News Archives » Faith Responsible Investing
Maryland Becomes the Second State to Pass Legislation on Congo Conflict Minerals May 25th, 2012
The state of Maryland has taken a definitive step toward curtailing the use and trade of conflict minerals from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). On May 2, Governor Martin O’Malley signed the Maryland State Procurement and Congo Conflict Minerals Bill into law. Maryland is now the second state to adopt such legislation, following California’s example in September 2011. A similar bill is under consideration in Massachusetts.
Under the Maryland State Procurement and Congo Conflict law, the State of Maryland is prohibited from doing business with companies that do not comply with federal disclosure requirements on conflict minerals. Section 1502 of the Dodd Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 is a disclosure requirement that calls on companies to determine whether their products contain conflict minerals by carrying out supply chain due diligence and to report this to the Securities and Exchange Commission.
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Support the Call for a Special Rapporteur on HR and Climate Change May 25th, 2012
A group of NGOs, including VIVAT International, has issued a petition calling for a Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Climate Change at the Human Rights Council. VIVAT International, of which the Oblates are a member, is a strong supporter of this petition and is asking members of our network to support the initiative.
We encourage you to sign on as an individual or on behalf of your congregation, if you are delegated to do so.
To read and sign the petition please visit the following link: http://www.petitions24.com/sr_human_rights_and_climate_change
According to the UN, “global warming will affect, and already is affecting, the basic elements of life for millions of people around the world. Effects include an increasing frequency of extreme weather events, rising sea levels, droughts, increasing water shortages, and the spread of tropical and vector born diseases.”
“Viewing the data through a human rights lens, it is clear that projected climate change-related effects threaten the effective enjoyment of a range of human rights, such as the right to safe and adequate water and food, the right to health and adequate housing. Equally, the human rights perspective brings into focus that climate change is set to hit the poorest countries and communities the hardest.”
“The international human rights standards serve as a guide for measures to tackle climate change, underscoring the fundamental moral and legal obligations to protect and promote full enjoyment of the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in the core universal human rights treaties.”
Tell Congress: End Too-Big-To-Fail. Make Banking SAFE May 17th, 2012
The top five banks now control 52 percent of the financial industry’s assets; they had 17 percent in 1970. The six largest banks control assets equal to 62 percent of the nation’s gross national product. They may be not only too big to fail, but also too big to save.
The biggest of them, Dimon’s JPMorgan Chase, has $2.1 trillion in assets and more than 239,000 employees. The bank’s recent bad bet that now amounts to $3 trillion, is a clear indication of the need for serious reform.
Sen. Sherrod Brown and Rep. Keith Ellison have introduced a measure to cut too-big-to-fail banks down to size. The SAFE (Safe, Accountable, Fair and Efficient) Banking Act would put in place an important element missing from the financial reform legislation of two years ago: a cap on how big banks can get. The bank lobby defeated all efforts to include a limit on their size.
Now the six largest banks – led by JPMorgan Chase – are collectively larger and more concentrated than they were before they blew up the economy, with the assets they control growing from $6.1 trillion before the collapse to more than $8.5 trillion today, according to Federal Reserve data.
Wall Street lobbyists have successfully delayed and diluted regulations that were supposed to flow from the Wall Street reform bill. And the big banks have ways to push their way around any barriers.
We need a fail-safe. If a bank can’t be too big, then it can’t be too big to fail.
Among the provisions of the Safe Banking Act are that no bank could hold more than 10 percent of all of the insured bank deposits in the country, nor could a bank holding company have non-deposit liabilities greater than 2 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product.
By the standards in the SAFE Banking Act, four existing banks are currently above the size cap—JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup and Wells Fargo—and would have to shrink. This would be a major step in making banking sober—and boring, as it should be—once again.
Thanks to the Campaign for America’s Future for the information on this bill.
Oblate Questions JP Morgan/Chase CEO Jaime Dimon May 16th, 2012
Fr. Seamus Finn, OMI representing the Oblates of Mary Immaculate at the JP Morgan/Chase AGM yesterday in Naples, Florida, made pointed comments about the latest heavy losses at the company. He questioned Dimon’s opposition to the Volcker Rule and the bank’s lobbying in opposition to other aspects of the financial regulations being developed at the SEC in response to the Dodd-Frank legislation.
He was quoted today by Maureen Dowd in her NY Times column:
The Rev. Seamus Finn, representing shareholders from the Catholic organization Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, did gently press the boss: “We’re wondering, Mr. Dimon, given what we’ve learned, do you still believe a company can self-regulate when trading on their own accounts?” He added: “Furthermore, should our company really be spending shareholder funds on, some $7 million last year alone, on lobbying efforts to thwart the Dodd-Frank legislation and the work of regulators to write the rules stemming from that legislation?” The priest concluded that the shareholders, “weary of mistakes” and pledges to reform, wonder if Dimon is listening.Fr. Finn was also quoted in The Guardian, on CNBC.com, The Telegraph, Crain’s New York Business, and the timesfreepress.com
Corporate Social Responsibility and the Churches May 14th, 2012
Thanks to the European Africa Faith & Justice Network for the following information:
Bishops call for increased corporate transparency
Catholic bishops urge the European Union to legislate on extractive companies
While a group of EU member states, including Germany and the UK, are attempting to water down new EU transparency legislation, Catholic bishops from around the world urge the EU to push forward and require European Union-listed and large unlisted extractive companies to publicly disclose the payments they make to governments worldwide. In a joint statement, they say less stringent laws will fail to turn the curse of resource-rich developing countries into a blessing.
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