June 3, 2025

Comptroller Glenn Hegar’s Statement Following Today’s Update to List of Financial Companies that Boycott Energy Companies

(AUSTIN) — I am pleased to announce a significant decline in the number of investment funds that boycott the oil and gas industry, as well as the removal of BlackRock Inc. from the Comptroller's office list of companies that boycott energy companies.

This is a meaningful victory and validates the leadership Texas has shown on this issue, which has seen a monumental shift in the way companies, governments and individual Americans view the energy sector. Texas has fostered transparency around the economic consequences of decades of misinformation regarding the so-called “energy transition” while highlighting the importance of the oil and gas industry and its critical connection to our daily lives.

My goal from the moment we started this process has been to cultivate a more intellectually honest conversation, and, once that conversation could take place, I hoped the result would be changes in policy and practice. 

When the Texas Legislature entrusted me with managing this list, we did not have a blueprint to follow or an existing set of criteria on which to base our decisions. Texas led the effort to nurture a balanced discussion from what had, for decades, been a one-sided argument that provided no room for dissent. The negative ideology had become so entrenched surrounding fossil fuels and the false claims that the energy industry could seamlessly transition to renewable fuel sources without causing economic pain and disastrous job losses for Texas and the world that multiple mainstream media outlets called my efforts “performative.”

They were not. Furthermore, the changes we have helped bring about through fostering an honest conversation around energy demonstrate the real need for this work. 

My team worked tirelessly to create a transparent process that gave companies a clear understanding of how they got on our list and a definitive path to removal. We never set out to punish any of these firms, and the hope was always that any firm we included on the list would eventually take steps to ensure they were removed.   

Following the lead of many of its competitors, BlackRock has finally done exactly that. While it took the company longer than others in the financial sector to make the shift, the end results are what matter. 

Directly related to our listing process, BlackRock has stepped back from full participation in the Climate Action 100+ and completely exited the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative. It has dramatically reduced the number of fund offerings that prohibit investment in oil and gas, and it shifted away from blanket policies that ignore the critical need for fossil fuel-based energy generation now and long into the future. The firm also has acknowledged the real social and economic costs, both in Texas and globally, that come from limiting investment in the oil and gas industry. In short, it is engaging in a more intellectually honest conversation.

Other actions taken by the firm, such as limiting support for activist shareholder efforts to curtail fossil fuel investments, supporting a Texas Stock Exchange and creating financial instruments that direct investment to Texas-based companies, while unrelated to our listing decision, nonetheless show a real commitment to overall policy changes and a desire to act as a trusted partner in the growth of the Texas economy.

Even as legislators and state leaders continue to address lingering concerns about proxy voting and other policies that prioritize politics over profits, I am hopeful these actions represent a long-term shift. I believe Texas lawmakers and the financial sector have brought significant transparency to this discussion, and positive progress will endure.

The financial activities sector is the largest contributor to the Texas GDP and a significant driver of investment in the Texas economy. It is important that when Texas makes an investment, we do so in a manner that supports our state economy and remains consistent with our values. Today marks an important milestone in achieving that goal.