Red states slapped Biden administration in lawsuit over climate-friendly retirement fund rules

Republican-led states filed a federal lawsuit Thursday against the Labor Department, arguing that retirement fund administrators will seek climate change and other factors under environmental, social and governance investment principles, or ESG, over rules set to go into effect Monday. make it possible to consider

Attorneys General from 25 states have argued that upcoming ESG rules violate federal law, saying fiduciaries could jeopardize Americans’ retirement benefits and distract them from focusing solely on maximizing profits. I was.

“The Biden administration is furthering the climate change issue by jeopardizing the retirement benefits of ordinary citizens,” said Utah Republican Attorney General Sean Reyes, who led the lawsuit, in a statement. “Allowing asset managers to channel a hard-working American’s money into his ESG investments is risking trillions of dollars in retirement savings and trading someone’s political agenda. .”

The Labor Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The action is part of a broader multi-billion dollar war being waged against ESG investing across the country, with Republican state officials in the guise of fighting the “awakening.” It has collectively sold billions of dollars of public pension funds from major financial institutions. capitalism.

In a lawsuit, the Republican-led state alleged that the Labor Department violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. The legislation is intended to provide consumer protection at a minimum standard for retirement savings to prevent mismanagement and abuse.