EXPEDIA, INC. | Report on Political Contributions and Expenditures

Status
36.85% votes in favour
AGM date
Previous AGM date
Proposal number
4
Resolution details
Company ticker
EXPE
Lead filer
Friends Fiduciary Corporation
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, that the shareholders of Expedia Group, Inc., (“Expedia Group” or “Company”) hereby request that the Company provide a report, updated semiannually, disclosing the Company’s:
1.Policies and procedures for making, with corporate funds or assets, contributions and expenditures (direct or indirect) to (a) participate or intervene in any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for public office, or (b) influence the general public, or any segment thereof, with respect to an election or referendum.
2.Monetary and non-monetary contributions and expenditures (direct and indirect) used in the manner described in section 1 above, including:
a.The identity of the recipient as well as the amount paid to each; and
b.The title(s) of the person(s) in the Company responsible for decision-making.
The report shall be represented to the board of directors or relevant board committee and posted on the Company’s website within 12 months from the date of the annual meeting. This proposal does not encompass lobbying spending.
Supporting statement
As long-term shareholders of Expedia Group, we support transparency and accountability in corporate electoral spending. Disclosure is in the best interest of the Company and its shareholders. The Supreme Court recognized this in its 2010 Citizens United decision, which said “[D]isclosure permits citizens and shareholders to react to the speech of corporate entities in a proper way. This transparency enables the electorate to make informed decisions and give proper weight to different speakers and messages.”
Publicly available records show Expedia Group has contributed at least $2.25 million in corporate funds since the 2010 election cycle (CQMoneyLine: http://moneyline.cq.com; National Institute on Money in State Politics: http://www.followthemoney.org).
Expedia publicly discloses a policy on corporate political spending but this is deficient because Expedia Group does not disclose:
•Direct contributions to candidates, parties, and committees;
•Direct contributions to §527 organizations;
•Payments to trade associations that the recipient organization may use for election-related purposes, disaggregated by recipient; and,
•Payments to influence the outcome of ballot measures.

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