Press Call: On Citizens United Anniversary, Calling For Campaign Contributions Disclosure

The Corporate Reform Coalition – made up of institutional investors managing a combined total of $800 billion in assets, as well as public officials, legal scholars, good government groups and CEOs – will hold a telephone press conference to discuss a petition calling on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to issue rules on corporate political spending.

The petition, filed this summer by prominent law professors, seeks to counter the explosion of corporate campaign contributions allowed by the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission with comprehensive disclosure rules that would allow the public and shareholders to track all political spending by corporations. (The January 2010 court decision lifted the ban on corporate and union funding of independent political advertising that names a candidate.)

Comments responding to the petition have been submitted to the SEC from investors, mutual fund managers, good corporate actors and other SEC stakeholders. (See the petition at http://1.usa.gov/xRecUQ)

WHEN: 12:30 p.m. EST, Thursday, Jan. 19

WHERE: Telephone press conference. Call-in number: 888-299-4099, Passcode: VG84121

WHO: U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.)

Janet Cowell, North Carolina State Treasurer

Ted Wheeler, Oregon State Treasurer

Robert Jackson, professor, Columbia Law School; Committee on Disclosure of Political Spending

Lucian Bebchuk, professor, director of Program on Corporate Governance, Harvard Law School; Committee on Disclosure of Political Spending

Adam Kanzer, managing director and general counsel, Domini Social Investments LLC

Tim Smith, senior vice president, Walden Asset Management, will moderate