Huizenga Selected to lead Republican ESG Working Group

ByCorey Spencer

Feb 3, 2023

PRESS RELEASE FROM CONGRESSMAN HUIZENGA

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 3, 2023

Today, House Financial Services Committee Chairman, Patrick McHenry (R-NC), announced the formation of a Republican Working Group led by Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Bill Huizenga (R-MI). The purpose of the working group is to combat the threat to our capital markets posed by those on the far-left pushing environmental, social, and governance (ESG) proposals. Upon being selected to head the new ESG Working Group, Congressman Huizenga released the following statement:

“Last year, the Supreme Court ruled in West Virginia vs EPA that government bureaucracies cannot arbitrarily expand their own regulatory reach,” said Congressman Bill Huizenga. “The SEC’s climate disclosure rule is a prime example of this overreach- that would have a wide-ranging impact on hard working Americans across all walks of life. I look forward to leading our committee’s ESG working group, which will focus on promoting strong, vibrant capital markets, while defending the interests of all retail investors.”

“Progressives are trying to do with American businesses what they already did to our public education system—using our institutions to force their far-left ideology on the American people. Their latest tool in these efforts is environmental, social, and governance proposals. This is why I am creating a Republican ESG working group led by Oversight & Investigations Subcommittee Chair Bill Huizenga,” said Chairman McHenry. “This group will develop a comprehensive approach to ESG that protects the financial interests of everyday investors and ensures our capital markets remain the envy of the world. Financial Services Committee Republicans as a whole will continue our work to expand capital formation, hold Biden’s rogue regulators accountable, and support American job creators.”

ESG Working Group Members

Bill Huizenga (MI-04)
Ann Wagner (MO-02)
Barry Loudermilk (GA-11)
Bryan Steil (WI-01)
Andrew Garbarino (NY-02)
Byron Donalds (FL-19)
Monica De La Cruz (TX-15)
Erin Houchin (IN-09)
Andy Ogles (TN-05)

Background:

The Financial Services Committee’s Republican ESG Working Group is committed to protecting the financial interests of everyday investors and ensuring American capital markets remain the envy of the world.

To combat the threat posed to our free markets by far-left environmental, social, and governance proposals, the working group will examine ways to:

Rein in the SEC’s regulatory overreach;
Reinforce the materiality standard as a pillar of our disclosure regime;
And hold to account market participants who misuse the proxy process or their outsized influence to impose ideological preferences in ways that circumvent democratic lawmaking.

The working group will coordinate Republicans’ response to the ESG movement through Member education and policy development across the Committee’s jurisdiction and throughout the broader House Republican Conference.

By Corey Spencer

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Congress

Repowering Palisades Means Lower Costs, Greater Energy Security, and Good Paying Jobs for SW Michigan

Today, Congressman Bill Huizenga (R-MI) released the following statement after the Department of Energy officially announced the conditional commitment of up to $1.52 billion for a loan to repower Palisades Nuclear Power Plant in Covert, Michigan. “Today’s announcement is a massive step towards restoring 800 megawatts of carbon-free energy generation and hundreds of highly skilled jobs right here in Michigan’s Fourth Congressional District. Holtec’s historic repowering of the Palisades Nuclear Power Plant will provide safe, reliable energy to meet Southwest Michigan’s growing needs, and it lays the groundwork for the first-of-their-kind small modular reactors to be placed at Palisades in the future. For these reasons, I’m proud to have led the bipartisan congressional effort on behalf of this project to lower energy costs, create jobs, and strengthen American energy security.” Congressman Huizenga has been a vocal leader in the bipartisan effort to repower Palisades. In July, Huizenga pressed Special Presidential Envoy John Kerry on restarting Palisades and the importance of nuclear energy. In September, Huizenga discussed the importance of the power purchase agreement between Holtec and Wolverine Power Cooperative. In December, Huizenga led a bipartisan letter to the Department of Energy requesting a timely and responsible review of repowering Palisades. In January, Huizenga wrote about Fueling Southwest Michigan’s Future by Repowering Palisades In late January, when Bloomberg broke the news that the Department of Energy was moving forward on Palisades, Huizenga spoke about the impact on energy security and good paying jobs. In February, Huizenga visited Holtec International’s Corporate Technology Center in Camden, New Jersey to see work being done for Palisades.

October 26, 2023 In The News A Michigan GOP lawmaker's sign in support of Israel hanging outside his office in Washington, D.C., was vandalized with bloody handprints, his office said Thursday. Rep. Tim Walberg's office revealed his "I stand with Israel" sign was defaced, with the congressman declaring, "anti-semitism has run rampant across the country." "This is yet another despicable act which should not be tolerated," Walberg, a former pastor, said in a press release. "At a time like this, we must think of our Jewish community members, including those on my staff, who are enduring this targeted behavior and harassment following the largest attack on Jews since the Holocaust," he continued. Walberg's office told Fox News Digital the sign had been put up earlier this week, and that the congressman had tweeted about standing with Israel after the country was attacked by the Palestinian terrorist organization Hamas, sparking a war. The Michigan Republican's office said the congressman employs Jewish staff members and believes the vandalism is unacceptable. Walberg's office also said they have contacted U.S. Capitol Police about the incident. Capitol Police did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. Earlier this month, Walberg, who has been vocal in his support for Israel, led a letter with 43 other lawmakers to Education Secretary Miguel Cardona demanding he take action to protect Jewish students on American college campuses. "Many student groups have issued statements condoning and even celebrating the terror attack, which should be considered a modern-day pogrom. Some student groups have even utilized imagery of a paraglider to advertise their rallies, unequivocally celebrating the despicable tactics used by Hamas — a terrorist organization that President Biden stated is a ‘group whose stated purpose for being is to kill Jews,’" the letter reads. Walberg called out universities for portraying themselves as "inclusive and tolerant" and speaking out regarding social issues while remaining silent on the current crisis. "In recent years, schools have been quick to weigh in on a plethora of social issues, but suddenly, many have gone silent as anti-Semitism rages across college campuses. This deafening silence and lack of moral clarity by college administrators comes as student groups openly celebrate a terrorist attack motivated by bigotry," Walberg said in a statement to Fox News Digital. "These schools pride themselves on being inclusive and tolerant, but it is clear there is an anti-Semitism crisis on these campuses, so we’re calling on the Biden administration to take action to protect Jewish students and to visit these schools to examine why they are such a hot-bed for anti-Semitism." Pro-Hamas sentiment could be seen at universities across the country since the attack on Israel this month. An organization called "Cornell Students for Justice in Palestine" introduced an anti-Israel resolution to the student government body this week justifying the Hamas terror attack and Palestinians’ right to "resistance by any means necessary." The vandalism of Walberg's pro-Israel sign also comes as some Democratic members of Congress promote Hamas propaganda and participate in pro-Palestinian protests at the U.S. Capitol complex. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., tripled down on the Hamas narrative that Israel was behind last week's explosion at a Gaza hospital, something that had already been debunked by both Israeli and U.S. intelligence. Tlaib is now facing a censure resolution in the House introduced on Thursday by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga. A U.S. Capitol Police spokesperson told Fox News Digital that the department is investigating the incident. This article originally appeared on FoxNews.com on October 26.

Jeff Heppler	Dist 6
John Gisler	Dist 7
Wendy Mazer	Dist 8