SPOTLIGHT

California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara announced a new rule allowing insurers to consider future climate change risks when setting prices. The rule will likely cause insurance rates to rise in some high-risk fire areas, but has been applauded by the state’s insurance industry, which claims the move will stabilize the market and make prices more fair.

The rule change comes as insurance companies are under increasing scrutiny from state and national leaders for pulling out of states worst affected by climate change. And while insurance companies can now raise prices to account for the crisis they’ve caused, Senate Budget Chair Sheldon Whitehouse wants insurance companies to testify about their relationships with the fossil fuel industry.

NEWS

• American Banker: After wave of arrests, climate activists vow to keep pressure on banks 
• AP News: New York to require flood disclosures in home sales as sea levels rise and storms worsen | Six young activists devote years to climate fight with 32 governments. Now comes their day in court | Things to know about California’s new proposed rules for insurance companies | After climate summit, California Gov. Gavin Newsom faces key decisions to reduce emissions back home
• Axios: Feds urged by Biden to widen use of “social cost” on climate change | Whitehouse weighs calling insurers to testify 
• Barrons: Insurers Are Fleeing Wildfire-Prone California. The State Has a Fix 
• Bloomberg Law: Battles Over ESG in 401(k)s Will Outlast Judge’s Surprise Ruling | Diversity Officers Chart New Course Amid Political, Legal Storms | Shutdown Threatens SEC’s ESG Oversight Momentum | Texas Judge Known for Abortion Pill Ruling Backs Biden ESG Rule 
• California Globe: Ins. Commissioner Lara, Gov. Newsom Announce Sweeping New State Insurance Plan
• Clayton County Register: Greenwashing Backlash Leads to Closure of ESG Funds 
• CNBC: How insurance companies are battered by hurricane season and climate change | Bill Gates: ‘Republicans for climate change action are gold’ 
• CNN: California seals its reputation as a climate juggernaut with a wave of legislation and head-turning lawsuit | Delta Air Lines announces roadmap to net-zero by 2050 
• Corporate Secretary: More companies disclosing ESG data and New York bar offers diversity blueprint
• DeSmog: Italian Oil Giant Eni Knew About Climate Change More Than 50 Years Ago, Report Reveals
• E&E News: Texas judge upholds Biden climate rule
• ExposedbyCMD: Investment Firm Cofounded by Vivek Ramaswamy Holds Shares in BlackRock
• Fast Company: Patagonia CEO Ryan Gellert says fear enables ‘anti-woke’ politics 
• Financial Times: ‘China’s World Bank’ plans to triple climate change lending by 2030 | Deep divisions over oil and gas industry role challenge UN climate talks
• Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance: The EU’s New ESG Disclosure Rules Could Spark Securities Litigation in the US 
• Indiana Capital Chronicle: INPRS ‘ahead of schedule’ on China divestment, laying anti-ESG investment framework
• Inside Climate News: The Climate Ambition Summit Was Notably Unambitious, Advocates Say 
• InsuranceNewsNet: ESG is getting the insurance industry’s attention, panelists say 
• NBC News: California moves to allow insurance companies to factor in climate change risk 
• Oilprice: Greenwashing Backlash Sparks ESG Exodus 
• Pensions & Investments: Federal court sides with DOL in Republican lawsuit challenging ESG rule | U.S. investments in ESG to continue despite political pushback, experts say 
• Politico: Geopolitics trump climate ‘inferno’ at U.N.
• Responsible Investor: In the Loop: Heard in New York, another UK U-turn, and NZIA’s next steps 
• Reuters: Island nations blame rich countries for climate inaction at UN assembly | After U.N. meeting, countries brace for COP28 fossil fuel fight
• Scientific American: U.S. Will Weigh Cost of Carbon Pollution in More Government Decisions
• The National: Banks face stress tests for ‘Westminster under water’ climate crises 
• The New York Times: The Fault Lines at Climate Week
• The Spokesman-Review: As wildfire risk grows across the west, insurance experts fear economic turmoil
• The Washington Post: With Fossil Fuels, ‘Peak Demand’ Isn’t What It Sounds Like
• Time: The One Thing New York Climate Week Made Clear 
• USA Today: Many US schools aren’t teaching about climate change. Students aren’t happy about that 

OPINION

• Forbes: How The Backlash To ESG Can Create A Crisis For Companies 
• Newsweek: Questionable Stock Trade Patterns in Ramaswamy’s Wall Street Past 
• Pensions & Investments: Understanding rising risk of ESG litigation for private markets
• Responsible Investor: Why the truth likely lies somewhere in the middle on ‘overly prescriptive’ proposals 
• The Fresno Bee: Climate change forces Americans to reconsider profit, greed, power and truth
• The Hill: Grassroots initiatives, not publicity stunts, are the best way to drive action on climate change
• The New York Times: Vivek Ramaswamy Is Confused 

OPPOSITION

• Fox News: Ramaswamy, Newsom trade blows over climate change: ‘Gavin is ignorant about science’
• Newsbusters: GOP Rep. Vows to Block Biden from Weaponizing Treasury to Unleash ESG
• The Daily Wire: Entrepreneur Patrick Bet-David Predicts Woke Capitalism Will Die Off In Latest ‘Sunday Special’
• Washington Examiner: The government is colluding with social media platforms to censor Americans 

SOCIAL

• Alex Cornwallis shared an article: Trump-appointed judge Kacsmaryk upholds Biden ESG regulations. The judge in Texas ruled against a coalition of 26 states challenging a Biden admin rule, allowing retirement plan managers to factor environmental/social issues into investment decisions.
• Dogwoodbc shared a reel: A message from Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs Woos (of the Gitdumden clan) and Na’moks (of the Tsayu clan) during #nycclimateweek to private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co (kkr_co) who owns a 65% stake in the #CoastalGasLink pipeline. “Yes, KKR is worth over half a trillion dollars. But our rights, our title, our freedom, our culture, our waters, our food security is worth more than any amount of money.” — Chief Na’moks

DATES 

• Today: Bard Distinguished Faculty Lecture: Emerging ESG Regulation in the US and Europe. Register here. 
• September 25-26: Insure Our Future Campaigning Academy ’23. 
• September 26: AFREF hosts a virtual conversation on housing displacement and climate change. RSVP here.  
• September 27: Financial Services Committee Hearing: Oversight of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Watch here at 10 am. 
• September 28: Federal Reserve Town Hall with Educators. Deadline to sign on to a letter calling on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to address climate financial risks and how they impact students and teachers is September 27th. 
• October 2: NY Fed 2023 Environmental Economics and Policy Conference: Measuring and Adapting to Climate Risk. 
• October 3: FHFA Fall Economic Summit in DC at the Constitution Center