June 22, 2015
I am disappointed that although the SEC was going to require publicly traded corporations to disclose their political spending they are no longer considering this rule. Why not? I want to know where my money is being spent as I am a shareholder of various companies. I want to know if they are supporting candidates I do not!
And I think it is a conflict of interest for our politicians to be beholden to big money from corporations as they can overwhelm so many of us as individual donors or just plain voters. At least lets open it up and make it clear how much money is coming from what pockets.
Return the rule to the unified agenda and complete the rule in 2015.
After the Supreme Court’s appalling Citizens United ruling, followed by 2012’s tsunami of election spending, bringing corporate “dark money” into the light should be a high priority for an agency charged with looking out for the interests of investors like me.
Giving CEOs the green light to use our retirement savings and investments as a political war chest for partisan interests like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is exactly the wrong thing to do.
It would be absurd for a small business owner not to know if his or her company’s money is being spent to help elect politicians. The same holds true for shareholders. Both shareholders and the public must be fully informed as to how much corporations spend on politics and which candidates are being promoted or attacked. Disclosures should be posted promptly on the SEC’s web site.
Thank you for considering my comment.
Colleen Kirby
Arlington, MA