Fortis - 1792 Exchange

Rating Overview

Fortis is Medium Risk.

Fortis is Medium Risk. The company often yields to political activism in shaping corporate governance, potentially alienating consumers, dividing employees, and harming shareholders. The company implements race and identity-based policies that replace merit, excellence, and integrity with preferential treatment and outcomes. The company occasionally embraces corporate initiatives that redirect its central focus from business goals to partisan policies and divisive issues at times. This approach fails to safeguard free exercise, free speech, and free enterprise.

Rating Criteria

Corporate Weaponization Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Cancellations	Medium Risk
Discriminatory Philanthropy	Lower Risk
Employment Protection	Medium Risk

Corporate Weaponization ⓘ

Corporate Governance and Public Policy Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Advocacy Bias	High Risk
Funding	Lower Risk
Political Actions	Lower Risk

Corporate Governance and Public Policy ⓘ

Rating Criteria Detail

Criteria Risk Level Rationale

Corporate Weaponization

Criteria:

Has canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors due to their political views or religious beliefs OR corporately boycotts, divests, or sanctions regions, people groups, or industries.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

Fortis integrates ESG into its business practices. From its 2023 Sustainability Report: the company ties Executive performance measures to ESG, stating that it has “Sustainability performance linked
to executive compensation:
ESG leadership and safety performance
weightings increased to 15% each and
a new DEI measure was added to our long-term
incentive plan” (1). The company promotes divisive sex and gender policies. Its Vendor Code of Conduct requires international vendors to include sexual orientation and gender identity in their nondiscrimination policy (2). However, Fortis has not publicly canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors based on political views or religious beliefs (3).

Criteria:

Charitable giving (including employee matching programs) policies or practices discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or religious beliefs.

Risk Level:

Lower

Rationale:

Fortis does not appear to discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or beliefs. Its charitable giving focus areas are “health, education, social development and the environment” (1).

Criteria:

Employment policies fail to protect against viewpoint or other discrimination and/or are ideological in nature.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

Fortis appears to prioritize diversity over merit in its leadership composition. From its Board and Executive Diversity Policy : “Diversity is also an important element of executive leadership. Accordingly, diversity, inclusive of gender, culture and ethnicity, race, age, sexual orientation, ability and disability, and geographic background, is a key factor in the Corporation’s Talent Management Strategy, which seeks to identify, mentor and develop current executives and employees for more senior positions in the Fortis organization… Gender diversity is integral to the Corporation’s Board and executive leadership diversity strategy” (1). The company protects its employees against viewpoint discrimination (2).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy

Criteria:

Uses corporate reputation to support causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

Fortis’ subsidiary, ITC Holdings’, CEO Linda Aspey signed the Business Roundtable’s 2019 Statement on the Purpose of a Corporation, which promotes stakeholder capitalism over traditional obligations to shareholders (1). Fortis’ CEO David Hutchens signed the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion pledge, which includes a commitment to promote DEI through bias education training in the workplace, strategize on DEI programs/initiatives with other signatories, and engage boards of directors when developing and evaluating DEI strategies (2)(3). The company is aligned with the Paris Agreement, which entails a commitment to net zero carbon emissions by 2050 (4). Fortis supports DEI within its business practices. From its Inclusion and Diversity Commitment Statement: “Fortis will demonstrate leadership in advancing inclusion and
diversity in our workplace by taking meaningful and sustainable
actions that influence our culture, our people and our community” (5). The company supports ESG within its business practices. From its 2023 Sustainability Report: “Fortis completed a materiality assessment to better
understand the ESG areas that matter most to our
stakeholders and where we can have the most
significant positive social and environmental impact” (6).