U.S. Chamber and Business Roundtable Commend SEC’s Decision to Grant Stay on Proxy Access Rule

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Business Roundtable issued a response today after the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) granted a stay on its proxy access rule, Rule 14a-11, and related amendments to its rules, including the amendment to its shareholder proposal rule, Rule 14a-8. This decision is in response to the U.S. Chamber and Business Roundtable’s petition for review filed with U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and request for a stay filed with SEC.

“We welcome the SEC’s order granting our request for a stay on proxy access rules.” said David Hirschmann, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber’s Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness. “We believe this is a timely and correct decision that will avoid a costly period of uncertainty for all investors.”

“This is a welcome decision that brings clarity for investors and issuers in the coming proxy season and avoids unnecessary costs,” said Larry Burton, executive director of Business Roundtable. “We look forward to proceeding to a hearing of the case on the merits.”

Earlier this year, the SEC issued final rules requiring a corporation to include in its proxy materials nominees put forward by a shareholder (or group of shareholders) who have owned three percent or more of a corporations stock for at least a three year period.

Since its inception three years ago, the Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness has led a bipartisan effort to modernize and strengthen the outmoded regulatory systems that have governed our capital markets. The CCMC is committed to working aggressively with the administration, Congress, and global leaders to implement reforms to strengthen the economy, restore investor confidence, and ensure well-functioning capital markets.

Business Roundtable is an association of chief executive officers of leading U.S. companies with nearly $6 trillion in annual revenues and more than 12 million employees. Member companies comprise nearly a third of the total value of the U.S. stock markets and pay more than 60 percent of all corporate income taxes paid to the federal government. Annually, they pay more than $167 billion in dividends to shareholders and the economy. Please visit us at www.brt.org, check us out on Facebook and LinkedIn, and follow us on Twitter.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations.

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