Jan.7, 2020
Rule Comments, My name is Sidni Totten. I am a retiree from Austin, TX. I spent 30 years working for AT&T, Southwestern Bell, & Pacific Telephone. I am a life member of CWA. During my working life I invested in the stock of the companies that employed me. Shareholder proposals were never welcomed by the boards of directors. Some were counterproductive, but a good many had merit. A shareholder proposal brought forth by union members that were voting their profit sharing and retirement shares were instrumental in pressuring a number of large U.S. based corporations to divest from South Africa & so helped to hasten the end of Apartheid. Of course, not one single director of any board recommended adopting such a proposal. If this proposals had been brought up under the new rules being proposed, they most likely would never have seen daylight. Shareholder proposals should not be regarded as an annoyance. The boards of directors have an interest in silencing proposals that endanger their ability to vote themselves astronomical paydays. Don’t listen to Wall Street on this; listen to your constituents on Main Street. Thank you. Sidni Totten [redacted]