March 01, 2023

Washington, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) voted for a bipartisan resolution to nullify the Biden Administration’s ESG rule which prioritizes politics over getting the best returns for millions of Americans’ retirement investments. The resolution passed 50-46. The House of Representatives passed the bipartisan resolution earlier this week, and the resolution now heads to President Biden’s desk. Senator Manchin also spoke on the Senate Floor today.
 
Excerpts from Senator Manchin’s floor speech:
 
“Mr. President, I rise today to warn against our Administration's unrelenting campaign to weaken our energy security, our national security and our economic security to advance, truly, their environmental and social agenda.
 
“The ESG rule that we're going to vote on later today is just another example of how our Administration prioritizes a liberal policy agenda over protecting and growing the retirement accounts of 150 million Americans that will be in jeopardy.
 
“Our country's already facing economic uncertainty, record inflation, and increasing energy costs to keep Americans up at night, and put a squeeze on their pocketbooks. And we all see it no matter where you are, whether it's Georgia or West Virginia, we're feeling the same pain.”
 
On February 1, 2023, Senator Manchin led 50 bipartisan Senators in introducing this resolution. 
 
In November 2022, President Biden instituted a rule that explicitly permits ERISA retirement plan fiduciaries to consider environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) factors when selecting investments and exercising shareholder rights. This rule replaces a previous rule which mandated fiduciary decisions be made solely on getting the best returns for the 152 million American workers that depend upon ERISA for their retirement. Under the Administration’s rule, retirement fund managers can prioritize ESG factors instead of financial returns in their investment decisions for workers’ hard-earned savings.