We will evaluate these instances on a case-by-case basis. Voting guidelines. The following issue-specific proxy voting guidelines (the Guidelines) summarize BlackRock Investment Stewardships (BIS) philosophy and approach to engagement and voting, as well as our view of governance best practices and the roles and responsibilities of boards and directors for publicly listed U.S. companies. 0000015446 00000 n
(go back), 12By material sustainability-related risks and opportunities, we mean the drivers of risk and value creation in a companys business model that have an environmental or social dependency or impact. H\n0E SASB standards will over time be adapted to ISSB standards but are the reference reporting tool in the meantime. In determining how to vote on behalf of clients who have authorized us to do so, we look to companies only to address issues within their control and do not anticipate that they will address matters that are the domain of public policy. We will evaluate the actions that the company has taken to limit shareholders ability to exercise the right to nominate dissident director candidates, including those actions taken absent the immediate threat of a contested situation. HtPMO[1W>omK AT bPE4D4iT$\zfr]dW XM)sq=
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ZKEES-hKl>&V;_!8?-Dh0Xc 9Td&1gXlfd6#:h!A8 lm%J\S U1 Mi[M {C/](gT%*B^yS They are to be applied with discretion, taking into consideration the range of issues and facts specific to the company, as well as individual ballot items at shareholder meetings. Accordingly, shareholders should have the right to call a special meeting in cases where a reasonably high proportion of shareholders (typically a minimum of 15% but no higher than 25%) are required to agree to such a meeting before it is called. In the event that the board chooses to have a combined Chair/CEO or a non-independent Chair, we support the designation of a Lead Independent director, with the ability to: 1) provide formal input into board meeting agendas; 2) call meetings of the independent directors; and 3) preside at meetings of independent directors. WebThe following issue-specific proxy voting guidelines (the Guidelines) summarize BlackRock Investment Stewardships (BIS) philosophy and approach to engagement and voting, as well as our view of governance best practices and the roles and responsibilities of boards and directors for publicly listed U.S. companies. As such, we will generally oppose proposals requesting the adoption of cumulative voting, which may disproportionately aggregate votes on certain issues or director candidates. Specifically, we look for companies to disclose strategies that they have in place that mitigate and are resilient to any material risks to their long-term business model associated with a range of climate-related scenarios, including a scenario in which global warming is limited to well below 2C, and considering global ambitions to achieve a limit of 1.5C. (go back), 3A BDC is a special investment vehicle under the Investment Company Act of 1940 that is designed to facilitate capital formation for small and middle-market companies(go back), 4CTo this end, we do not view shareholder proposals asking for the separation of Chair and CEO to be a proxy for other concerns we may have at the company for which a vote against directors would be more appropriate. 'Td9m by]Z`!,RsLfX
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}mT/>E9( Boards should establish policies prohibiting the use of equity awards in a manner that could disrupt the intended alignment with shareholder interests, such as the excessive pledging or heading of stock. We may support shareholder proposals requesting that implementation of such arrangements require shareholder approval. Review recommendations for proxies where the Guidelines specify that the issues are to be determined on a caseby--case basis and ensure such proxies are voted in accordance with these Policies and Guidelines; and Monitoring Proxy Vendor Oversights proxy voting activities (see below). [6] In our experience, greater diversity in the boardroom contributes to more robust discussions and more innovative and resilient decisions. WebRanked-Choice Voting (also known as instant runoff voting) allows voters to rank a first, second and third choice candidate for a single office. Companies should disclose the steps they are taking to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion; job categories and workforce demographics; and their responses to the U.S. 0000042449 00000 n
Where a standardized proxy access provision exists, we will generally oppose shareholder proposals requesting outlier thresholds. Shareholders should have the opportunity to review substantial governance changes individually without having to accept bundled proposals. We generally do not favor programs focused on awards that require performance levels to be met and maintained for a relatively short time period for payouts to be earned, unless there are extended vesting and/or holding requirements. The information on this website does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to purchase, securities in any jurisdiction to any person to whom it is not lawful to make such an offer. Continue to $country-name$ Individual Investor site. (go back), 8Including, but not limited to, individuals who identify as Black or African American, Hispanic or Latinx, Asian, Native American or Alaska Native, or Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander; individuals who identify as LGBTQ+; individuals who identify as underrepresented based on national, Indigenous, religious, or cultural identity; individuals with disabilities; and veterans. trailer
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We engage an outside advisor to make initial, customized recommendations based on these Proxy Voting Principles and Guidelines. (go back), 9Special situations are broadly defined as events that are non-routine and differ from the normal course of business for a companys shareholder meeting, involving a solicitation other than by management with respect to the exercise of voting rights in a manner inconsistent with managements recommendation. These may include instances where shareholders nominate director candidates, oppose the view of management and/or the board on mergers, acquisitions, or other transactions, etc. The views and strategies described may not be suitable for all investors. WebIn the exercise of proxy voting authority which has been delegated to it by particular clients, the Advisor will apply the following policies in accordance with, and subject to, any It is our view that long-term shareholders should have the opportunity, when necessary and under reasonable conditions, to nominate directors on the companys proxy card.[19]. We look to understand a boards diversity in the context of a companys domicile, market capitalization, business model, and strategy. Accordingly, shareholders should have the right to solicit votes by written consent provided that: 1) there are reasonable requirements to initiate the consent solicitation process (in order to avoid the waste of corporate resources in addressing narrowly supported interests); and 2) shareholders receive a minimum of 50% of outstanding shares to effectuate the action by written consent. We also favor prompt recoupment from any senior executive whose behavior caused material financial harm to shareholders, material reputational risk to the company, or resulted in a criminal proceeding, even if such actions did not ultimately result in a material restatement of past results. We believe boards should aspire to meaningful diversity of membership, at least consistent with local regulatory requirements and best practices, while recognizing that building a strong, diverse board can take time. Nonetheless, we may support the proposal where the company: Increase in authorized common shares BIS will evaluate requests to increase authorized shares on a case-by-case basis, in conjunction with industry-specific norms and potential dilution, as well as a companys history with respect to the use of its common shares. Join Lisa Edwards, Diligent President and COO, and Fortune Media CEO Alan Murray to discuss how corporations' role in the world has shifted - and how leaders can balance the risks and opportunities of this new paradigm. 0000000016 00000 n
We encourage companies to structure their change of control provisions to require the termination of the covered employee before acceleration or special payments are triggered (commonly referred to as double trigger change of control provisions). Q (xIP,O# Our publicly available commentary provides more information on our approach to corporate political activities. WebEXECUTIVE SUMMARY Policy Updates for 2023 W W W . proper books and records relating to proxy voting are kept. Our publicly available commentary provides more information on our approach to board diversity. Disclosure of material issues that affect the companys long-term strategy and value creation, including, when relevant, material sustainability-related factors, is essential for shareholders to appropriately understand and assess how effectively the board is identifying, managing, and mitigating risks. If you have received an invitation, you must first create a login by following the link provided in We acknowledge that the use of peer group evaluation by compensation committees can help calibrate competitive pay; however, we are concerned when the rationale for increases in total compensation is solely based on peer benchmarking. Required fields are marked *, You may use these HTML tags and attributes:
. day & year Home Owner(s) Signature: _____ Date: _____ This form must be presented during the Compensation structures should generally drive outcomes that align the pay of the executives with performance of the company and the value received by shareholders. IA-2106, at n. 2 and accompanying text (Jan. 31, 2003) (Proxy Voting Release), citing SEC v. Capital Gains This may not apply in cases where BIS did not support the initial vote against such board member(s), The Independent Chair or Lead Independent Director and/or members of the nominating/governance committee, where a board fails to consider shareholder proposals that (1) receive substantial support, and (2) in our view, have a material impact on the business, shareholder rights, or the potential for long-term value creation, Appears to have a legitimate financing motive for requesting blank check authority, Has committed publicly that blank check preferred shares will not be used for anti-takeover purposes, Has a history of using blank check preferred stock for financings, Has blank check preferred stock previously outstanding such that an increase would not necessarily provide further anti-takeover protection but may provide greater financing flexibility, The degree to which the proposed transaction represents a premium to the companys trading price. Companies that engage in political activities should develop and maintain robust processes to guide these activities and mitigate risks, including board oversight. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Posted by Sandy Boss, John Roe and Jessica McDougall, BlackRock, Inc, on, Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance, Do Diverse Directors Influence DEI Outcomes, International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Foundation, International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), https://www.blackrock.com/corporate/literature/whitepaper/bii-managing-the-net-zero-transition-february-2022.pdf, Mergers, acquisitions, asset sales, and other special transactions, Material sustainability-related risks and opportunities, Employment as a senior executive by the company or a subsidiary within the past five years, An equity ownership in the company in excess of 20%, Having any other interest, business, or relationship (professional or personal) which could, or could reasonably be perceived to, materially interfere with the directors ability to act in the best interests of the company and its shareholders, Where the board has failed to facilitate quality, independent auditing or accounting practices, we may vote against members of the audit committee, Where the company has failed to provide shareholders with adequate disclosure to conclude that appropriate strategic consideration is given to material risk factors (including, where relevant, sustainability factors), we may vote against members of the responsible committee, or the most relevant director, Where it appears that a director has acted (at the company or at other companies) in a manner that compromises their ability to represent the best long-term economic interests of shareholders, we may vote against that individual, Where a director has a multi-year pattern of poor attendance at combined board and applicable committee meetings, or a director has poor attendance in a single year with no disclosed rationale, we may vote against that individual. 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