Pfizer Boosts Reporting on Political Donations(A)

At Pfizer’s April 22 annual meeting, the CEO unveiled new measures to respond to shareholder concerns about the company’s political contributions. A coalition of shareholders led by the Nathan Cummings Foundation and including Trillium Asset Management, filed a shareholder resolution asking the company to disclose all of its political contributions in a comprehensive report. The resolution received support from 11 percent of the company’s shareholders.
At the company’s annual meeting, Pfizer’s CEO announced that the company would begin to post on its website an annual report detailing its political contributions. The company has already posted its report for the company’s contributions over the two-year period 2001-2002 and plans to upload its report for 2003 within the next several weeks. Trillium Asset Management and other concerned shareholders believe Pfizer’s increased reporting will help shareholders better understand how the company is using shareholder resources for campaign donations.