Submitted by Sen. Mike Braun’s Press Office
Senators Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Bill Hagerty (R-La.), James Lankford (R-Oka.), John Kennedy (R-La.), and Richard Burr (R-N.C.) have introduced a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution S.J. Res. 68 to nullify the Biden administration’s Department of Labor (DOL) rule that would encourage fiduciaries to support liberal policy priorities over maximizing Americans’ retirement security. Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.) led the effort in the House of Representatives.
Braun
“When American workers invest in their retirement, they should be able to trust their financial advisors to be investing with their best interests in mind,” Sen. Braun said, “not the interests of liberal activists. American retirement funds have already taken such a hit from Joe Biden’s failed economic policies, they should not be politicized. I am proud to lead my colleagues in this effort to overturn the Biden administration’s woke 401k rule and protect Americans’ retirement funds.”
Background
In November, the Biden DOL finalized a rule, Prudence and Loyalty in Selecting Plan Investments and Exercising Shareholder Rights, that would rescind a Trump era rule that focused on financial factors and replace it with a focus on environment, social, and corporate governance (ESG) factors when considering investments and shareholder proxy voting by fiduciaries.
A number of studies have shown that ESG investing policies have worse rates of return. In comparison to other investment plans, ESG investors generally end up paying higher costs for worse performances.
In July, Sen. Braun introduced legislation to build a stronger retirement system for Americans by clarifying the fiduciary duty of plan administrators to select and maintain investments based solely on financial factors.