10.02.20

Democrats Criticize Proposed Labor Department Rule Weakening Tool to Advance Financial Interests of Workers and Retirees

Reps. Scott and Waters, Sens. Murray and Brown led a letter criticizing DOL proposal to undermine fiduciaries’ ability to support their clients’ best interests through proxy voting Members: “This proposal does the opposite of protecting retirees—it decreases the value of retirement plans’ investments by discouraging fiduciaries from using a key tool to fight for the financial interests of the workers and retirees they serve.”

Washington, D.C. –  Today, Congressman Bobby Scott (D-VA), chair of the House Education and Labor Committee, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), ranking member of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and Congresswoman Maxine Waters, chairwoman of the House Committee on Financial Services, led several of their Democratic colleagues in submitting a comment letter to the Department of Labor criticizing its proposed rule to limit fiduciaries’ ability to use proxy voting, a key tool to further the financial interests of the workers and retirees they serve. 

“In practice, this proposal does the opposite of protecting retirees—it decreases the value of retirement plans’ investments by discouraging fiduciaries from using a key tool to fight for the financial interests of the workers and retirees they serve.  Amid its summer regulatory ‘tsunami,’  the Department has once again overlooked its statutory and administrative obligations for rulemaking.   This blatant attempt at disenfranchising ERISA-governed plans is ill-advised, unjustified, and unnecessary.  Accordingly, we urge the Department to withdraw its proposed rule and refocus its efforts on bolstering sorely needed protections for ERISA plan participants and beneficiaries,” wrote the Members. 

The letter was also signed by Senators Tina Smith (D-MN), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Mazie Hirono (D-HI).

In the House, it was also signed by Representatives Adam Smith (D-WA), Frederica Wilson (D-FL), Suzan DelBene (D-WA), David Trone (D-MD), Denny Heck (D-WA), Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), and Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA).

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