What This Bill Does
This bill creates a new investment option called the Corporate Responsibility Stock Index Fund for federal employees who participate in the Thrift Savings Plan (a retirement savings program for federal workers). The fund will invest in companies selected based on their environmental practices, workplace policies, human rights records and other responsibility criteria.
Who It Affects
Federal employees who participate in the Thrift Savings Plan can choose to invest in this new fund option.
Key Provisions
• The Board overseeing the Thrift Savings Plan must select at least one commonly recognized, passively managed index (a pre-made list of stocks that is not actively traded) made up of stocks from U.S. or international markets that meet responsibility criteria (Sec. 2(b)(2)(A)(i))
• The selection criteria must include at minimum: corporate governance (how companies are run), environmental practices including greenhouse gas emissions and climate change contribution, workplace relations and benefits, product safety and impact, international operations and human rights, involvement with repressive regimes, and community relations (Sec. 2(b)(2)(A)(ii))
• The Corporate Responsibility Stock Index Fund's historical performance must be comparable to other investment funds available under the Thrift Savings Plan (Sec. 2(b)(2)(A)(iii))
• The fund's portfolio shall be designed to match the performance of the selected index by investing in each stock at a percentage matching that stock's share of the total market value of all stocks in the index (Sec. 2(b)(2)(B))
What Changes
Federal employees gain a new investment option in their retirement savings plan that focuses on companies with strong environmental, social and governance practices.
Important Definitions
• Corporate Responsibility Stock Index Fund: a fund invested in stocks selected based on corporate responsibility criteria like environmental practices and human rights records (Sec. 2(a)(2))
Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. R. 1261
To amend title 5, United States Code, to provide for a corporate responsibility
investment option under the Thrift Savings Plan.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 28, 2023
Mr. SCHIFF (for himself, Ms. LEGER FERNANDEZ, Mr. CLEAVER, Mr. CON-
NOLLY, and Ms. SCHAKOWSKY) introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on Oversight and Accountability
A BILL
To amend title 5, United States Code, to provide for a
corporate responsibility investment option under the
Thrift Savings Plan.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
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tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
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This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Federal Employees
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Sustainable Investment Act’’.
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SEC. 2. CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY STOCK INDEX FUND.
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(a) DEFINITION.—Section 8438(a) of title 5, United
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States Code, is amended—
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•HR 1261 IH
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through
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(10) as paragraphs (3) through (11), respectively;
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(2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol-
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lowing:
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‘‘(2) the term ‘Corporate Responsibility Stock
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Index Fund’ means the fund established under sub-
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section (b)(1)(G).’’; and
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(3) in paragraph (10), as redesignated by para-
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graph (1) of this subsection, by striking ‘‘paragraph
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(8)(D)’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘para-
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graph (9)(D)’’.
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(b) ESTABLISHMENT.—
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(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 8438(b)(1) of title
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5, United States Code, is amended—
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(A) in subparagraph (E), by striking
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‘‘and’’ at the end;
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(B) in subparagraph (F), by striking the
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period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
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(C) by adding at the end the following:
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‘‘(G) a Corporate Responsibility Stock Index
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Fund as provided under paragraph (6).’’.
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(2) FUND REQUIREMENTS.—Section 8438(b) of
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title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding
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at the end the following:
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•HR 1261 IH
‘‘(6)(A)(i) The Board shall select a minimum of one
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index which is a commonly recognized, passively managed
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index comprised of stocks (from the United States or
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international equity markets) that have been analyzed and
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selected based on criteria consistent with the purposes of
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this paragraph.
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‘‘(ii) The criteria under clause (i) shall at a minimum
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include—
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‘‘(I) corporate governance;
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‘‘(II) environmental practices (including green-
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house gas emissions and contribution to climate
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change);
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‘‘(III) workplace relations and benefits;
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‘‘(IV) product safety and impact;
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‘‘(V)
international
operations
and
human
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rights;
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‘‘(VI) involvement with repressive regimes; and
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‘‘(VII) community relations.
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‘‘(iii) The historical performance of each index se-
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lected under this subparagraph shall be comparable to
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that of the other investment funds and options available
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under this subsection.
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‘‘(B) The Corporate Responsibility Stock Index Fund
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shall be invested in a portfolio designed to replicate the
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performance of the index in subparagraph (A) (or, if more
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than one index is selected, the overall average perform-
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ance). The portfolio shall be designed such that, to the
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extent practicable, the percentage of the Corporate Re-
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sponsibility Stock Index Fund that is invested in each
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stock is the same as the percentage determined by dividing
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the aggregate market value of all shares of that stock by
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the aggregate market value of all shares of all stocks in-
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cluded in such index (or indexes).’’.
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