NewsmakersJune 23, 2023

New York Common Signs Political Disclosure Agreements With 7 Firms

State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli warns that firms ‘that engage in political spending risk damaging their reputations.’

Reported by Michael Katz

New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, trustee of the $242 billion New York State Common Retirement Fund, announced the fund has struck deals with seven portfolio companies to get them to be more transparent about their spending on political issues.

The companies are Match Group Inc., Penn Entertainment Inc., Warner Bros. Discovery Inc., Zillow Group Inc., Paramount Global, Zoom Video Communications Inc., and Travelers Companies Inc.

According to DiNapoli, Match, Penn, Warner Bros. Discovery, Zillow, Paramount and Zoom agreed to publicly report monetary and nonmonetary contributions and expenditures to any campaign for or against a candidate or intended to influence public opinion on an election or referendum.

The shareholder proposals the NYCRF had filed with the companies called for them to provide a semiannual report disclosing their policies and procedures for using corporate funds to participate or intervene in a campaign on behalf of or against a candidate running for public office. The proposal also called for the disclosure of how company funds have been used to influence the general public, or any segment of it, regarding an election or referendum.

“Political activity can pose increasingly significant risks for companies,” the pension fund’s shareholder proposal stated, “including the perception that political contributions—and other forms of activity—are at odds with core company values.”

Meanwhile, Travelers Companies agreed to adopt policies that require it to disclose dues of $25,000 or more it pays to trade associations and social welfare organizations, as well as the lobbying allocations associated with those contributions. According to the fund’s shareholder proposal, without knowing which candidates and causes Travelers’ political spending supports, the company “faces reputational risks when it cannot assure shareholders that its political spending aligns with core values, business objectives, and policy positions.”

As a result of the agreements, DiNapoli withdrew shareholder proposals the fund had filed with each company. The state comptroller’s office said that since the Supreme Court struck down certain restraints on corporate political spending in 2010, the office has filed 179 shareholder proposals regarding political spending disclosure, with 61 corporations adopting or agreeing to adopt disclosures.

“In today’s political climate, corporations that engage in political spending risk damaging their reputations,” DiNapoli said in a release. “Shareholders need transparency to be able to assess whether corporate political donations align with shareholders’ interests. It is imperative that companies, at a bare minimum, proactively disclose all corporate funds spent on political causes.”