Executive Order 14366

Protecting American Investors From Foreign-Owned and Politically-Motivated Proxy Advisors

Signed 2025-12-11 in effect
Financial RegulationInvestmentESG
Economy & Finance

Directs the SEC to regulate proxy advisory firms (primarily ISS and Glass Lewis) that the administration accuses of pushing ESG-related shareholder proposals.

Section by Section

What each section does, and how they differ.

Sec. 1 Purpose

Directs action to protect American investors from proxy advisors and political proxy voting that harm investment value, particularly regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion and environmental, social, and governance factors.

Sec. 2 Protecting Investors from Politicized Advice

Directs the SEC to review and revise rules relating to proxy advisors and shareholder proposals, enforce anti-fraud provisions against proxy advisor misstatements, assess investment adviser registration requirements, require transparency on conflicts of interest, and analyze coordination between proxy advisors and investment advisers.

Sec. 3 Unfair, Deceptive, or Anticompetitive Practices

Directs the FTC to review state antitrust investigations into proxy advisors and investigate whether they engage in collusion, conflict-of-interest concealment, or deceptive conduct that harms consumer investments.

Sec. 4 Protecting Pensions and Retirement Plans

Directs the Department of Labor to revise fiduciary duty regulations applicable to proxy advisors and others managing retirement plan proxy votes, and assess whether proxy advisors should be subject to heightened fiduciary standards.

Sec. 5 General Provisions

Standard boilerplate: preserves existing agency authority, conditions the order on appropriations, and creates no enforceable private rights.