Proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (ISS) has announced its benchmark proxy voting policies that will apply for shareholder meetings that take place after Feb. 1, 2020.
Among other measures, the ISS has created new policies for addressing “problematic governance provisions” and multi-class share structures at U.S. companies.
Under the new policy, sunset provisions that extend beyond seven years from a company’s initial public offering are deemed unreasonable. The ISS has also narrowed the focus of its policy on problematic governance arrangements.
The ISS said it’s also enhancing its pay-for-performance evaluation model for the U.S. and Canada by incorporating economic value added (EVA) metrics.
And, in Europe, it’s introducing new policies on board diversity that will call for voting against nomination committee chairs on boards that don’t have any female directors.
The new voting recommendations were developed in consultation with institutional investors, issuers and corporate governance experts.