Atlanta, GA – Today, President Biden issued his first veto, blocking a Congressional Review Act resolution of disapproval that would have overturned his administration’s new Department of Labor (DOL) rule. The new rule allows private retirement plan fiduciaries to consider environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors when making investments. In response, TPPA Honorary Chairman Jenny Beth Martin issued the following statement:

“Despite this resolution passing in both the House and Senate, Biden just issued his first veto to prop up his climate agenda and encourage ESG investing for retirement fund fiduciaries. An investment firm is not a SuperPAC or political entity. The funds these firms manage are not political donations. These are retirement funds entrusted to investment firms with one purpose and one purpose only, to produce the maximum return for retiring and retired Americans. It isn’t complicated; it’s common sense.

“The House and Senate both agreed in a bipartisan fashion that fund managers should not play politics with retirees’ money. Biden is wrong to have vetoed this measure. Sadly, it’s no surprise. It’s what we’ve come to expect from Joe Biden and his administration, which politicizes everything it touches.”