Business School in France, examined the portfolios of investment funds that claimed to consider ESG factors in their investments. The authors argued that many such funds were misleading regulators and clients about their holdings. The paper called the practice of overstating, in their view, ESG investment commitments “Green Window Dressing.”[230]
  • Financial Post: "Terence Corcoran: ‘Woke’ ESG regulations leading to policy chaos with worst yet to come": In a piece for Canada’s Financial Post, markets/finance writer Terence Corcoran argued that, while it was easy to talk like an advocate of ESG, global ESG reporting standards would, in his view, make business and markets more difficult and complicated.[231]
  • VettaFi Advisor Perspectives: "Aswath Damodaran: It’s Time to Retire the ESG Concept": At Morningstar's 2023 annual conference, Aswath Damodaran, a professor of finance at NYU’s Stern School of Business and ESG opponent, criticized ESG in a talk.[232]
  • Timothy M. Doyle: "ESG: 'Doing Good or Sounding Good?'": Timothy M. Doyle, a senior advisor at the Bipartisan Policy Center, interviewed Aswath Damodaran, professor of corporate finance and valuation at the NYU Stern School of Business and "one of the foremost academic critics of ESG.” Doyle published highlights from the conversation on November 22, 2022.[233]
  • The Wall Street Journal: "Sam Bankman-Fried Becomes an ESG Truth-Teller": On November 17, 2022, The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board turned comments from FTX Founder Sam Bankman-Fried criticizing ESG into an editorial.[234]
  • Rupert Darwall: "Proposed climate rule is bigger, badder deal than Manchin-Schumer climate bill": On October 15, 20222, The Hill carried a guest editorial by Rupert Darwall, a climate author and researcher and senior fellow at the RealClear Foundation. In it, Darwall argued that the Securities and Exchange Commission’s proposed environmental disclosure rules would be bigger, more expensive, and more intrusive than proponents argued.[235]
  • Derek Kreifels: "ESG Cancel Culture Comes for State Financial Officers": On October 8, 2022, Derek Kreifels, the Chief Executive Officer of the State Financial Officers Foundation (SFOF) appeared in RealClearPolitics to defend state treasurers who opposed ESG and to defend his organization against charges that it was spreading misinformation on those treasurers’ behalf.[236]
  • Hans Taparia: "One of the Hottest Trends in the World of Investing Is a Sham": On September 29, 2022, in a New York Times guest essay, Hans Taparia, a clinical associate professor at the New York University Stern School of Business, argued that ESG could benefit markets, investors, and stakeholders but that its practitioners were preventing that from happening. Taparia concluded that the system needed changed. “The current system,” he wrote, “needs an overhaul. Reform may not be as kind to corporate America, but it would make it easier to invest in the future of our society and planet.”[237]
  • Allen Mendenhall: "Post-ESG era for corporations, investment nears": In an opinion published on Fox News, Allen Mendenhall, an associate dean and Grady Rosier Professor in the Sorrell College of Business at Troy University, made the case that large asset management firms focused too much on sustainability and other ESG criteria and were doing a disservice to their clients and behaving unethically.[238]
  • The Federalist: The ‘ESG’ Scam Rates Slave-Using Chinese Firms Higher Than Clean American Energy Producers: In a June 28, 2022, piece published by The Federalist, Chuck Devore, a conservative commentator and the vice president of national initiatives at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, compared ratings issued by ESG giant MSCI for American companies and those issued for Chinese companies. Devore argued that his comparison showed a discrepancy that favored Chinese companies and, in his view, betrayed the spirit at the heart of the ESG movement.[239]
  • Wall Street Journal: “The ESG Investing Backlash Arrives”: On August 15, 2022, The Wall Street Journal published an editorial titled, “The ESG Investing Backlash Arrives,” which featured state AGs’ efforts to push back against BlackRock’s ESG program and the rise of “post-ESG” investment vehicles like Strive Asset Management.[240]
  • George Will argues against ESG: On June 22, 2022, conservative newspaper columnist George Will used his Washington Post column to address ESG and stakeholder capitalism.[241]
  • David Bahnsen writes about NYU finance professor Aswath Damodara's opposition to ESG: In an article that accompanied David Bahnsen's National Review-produced podcast with NYU finance professor Aswath Damodaran, Bahnsen wrote about “A few points I find worth highlighting for those interested in a deeper dive on the subject [of ESG],” including.[242]
  • Vivek Ramaswamy responds to proposed Biden administration ESG rule and potential impact on retirement plans: On July 19, 2022, Vivek Ramaswamy, the author, entrepreneur, and executive chairman of Strive Asset Management, and Alex Acosta, the former Trump administration Secretary of Labor wrote a piece for the Wall Street Journal in which they made the case that the Biden Administration’s plans for a rule on ESG investments in retirement plans were likely, in their view, to be problematic for investors and create a tax on retirement accounts. The two wrote the following.
  • New York Post: "The New York Times’ cluelessness just hit a new high": On August 5, the New York Times ran an investigative report on the people and organizations that it argued were, in its words, weaponizing public offices to push back against ESG.[243] On August 7, 2022, the New York Post responded with an editorial critiquing its crosstown rival, declaring that “The New York Times’ cluelessness just hit an astounding new high.”[244]

Scholarly articles

This section tracks a selection of scholarly articles opposing or arguing against ESG investing.

  • Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance, "The Price of Delaware Corporate Law Reform": A study by Kenneth Khoo and Roberto Tallarita, law professors at National University of Singapore and Harvard Law School, respectively, found that changes made to Delaware corporate law had an immediate and negative effect on Delaware corporations.[245]
  • SSRN, "ESG Ratings of ESG Index Providers": This research paper from Columbia Business School argues that a number of companies that earn a significant portion of their revenue from ESG rating services tend to rank businesses with better stock performance more favorably on ESG indexes. The researchers’ conclusions suggest that MSCI—a leading ESG rating service—has a strong financial incentive that impacts its ESG ratings.[246]
  • Rock Center for Corporate Governance at Stanford University, "ESG Ratings: A Compass without Direction": On August 4, 2022, David Larcker and Brian Tayan of Stanford, Edward Watts of the Yale School of Management, and Lukasz Pomorski of AQR Capital Management published a paper examining the reliability and effectiveness of ESG ratings. The paper, titled “ESG Ratings: A Compass without Direction,” found that ratings tended to fall short of their claims on both counts.[247]
  • European Corporate Governance Institute (ECGI), "Is History Repeating Itself? The (Un)Predictable Past of ESG Ratings": In a press release late June 2022, the Sloan School of Management at MIT touted a paper co-authored by the school’s Florian Berg that purported to show that positive ESG return-on-investment was less about actual returns and more about retroactive fiddling with ESG scores.[248]
  • Harvard Business Review, “An Inconvenient Truth About ESG Investing”: In late March, the Harvard Business Review published a piece by Sanjai Bhagat, the Provost Professor of Finance at the University of Colorado. Whereas most finance-derived critiques of ESG had focused on the questionable nature of the investment technique’s promise to deliver better-than-market returns, Bhagat focused instead on its capacity to effect actual environmental or social change.[249]

Think tank activity

This section tracks a selection of think tank white papers and initiatives opposing or arguing against ESG investing.

  • Canadian think tank publishes report on ESG ratings: On August 15, 2025, the Fraser Institute, a Canadian think tank, published a report titled "A Lawsuit Waiting to Happen: The Use of Non-Financial Metrics by the Investment Industry."[250]
  • ESG opponents argue BlackRock still boycotts Texas energy: Consumers’ Research (CR), a nonprofit critical of ESG investing, and the American Energy Institute (AEI), an energy advocacy group, released a report in July 2025 arguing BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, was still boycotting Texas energy. The report contradicted BlackRock’s claims and those made by former Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar (R), who removed the company from the state’s list of financial firms ineligible for government contracts. Hegar argued BlackRock had distanced itself from ESG pledges and no longer met the definition of a prohibited company. CR and AEI argued the firm’s shareholder voting, investment practices, and involvement in ongoing lawsuits over alleged anti-fossil-fuel collusion showed continued boycott behavior.[251]
  • Book review opposing ESG argues against corporate political neutrality: The American Institute for Economic Reform published a book review September 13, 2024, of Ending ESG—a collection of essays about ESG, edited by former BlackRock adviser Terrence Keeley and former U.S. Senator Phil Gramm (R). The book review’s author, Russell Greene—an ESG critic and senior fellow for the economy at Stand Together Trust—summarized the arguments throughout the essays and added commentary about ending ESG. Greene argued that corporations should avoid political and ideological neutrality and actively oppose subsidies, regulations, and shareholders promoting ESG business practices. His argument differed from those of other ESG critics who argued companies should keep politics out of business.[252]
  • Anti-ESG group launches agriculture-themed campaign: Consumers’ Research, a leader in the anti-ESG movement, launched an ad campaign in July 2024 arguing ESG hurt agriculture and opposing the inclusion of ESG initiatives in revisions to the federal Farm Bill.[253]
  • Project 2025 argues Republican administration should block SEC climate disclosure rule: Project 2025—the Heritage Foundation’s presidential transition plan proposal—argued that a future presidential administration and Congress should work to change the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and block the agency from implementing its climate disclosure rule.[254]
  • AAF report argues BlackRock mismanaged Oklahoma pensions: The American Accountability Foundation—an organization opposing ESG—released a report in late June 2024 arguing that BlackRock used Oklahoma public pensions to advance political goals instead of focusing on investment returns.[255]
  • American Energy Institute releases new study supporting Oklahoma anti-ESG law: The American Energy Institute (AEI) released a study in June 2024 that offered different findings than an April 2024 study by the Oklahoma Rural Association (ORA) regarding the effect of Oklahoma’s 2022 anti-ESG law (the Energy Discrimination Elimination Act) on local government borrowing. The ORA study argued that the law increased borrowing costs for municipalities in the state by 15.7%. The June AEI study argued that the ORA study was “riddled with flaws and omissions that skewed its findings.”[256]
  • CTUP releases second annual report on ESG proxy voting: The Committee to Unleash Prosperity (CTUP)—an organization opposing ESG—in May 2024 released the second edition of its investment company proxy voting and ESG report card. The report argued companies were starting to move away from ESG practices and proxy votes.[257]
  • State Financial Officers Foundation launches two anti-ESG organizations: The State Financial Officers Foundation (SFOF)—a nonprofit organization opposing ESG in state finances, especially among state treasurers, comptrollers, and auditors—announced in late April 2024 the formation of two affiliated organizations: SFOF Action and the Public Fiduciaries Network.[258][259]
  • Think tanks argue unions use ESG to divide employees and employers: F. Vincent Vernuccio—the president of the Institute for the American Worker—and Sam Adolphsen—the policy director for the Foundation for Government Accountability—argued in an op-ed for The New York Post that unions used ESG pressure to create tension between employers and employees, even where no such tension existed before.[260]
  • Buckeye Institute argues ESG hurts farmers and consumers: The Buckeye Institute—a Columbus, Ohio-based think tank—published a report February 7, 2024, arguing that ESG hurts farmers and agriculture and drives up the prices of food and other consumer goods.[261]
  • American Accountability Foundation reports on new pushback against ESG opposition: The American Accountability Foundation—a nonprofit opposing ESG—penned a report suggesting that some ESG supporters were aiming to push back against the ESG opposition movement through corporate resolutions that proposed revoking business support for conservative nonprofits, think tanks, and other organizations.[262]
  • Heritage Foundation launches an initiative against ESG: The Heritage Foundation, one of the oldest conservative think tanks in Washington, D.C., decided to launch an initiative to fight back against ESG investing. The move was announced on September 1, 2022.[263]

Notable media coverage of opposition to the ESG investment movement

This section tracks a selection of news stories that cover opposition to or discuss pushback against the ESG investing movement. Click the links below to read the full stories on the publisher's website.

Asset Management Companies established in opposition to ESG and the ESG investing movement

This section tracks asset management companies established in opposition to ESG and the ESG investing movement. Such companies generally pledge to only consider financial factors in their investment decisions. Click the links below to read the full stories.

See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Florida Politics, "Ron DeSantis blames high insurance costs on ‘ESG’, accessed December 19, 2023
  2. ↑ Reuters, "DeSantis signs sweeping anti-ESG legislation in Florida," accessed May 12, 2023
  3. ↑ NH Journal, "Sununu Steps Up Anti-ESG Fight With Executive Order," accessed April 20, 2023
  4. ↑ The Epoch Times, "Kentucky Governor Signs Bill Banning ESG Investment in Public Pensions," accessed April 7, 2023
  5. ↑ The Hill, "DeSantis, 18 states to push back against Biden ESG agenda," accessed March 27, 2023
  6. ↑ Office of the Florida Governor, "Governor Ron DeSantis Announces Legislation to Protect Floridians from the Woke ESG Financial Scam," accessed February 23, 2023
  7. ↑ WFLA 8, "DeSantis announces new legislation to ban ESG, ‘woke’ banking in Florida," accessed February 16, 2023
  8. ↑ Montana Office of the Governor, "Governor Gianforte, Board of Investments Block ESG Investing of State Funds," accessed January 25, 2023
  9. ↑ Financial Times, "Florida to pull $2bn from BlackRock in spreading ESG backlash," December 1, 2022
  10. ↑ Fox News, "DeSantis announces plan to combat ESG influence in Florida," July 27, 2022
  11. ↑ Bloomberg, "Utah Blasts S&P for ‘Politicized’ State ESG Indicators," April 21, 2022
  12. ↑ New York Post, "21 states warn JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon, BlackRock’s Larry Fink to scrap ‘woke’ environmental goals," accessed August 14, 2025
  13. ↑ Bloomberg, "Amazon, Alphabet Targeted as Oklahoma Joins Anti-DEI Investor Ranks," accessed February 11, 2025
  14. ↑ Pensions & Investments, "Republican officials call on SEC, DOL to issue anti-ESG rules," accessed February 4, 2025
  15. ↑ 1819 News, "State Auditor Sorrell: ESG and the death of Alabama agriculture," accessed October 14, 2024
  16. ↑ Washington Examiner, "GOP treasurers open new front in war over ESG: ‘Activist’ proxy adviser," accessed September 10, 2024
  17. ↑ Bloomberg, "GOP State Treasurers Urge Business Group to Put Shareholders First," accessed September 3, 2024
  18. ↑ Biz New Orleans, "Louisiana Treasurer Opposes Bank of America as Authorized Fiscal Agent Over Alleged Discriminatory Practices, Bank Disagrees," accessed August 28, 2024
  19. ↑ Indiana Capital Chronicle, "Indiana treasurer puts BlackRock on ESG watchlist," accessed June 27, 2024
  20. ↑ Bloomberg, "Barclays Is the Latest Firm to Face Anti-ESG Wrath in Oklahoma," accessed May 10, 2024
  21. ↑ Bloomberg, "BMO Drops Anti-Coal Policy Amid Wall Street Rebuke of ESG," April 8, 2024
  22. ↑ Fox Business, "West Virginia cracks down on major banks over environmental activism," accessed April 9, 2024
  23. ↑ Daily Caller, "EXCLUSIVE: GOP State Officials Urge Asset Management Giant To Stop Its ‘Wholly Partisan’ Push For Green Initiatives," accessed March 21, 2024
  24. ↑ PoliticoPro, "West Virginia seeks to add six firms to boycott list, expanding ESG backlash," accessed March 6, 2024
  25. ↑ Washington Examiner, "South Carolina announces state is divesting from Disney over Twitter spat," accessed December 19, 2023
  26. ↑ Daily Mail, "EXCLUSIVE: GOP finance chiefs demand answers from BlackRock over ESG 'woke capitalism' agenda and iffy trades in coal, China, and climate change," accessed August 20, 2023
  27. ↑ Breitbart, "State Financial Officers Demand Answer on Assets Managers, Advisory Firms Approach to Shareholder Proposals," accessed May 28, 2023
  28. ↑ Fox Business, "Oklahoma bans more than a dozen woke banks from doing business with the state," accessed May 12, 2023
  29. ↑ Bloomberg, "Texas Has a Warning for Its Pensions: Sever Ties With BlackRock," accessed March 3, 2023
  30. ↑ Daily Caller, "Oklahoma Treasurer Presses Financial Institutions To Say Whether They’re Boycotting Energy Firms," February 1, 2023
  31. ↑ The Epoch Times, "West Virginia Targets Proxy Voting in Fight Over ESG," accessed February 6, 2023
  32. ↑ Fox Business, "Republican state puts banks on notice over wokeness: 'Won’t be tolerated,'" January 3, 2023
  33. ↑ Fox Business, "ESG fallout: BlackRock CEO Larry Fink should resign, says state treasurer," December 9, 2022
  34. ↑ Fox Business, "Arizona divesting funds from BlackRock over ESG push," December 11, 2022
  35. ↑ Financial Times, "Florida to pull $2bn from BlackRock in spreading ESG backlash," December 1, 2022
  36. ↑ Our Money Your Values, accessed November 22, 2022
  37. ↑ Fox Business, "Missouri latest state to divest from BlackRock over ESG initiatives: 'Woke political agenda,'" October 18, 2022
  38. ↑ Washington Examiner, "South Carolina to divest $200 million from BlackRock over 'leftist world view,'" October 1, 2022
  39. ↑ Office of the Louisiana State Treasurer, "Letter to Larry Fink," accessed October 14, 2022
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  261. ↑ Buckeye Institute, "NET-ZERO CLIMATE-CONTROL POLICIES WILL FAIL THE FARM," February 7, 2024
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