Social Issues in the 2013 Proxy Season

More than half of the shareholder proposals on social issues submitted at Russell 3000 companies that held meetings during the first half of 2013 went to a vote, constituting 21.1 percent of voted shareholder proposals during the January—June period. The vast majority related to political issues, specifically those urging companies to disclose details of their lobbying policies and their total spend on lobbying activities.

This report looks at the content of those proposals, provides details about the topics that received the greatest support from shareholders, and offers examples of shareholder proposals and company disclosure.