Comer Investigates Risk of U.S. Taxpayer Funds Supporting UN Climate Agenda

WASHINGTON—House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) is conducting oversight of U.S. taxpayer funds delivered to the United Nations (UN) that support net-zero climate organizations who advance the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) agenda which threatens U.S. consumers and risks violating antitrust laws. In a letter to U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, Chairman Comer requests documents, communications, and a staff-level briefing to determine whether American taxpayers are supporting UN policies which threaten our nation’s interests.

“The Biden Administration’s FY2024 budget requested over $4 billion for United Nations funding accounts, yet safeguards for oversight of UN-supported climate-related measures appear missing. Americans deserve to know whether the U.S. Mission to the UN is jeopardizing their nation’s sovereignty by advancing radical climate goals of the UN and other countries with their tax dollars,” Chairman Comer wrote.

The UN-convened Net-Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA) requires insurance company members to commit to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. United States attorneys general have publicly raised concern that NZIA commitments may violate antitrust laws and warn that U.S. tax dollars sent to the UN supporting NZIA and other climate-related measures could harm U.S. businesses and customers. The Oversight Committee is bringing transparency to how the Biden Administration’s support of ESG policies conflicts with the economic, energy, and national security needs of the U.S. The Committee held a hearing on May 10, 2023 with state attorneys general to examine how ESG initiatives pose risks for retirees and investors.

“It is unclear what if any safeguards or oversight mechanisms are in place. Through the UN system, advancers of the ESG agenda like the NZIA can take advantage of the complexity to force radical environmental activism which raises prices, deters investment of new technologies,  and prevents human flourishing. The Committee must ensure the U.S. is not directly or indirectly involved in funding or supporting such UN-supported efforts.” Chairman Comer continued.

Read the letter to the Honorable Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, here.