As has been widely reported, last Wednesday, Senator Warren [D-MA] introduced the Accountable Capitalism Act aimed at countering the allegedly harmful impacts on workers and communities purportedly associated with corporate shareholder value maximization.
As highlighted in Warren's one-page summary, the benefit corporation-informed Act would:
- Require all US "corporations" (including joint stock companies and LLCs) with more than $1 billion in annual revenue to obtain a federal charter from a newly-formed Office of US Corporations at the Department of Commerce, which would obligate the company's directors to consider the interests of all corporate stakeholders – including employees, customers, shareholders, and the communities in which the company operates
- Require at least 40% of the company's directors to be selected by the company's employees
- Prohibit company directors and officers from selling company stock within five years of receiving it or within three years of a company stock buyback
- Require companies to obtain the approval of at least 75% of their shareholders and 75% of their directors before engaging in political spending to ensure the expenditures benefit all corporate stakeholders