September 1, 2023

Protecting Your Retirement Savings

Friend,

You work hard for your money. Right now, wages aren't keeping up with inflation. Making it even more difficult to save, especially for retirement. Whether it's your savings account, your 401k, or pension plan, building up savings is important for retirement. I wanted to share with you an issue I've been working on to ensure your savings plans are protected. I’m working to protect your pension plans and retirement savings to ensure your hard earned money isn't being used for a political agenda. 

In recent years we have come to find some bad actors are influencing where and how Americans' investments and retirement savings are being spent, likely including your pension plan, 401k, or employer sponsored retirement fund. The investment professionals who manage your retirement funds often are forced to rely on companies called “proxy advisors” for guidance on voting your shares. Two proxy advisor firms named Glass Lewis and ISS control 97 percent of the market for proxy voting advice. ISS is a German-owned company, and a private equity fund owns Glass Lewis.

In recent years, we have begun to see both of these firms repeatedly encouraging professional investors to vote on more social and political goals, instead of focusing on minimizing risk and maximizing returns. Often, these decisions are made with little information provided to the families whose savings is on the line. I believe much more must to done to ensure your retirement savings are being protected and maximized.

I believe investment advisors and pension fund managers making decisions on American retirement savers’ shares should focus on balancing risk and return, not focus on political goals. Your investment returns are measures for financial success and should be the focus of any investor’s decision-making. However, we have continued to see professional investors instead vote for proposals that are more focused on political goals such as a companies' policies, than on maximizing returns.

In response to all of these changes we have seen, I introduced the Protecting Americans’ Retirement Savings from Politics Act. This legislation requires proxy advisors to submit to intensive regulatory supervision and disclose methodology and conflicts of interest in their decision making process. This will ensure these advisors are being transparent and accountable.

Additionally, my bill allows public companies to review the data supporting proxy advisor recommendations and to correct false information, avoiding recommendations based on incorrect data.

As a Member of the House Financial Services Committee, I have been working on this issue to ensure your retirement savings are protected. It is already more difficult for American families and seniors to save for retirement. The actions by these proxy advisors has made it only harder.

I believe sunlight is the best disinfectant. My bill is focused on empowering investors and peeling back the curtain on proxy advisors voting contrary to your financial interests.

As always, if you would like to share an opinion with me, please don’t hesitate to contact my office.

On Wisconsin,

Bryan Steil
Member of Congress

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