“ESG is dead on arrival in Florida,” said Ron DeSantis, the state’s governor, as his administration last week passed a resolution he insisted would direct the state’s fund managers to make “sound investments on returns, not woke ideology”. Despite his firm rhetoric, Mr DeSantis’s resolution stops short of banning the consideration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria in investment decisions. The move is, however, part of a growing movement of Republican opposition to sustainable investment, and it will likely impact taxpayers and investors alike.
Mr DeSantis is far from alone in the US with his anti-ESG tirades. By July 6, there were at least 44 bills or new laws in 17 conservative-led states – including Oklahoma, West Virginia, Arkansas and Kentucky – demanding a boycott on banks and financial institutions because of their ESG policies, shows research by Reuters. Such efforts are part of the Republican party’s much wider campaign against “woke” culture and policies, from climate action to LGBT+ rights and racial justice.
