WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Senator Rick Scott wrote a letter to environmental, social and governance (ESG) fund managers, responsible for managing companies’ employee investment portfolios, requesting information regarding their reporting practices on forced labor activities, particularly in Communist China, to their investors. Earlier this year, Senator Scott introduced the Transaction and Sourcing Knowledge (TASK) Act which would require the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), as part of its evaluation of any ESG guidance to report on sourcing activities and transactions with companies done within the Xinjiang province in Communist China—known for human rights abuses, specifically against the Uyghur community.

Read the full letter HERE or below.

June 15, 2022

Dear ESG Fund Managers:

As a leader in the environmental, social and governance (ESG) space, I write to you today regarding the horrific human rights atrocities occurring within the Uyghur Homeland in Communist China’s Xinjiang province. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, Communist China has forcefully detained more than one million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities within this region.[1] It is estimated that 100,000 Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities are working in conditions of forced labor following detention in re-education camps.[2]

As an ESG fund manager, you are responsible for managing portfolios in accordance with specific policies. These policies monitor the performance of companies in regards to how they balance environmental, social and governance issues in their operations. However, very little has been done in this space to financially combat Communist China’s gross human rights abuses and the forced labor practices taking place at the direction of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

As one of the largest ESG fund managers in the United States, I request your prompt response to the following questions: 

• What is your organization doing to provide disclosure to your ESG investors of any links that their investments may have to forced labor, particularly in Communist China?
• If no action or disclosure is occurring, please explain the reasoning for this decision. 
• How does your organization vet, monitor and disclose these findings to investors in a meaningful way?
• If no action or disclosure is occurring, please explain the reasoning for this decision. 
• Do you believe forced labor activities should be fully and regularly disclosed to investors in your funds and other ESG-driven financial products? If not, why not?

I believe it is critical to the fight for human rights in Communist China and around the world that investors be made aware of companies who have ties to forced labor in their operations and supply chains. While the CCP may wish for the world to turn a blind eye to these awful acts, American investors must take action that makes clear that they will not appease this evil regime. We must make sure that those who do business in Communist China are not profiting from human rights atrocities by conducting business within the Xinjiang region and do not have any operational ties with the CCP.

To accomplish this goal, I recently introduced S.4095 - the Transaction and Sourcing Knowledge (TASK) Act.[3] This bill will require the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), as part of its evaluation of any ESG rules or guidance, to report on sourcing activities and transactions with companies done within the Xinjiang province in Communist China. This bill is based on the bipartisan and unanimous recommendation given to Congress by the U.S-China Security Review Commission in its latest annual report.[4]

We should all seek to ensure that American companies do not fund any of Communist China’s shameful human rights violations. I look forward to your timely response to my questions and I hope to have your support in the critical fight for human rights and freedom.

Sincerely,

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