Virginia AG Pens Advisory Warning Against ESG Investments
Last week, Virginia’s attorney general released an advisory opinion directing the Virginia retirement system in the state against making investment decisions that prioritized environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. The attorney general, Jason Miyares, explained in the nonbinding legal analysis that the state’s retirement system needed to base its investments on what would generate the best financial results for its beneficiaries. Members of the state’s retirement systems include public school teachers, state employees and employees of political subdivisions, such as cities, towns and counties. In a statement, Miyares explained that investments needed to be driven by calculated and careful financial…