Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing has been subject to increased US state and federal regulation over the last several years, and 2023 continued that status quo. As of January 1, 2024, 20 states have enacted anti-ESG investing rules, eight have enacted pro-ESG investing rules, and three have enacted disclosure of ESG investing rules. Many more proposed pieces of state legislation remain in the works, while at the federal level congressional interest has also seen an uptick.
As we have discussed in previous Morgan Lewis publications, some US states have been particularly focused on limiting or discouraging the investment of state assets for “nonpecuniary” and “nonfinancial” purposes, while others have sought to protect, and in some cases incentivize, ESG-related investments. Others still have been more focused on reporting, disclosure, and consumer…
