YUM! BRANDS, INC. | Annual report on lobbying at YUM! BRANDS, INC.

Status
41.89% votes in favour
AGM date
Previous AGM date
Proposal number
6
Resolution details
Company ticker
YUM
Lead filer
SOC Investment Group
Resolution ask
Report on or disclose
ESG theme
  • Governance
ESG sub-theme
  • Lobbying / political engagement
Type of vote
Shareholder proposal
Filer type
Shareholder
Company sector
Consumer Discretionary
Company HQ country
United States
Resolved clause
Resolved, YUM stockholders request the preparation of a report, updated annually, disclosing:
1. YUM’s policy and procedures governing its own lobbying, both direct and indirect, and grassroots lobbying communications.
2. Payments by YUM used for (a) direct or indirect lobbying or (b) grassroots lobbying communications, in each case including the amount of the payment and the recipient.
3. Description of management’s decision-making process and the Board’s oversight of this process.
For purposes of this proposal, a “grassroots lobbying communication” is a communication directed to the general public that (a) refers to specific legislation or regulation, (b) reflects a view on the legislation or regulation and (c) encourages the recipient of the communication to take action with respect to the legislation or regulation. “Indirect lobbying” is lobbying engaged in by a trade association or other organization of which YUM is a member.
Both “direct and indirect lobbying” and “grassroots lobbying communications” include efforts at the local, state and federal levels.
The report shall be presented to the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and posted on the YUM website.
Whereas clause
Whereas, we believe in full disclosure of lobbying activities and expenditures of YUM! Brands, Inc. (“YUM”) to assess whether YUM’s lobbying is consistent with its expressed goals and stockholder interests.
Supporting statement
Supporting Statement
YUM does not currently report on the full extent of its lobbying efforts. We do know that YUM spent $12,610,746 from 2012-2022 on federal lobbying. The company also spent $100,000 almost exclusively to oppose AB 257 in 2022, a California law that creates a council to set minimum standards on working conditions, a law that industry groups now seek to overturn. Beyond that, there is not a complete picture of the company’s lobbying activities.
State level lobbying disclosures are uneven, incomplete or absent. For example, in Florida YUM spent anywhere between $1-$9,999 on lobbying for each of Q1-Q3 in 2022, a figure that does not provide investors with meaningful information. Additionally, from 2021-2022, YUM spent at least $90,000 on lobbying in New York State, and at least $64,000 on lobbying in New York City. Current disclosure systems require investors to search multiple databases, which may or may not hold complete data.
We are concerned that lack of disclosure could present reputational risk that could harm shareholder value from lobbying that is not aligned with the Company’s public positions. YUM claims to follow a “Recipe for Growth & Good” as the foundation for “sustainable, long-term results”. Complete reporting would shed light on how that commitment operates in practice.

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