Published by Ignites.

January 10, 2014

The Securities and Exchange Commission has denied Franklin Resources’ request to skip a shareholder vote on divesting from shares of companies linked to genocide, Reuters reports.

The proxy proposal, which calls on Franklin’s board to adopt procedures for screening out such companies, involves a “significant policy issue” and does not seek to micromanage company operations, according to the SEC’s decision, released this week.

Eric Cohen of the activist group Investors Against Genocide, which put forward the proposal, tells Reuters the SEC denial is especially encouraging because it acknowledges genocide as a legitimate policy issue in stronger language than in the past.

A similar proposal sponsored by Investors Against Genocide did appear on Franklin’s proxy ballot last year, garnering just 9% of support at the annual meeting in March.

Franklin recommended that shareholders reject that proposal, but it did not try to keep it off the ballot. In November, however, the company asked for permission from the SEC to exclude Investors Against Genocide’s proposal at its 2014 meeting, contending that the measure sought too much control over company decisions.

Franklin executives were not immediately available to comment to Reuters.

By Joe Morris