I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1618 
To require the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and 
the Securities and Exchange Commission to issue an annual report 
to Congress projecting and accounting for the economic costs directly 
and indirectly caused by the impacts of climate change, to require the 
Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board to establish a Federal Advi-
sory Panel on the Economics of Climate Change, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 8, 2021 
Mr. CLEAVER (for himself, Ms. TLAIB, Ms. BUSH, Mr. KHANNA, Ms. NOR-
TON, Mr. LEVIN of California, Ms. PRESSLEY, and Ms. JAYAPAL) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Over-
sight and Reform, and in addition to the Committee on Financial Serv-
ices, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each 
case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 
the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To require the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve 
System and the Securities and Exchange Commission 
to issue an annual report to Congress projecting and 
accounting for the economic costs directly and indirectly 
caused by the impacts of climate change, to require 
the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board to es-
tablish a Federal Advisory Panel on the Economics of 
Climate Change, and for other purposes. 
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Restructuring Environ-
mentally Sound Pensions in Order to Negate Disaster Act 
of 2021’’ or the ‘‘RESPOND Act of 2021’’. 
SEC. 2. CLIMATE CHANGE ECONOMIC COST REPORT. 
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Board of Gov-
ernors of the Federal Reserve System and the Securities 
and Exchange Commission shall jointly submit to Con-
gress a report that projects and accounts for the economic 
costs directly and indirectly caused by the impacts of cli-
mate change, which shall include an analysis of— 
(1) the effects that climate change has on the 
labor market, economic growth, public health, and 
other broad areas of the economy of the United 
States; 
(2) property and land damage from rising sea 
levels and extreme weather; and 
(3) the costs associated with natural disaster 
relief and mitigation. 
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SEC. 3. FEDERAL ADVISORY PANEL ON THE ECONOMICS OF 
CLIMATE CHANGE. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Federal Retirement 
Thrift Investment Board (referred to in this section as the 
‘‘Board’’) shall establish a panel to be known as the ‘‘Fed-
eral Advisory Panel on the Economics of Climate Change’’ 
(referred to in this section as the ‘‘Advisory Panel’’). 
(b) MEMBERSHIP.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Advisory Panel shall 
consist of 9 members, appointed by the Board as fol-
lows: 
(A) Three members shall be chosen from 
among persons generally recognized for their 
impartiality, knowledge, and experience in the 
field of labor relations and pay policy. 
(B) Six members shall be chosen from 
among persons with expertise in local, national, 
or transnational financing that seeks to support 
mitigation and adaptation actions to combat cli-
mate change. 
(2) LIMITATION.—Not more than 3 members of 
the Advisory Panel may represent a single employee 
organization, council, federation, alliance, associa-
tion, or affiliation of employee organizations. 
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(3) CHAIR.—The Board shall select a member 
of the Advisory Panel appointed under paragraph 
(1)(A) to serve as the Chair of the Advisory Panel. 
(4) COMPENSATION.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—A member of the Advi-
sory Panel— 
(i) may not receive pay by reason of 
the service of the member on the Advisory 
Panel; and 
(ii) shall not be considered to be an 
employee of the Federal Government solely 
because of the service of the member on 
the Advisory Panel. 
(B) 
EXPENSES.—Notwithstanding 
sub-
paragraph (A), a member of the Advisory Panel 
appointed under paragraph (1)(A) may be paid 
expenses in accordance with section 5703 of 
title 5, United States Code. 
(c) DUTIES.—The Advisory Panel shall— 
(1) advise the Board on how, consistent with 
the fiduciary duties of the Board, the Board can 
make investments in a manner that helps ensure 
that the United States achieves net zero greenhouse 
gas emissions not later than 2050; 
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(2) identify possible investment opportunities in 
clean and renewable energy and other emerging in-
dustries that would maximize returns; 
(3) produce a comparative analysis comparing 
the fiduciary efficacy and responsibility of existing 
investment practices of the Board with the invest-
ment strategies described in paragraph (1); and 
(4) advise the Board on how to identify, assess, 
and manage the investment risks and opportunities 
of climate change and prepare for a transition to a 
low-carbon economy. 
(d) EXAMINATION.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out the duties of 
the Advisory Panel under subsection (c), the Advi-
sory Panel shall examine the following: 
(A) Economic and policy challenges facing 
the fossil fuel industry over the short, medium, 
and long term. 
(B) Quantitative and qualitative analysis 
and modeling of the economic impact of climate 
change on Federal employee retirement pro-
grams, including diversification of investments, 
risk tolerance, future economic and workforce 
trends, new opportunities, expected losses, and 
returns. 
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(C) The current state of, and outlook for, 
clean energy, including possible investment op-
portunities. 
(D) The experiences, including perform-
ance analyses, of other pension funds and inves-
tors that have undertaken concerted strategic 
efforts to divest from fossil fuel holdings in 
order to maximize the efficacy and stability of 
their assets while minimizing their climate-re-
lated risk exposure. 
(E) Strategic options to address climate- 
related investment risks through further efforts 
to divest from fossil fuel holdings, including— 
(i) transitioning to a low-carbon or 
carbon-free benchmark index for all public 
equities; 
(ii) divesting from significant fossil 
fuel holdings that are not responsible fidu-
ciary investments for beneficiaries; and 
(iii) exploring the use of organizations 
to de-risk investments in carbon dependent 
funds. 
(2) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the Advisory Panel 
shall submit to the Board a report containing the 
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findings of the Advisory Panel, including the results 
of the examinations performed under paragraph (1). 
(e) CONSULTATION WITH FEMA.—The Advisory 
Panel shall, in preparing the report required under sub-
section (d)(2), consult with the Administrator of the Fed-
eral Emergency Management Agency on any matters with-
in the jurisdiction of that Agency. 
(f) REVIEW OF REPORT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—If the Board, after reviewing 
the report submitted by the Advisory Panel under 
subsection (d)(2), determines that it would be finan-
cially profitable, and consistent with the fiduciary 
duties of the Board, to implement low-carbon invest-
ment strategies, the Board shall establish a plan to 
transition the investment practices of the Board ac-
cordingly. 
(2) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—The Board shall 
submit to Congress, including to the Office of the 
Law Revision Counsel of the House of Representa-
tives, a report regarding the determination of the 
Board under paragraph (1), including if the Board 
is unable to determine that it would be financially 
profitable, and consistent with the fiduciary duties of 
the Board, to implement low-carbon investment 
strategies. 
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(g) TERMINATION.—Notwithstanding section 14 of 
the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.), the 
Advisory Panel shall terminate upon submitting the report 
required under subsection (d)(2). 
(h) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated not more than 
$2,000,000 for the Advisory Panel to comply with the re-
quirements of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 
U.S.C. App.), including by ensuring that the Advisory 
Panel will have— 
(1) adequate staff and quarters; and 
(2) funds available to meet the other necessary 
expenses of the Advisory Panel. 
SEC. 4. CLIMATE CHOICE STOCK INDEX FUND. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 8438 of title 5, United 
States Code, is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)— 
(A) 
by 
redesignating 
paragraphs 
(4) 
through (10) as paragraphs (7) through (13), 
respectively; 
(B) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), 
and (3) as paragraphs (2), (4), and (5), respec-
tively; 
(C) by inserting before paragraph (2), as 
so redesignated, the following: 
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‘‘(1) the term ‘Climate Choice Stock Index 
Fund’ means the Climate Choice Stock Index Fund 
established under subsection (b)(1)(G);’’; 
(D) by inserting after paragraph (2), as so 
redesignated, the following: 
‘‘(3) the term ‘entity’ means any sole propri-
etorship, organization, association, corporation, part-
nership, joint venture, limited partnership, limited li-
ability partnership, limited liability company, or 
other business association, including any wholly 
owned subsidiary, majority-owned subsidiary, par-
ent-country national, or affiliate of the business as-
sociation, that exists for the purpose of making prof-
it;’’; and 
(E) by inserting after paragraph (5), as so 
redesignated, the following: 
‘‘(6) the term ‘fossil fuel entity’ means any en-
tity— 
‘‘(A) with proven carbon reserves; or 
‘‘(B) that explores for, extracts, processes, 
refines, or transmits coal, oil, gas, oil shale, or 
tar sands;’’; and 
(2) in subsection (b)— 
(A) in paragraph (1)— 
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(i) in subparagraph (E), by striking 
‘‘and’’ at the end; 
(ii) in subparagraph (F), by striking 
the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; 
and’’; and 
(iii) by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(G) a Climate Choice Stock Index Fund 
as provided in paragraph (6).’’; and 
(B) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(6)(A) The Board shall select an index which 
is a commonly recognized index comprised of com-
mon stock. 
‘‘(B) The historical performance of the index 
selected under subparagraph (A) shall be comparable 
to that of the other investment funds and options 
available under this subsection. 
‘‘(C) The Climate Choice Stock Index Fund 
shall be invested in a portfolio that is designed— 
‘‘(i) to replicate the performance of the 
index selected under subparagraph (A); 
‘‘(ii) such that, to the extent practicable, 
the percentage of the Climate Choice Stock 
Index Fund that is invested in each stock is the 
same as the percentage determined by dividing 
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the aggregate market value of all shares of that 
stock by the aggregate market value of all 
shares of all stocks included in the index se-
lected under subparagraph (A); and 
‘‘(iii) to ensure that no investment in the 
portfolio is an investment with respect to a fos-
sil fuel entity.’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
subsection (a) shall take effect— 
(1) only if the Federal Retirement Thrift In-
vestment Board, in the report submitted under sec-
tion 3(f)(2), indicates that the Board is unable to 
determine that it would be financially profitable, and 
consistent with the fiduciary duties of the Board, to 
implement low-carbon investment strategies; and 
(2) on the date on which the Board submits the 
report described in paragraph (1). 
Æ 
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