NW Valley Times

Gov. Katie Hobbs vetoed SB 1611, “which would have ensured our state contracts do not push the goals of ESG in Arizona", State Sen. Anthony Kern (R-Maricopa County) the sponsor of the bill, said.

“If an organization supports ESG, we simply should not offer them a state contract," Kern said in a news release he posted in a June 19 tweet. "Tax dollars should not go to partisan organizations and organizations that implement politically driven policies. The Governor had the opportunity to put a stop to this clear form of discrimination, and instead, chose to support it.”

According to Investopedia,  "environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing refers to a set of standards for a company’s behavior used by socially conscious investors to screen potential investments. Environmental criteria consider how a company safeguards the environment, including corporate policies addressing climate change, for example. Social criteria examine how it manages relationships with employees, suppliers, customers, and the communities where it operates. Governance deals with a company’s leadership, executive pay, audits, internal controls, and shareholder rights."    

Kern's bill would have not only prohibited state government entities from imposing ESG on contractors, but would have forbidden companies from contracting with the state if they had ESG standards of their own. The bill summary said it forbids a public entity from contracting with a company “unless the contract includes a written certification that the company does not currently, and agrees for the duration of the contract that company will not, implement an environmental, social or governance standards policy.”                    

"ESG describes a set of standards imposed on companies to manipulate businesses and investors into compliance with Leftist political ideologies at the expense of free-market capitalism and investor returns," Kern's news release said. "This system is similar to the concept of a credit score. If you don’t score high enough on their liberal meter, you could be rejected from doing business with these groups.”     

KPVI.com reported that on June 16, Hobbs also vetoed SB 1500, which would have prohibited the state from investing in businesses with ESG policies.  "We should not be donating to these causes [ESG]," State Rep. John Gillette (R-Kingman) told the station. "We're investing this money as a return for the people of Arizona. This is a great bill to ensure that law is not violated."