PETA's Shareholder Resolution Campaign

How It Started
Over the years, many members have given stock to PETA as a donation or because of specific cruelty issues, often related to the use of animals in laboratories or for food. PETA has also purchased shares in companies where the inhumane treatment of animals came to our attention. As a shareholder, PETA has certain rights guaranteed by law and enforced by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Perhaps the most significant of those is the right to file a shareholder proposal or resolution. PETA has exercised its right as a stockholder and filed shareholder proposals with many companies, including those listed on the attached score card.

What It Has Become
In 2004, PETA determined that it could make an even bigger impact with the help of its members. PETA’s president, Ingrid Newkirk, wrote to our Vanguard members in June 2004 announcing the first coordinated Shareholder Resolution Campaign. With the support of its members, PETA planned to introduce shareholder proposals at some of the largest companies in the nation. Those resolutions addressed the replacement, protection, and humane treatment of animals used in pharmaceutical
testing, in the food industry, in pet-food testing, and in chemical testing, to name a few.

The response was overwhelming. PETA supporters with holdings in more than 30 companies volunteered to sponsor shareholder resolutions. In some instances, 20 or
more members volunteered to sponsor a resolution at a single company.

What Exactly Is a Shareholder Resolution?
All publicly traded companies hold an annual meeting of shareholders. About 45 days before the meeting, shareholders receive the company’s proxy statement. The
proxy statement notifies shareholders of the date, time, and place of the annual meeting. Most importantly, the proxy also alerts shareholders to matters of significance on which they are entitled to vote. Shareholder proposals are among those matters included in the proxy statement upon which stockholders are entitled to vote.

How Does a Shareholder Resolution Get Filed?
To be eligible to file a shareholder proposal, stockholders must satisfy two requirements. They must own at least $2,000 worth of shares, and they must have owned their shares for one year prior to the deadline for filing the resolution. The deadline for filing a resolution is published in the previous year’s proxy statement. Typically, the filing deadline falls about six months before the date of the next annual meeting of shareholders (e.g., an annual meeting held in April will normally have a filing deadline in November).

What You Can Do
You can do two things. First, you can read your proxy statements carefully to determine whether there are any resolutions addressing animal protection and welfare and vote accordingly. If you are not familiar with proxy statements because your broker handles those matters for you, you can simply instruct your broker to vote your shares in favor of animals.

Second, you can be a participant in PETA’s ongoing Shareholder Resolution Campaign. If you satisfy the eligibility requirements described above and are willing to sponsor a shareholder resolution, contact PETA. We will determine whether a resolution is appropriate. If it is, we will draft the resolution, present it on your behalf, and advise you of our progress each step of the way.

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