Florida targeting of environmental and social investing could come with costs

“I’m sorry, I forgot my magic eight ball,” the House bill sponsor said of the potential for impacts on government budgets.

Florida taxpayers could pay more for municipal bonds and see lower returns on government pension funds under a bill getting approval by lawmakers that attempts to penalize U.S. companies that consider social and environmental issues when making investment decisions.

The proposal, HB 3, passed the full House and a companion measure, SB 302, got its first hearing Wednesday in the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee, which approved it 8-3 along party lines. Similar laws have been passed in other states, and reports by both state and environmental groups have found the laws led to an increased cost to taxpayers.

The Florida bill bans state and local governments from investing in funds or purchasing bonds based on social, political or ideological interests. It expands on the decision made by Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Cabinet in August to prohibit the State Board of Administration from making ESG investments, the acronym that Wall Street investment firms have used to reflect environmental, social and governance factors.

Financial firms say their policies seek to maximize returns and account for emerging conditions, such as the impact of rising global temperatures on a company’s operations. But the ESG concept has increasingly become a target for conservatives who are opposed to seeing the private sector reflect progressive policies.

DeSantis, in his new book released in anticipation of his expected presidential campaign, called for “crippling the ESG movement.” And House Speaker Paul Renner, R-Palm Coast, said he supports the legislation because “corporate elites are using ESG investing to prioritize a liberal agenda” and “are circumventing the Florida Legislature.”

https://www.tampabay.com/news/florida-politics/2023/03/29/esg-environmental-social-governance-investing-blackrock-desantis/