GOP agriculture commissioners go after big banks for backing UN's 'failed, left-wing climate agenda'

A group of Republican state agriculture commissioners recently launched an investigation into six big United States banks over their membership in and commitment to the United Nations' environmental, social, and governance goals, Fox Business reported Monday.

The coalition, consisting of 12 Republican state agriculture commissioners from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Carolina, Texas, and West Virginia, signed a Monday letter to top executives with Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, and Wells Fargo.

The officials are pressing for additional information about the banks' membership in the U.N.'s Net-Zero Banking Alliance, which aims to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. The alliance is a global group of institutions "committed to financing ambitious climate action." The member banks are encouraged to reach the net-zero targets by 2030 or earlier.

According to the U.N.'s website, 142 banks in 44 countries, with 41% of global banking assets, are members of the NZBA.

A report released by the NZBA last month revealed that the banks are taking aim at the fossil fuel industry, real estate, and iron, steel, and cement manufacturing, Fox Business reported.

The agriculture officials warned that the banks' membership could lead to less food availability, increased food prices for consumers, and limited credit access for farmers. The officials' letter expressed concerns about the U.N.'s push towards "inefficient electric farm equipment" and a move away from nitrogen fertilizer.

Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper told Fox Business, "American agriculture is sending a clear signal: We will not bend the knee to the failed, left-wing climate agenda of the United Nations that seeks to cripple one of our country's most critical industries."

"Now more than ever, banks that do business with America should be unquestionably supporting American industries — and that starts with the one that puts food on our tables, clothes on our backs, and shelter over our heads," Harper added. "The UN's Net-Zero Banking Alliance would be the equivalent of a run on the bank for our nation's agriculture industry and pose a serious threat to our national security — and it must be stopped."

The letter noted that it would require "a complete overhaul of on-farm infrastructure" to reach the U.N.'s goals.

"This would have a catastrophic impact on our farmers. Proposed net-zero road maps describe dramatic, impractical, and costly changes to American farming and ranching operations such as switching to electric machinery and equipment; installing on-site solar panels and wind turbines; moving to organic fertilizer; altering rice-field irrigation systems; and slashing U.S. ruminant meat consumption in half, costing millions of livestock jobs," the officials wrote.

"To make matters worse, these changes will increase food costs and decrease food production at a time when global food demand is expected to rise dramatically," the letter continued. "This is compounded by the fact that, the average American has been struggling to keep up with inflation during the tenure of the Biden administration. The reality could be much worse. These effects will hit the poor the hardest."

The officials warned that the commitment to net zero could "permanently damage American agriculture and endanger our country's food security."

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