The CCSR determines how HMC will cast its proxy votes related to environmental and social proxy proposals. The Advisory Committee on Shareholder Responsibility (“ACSR”) submits recommendations to the CCSR regarding how HMC should vote, relying on a rich set of precedent to help inform those recommendations. The ACSR has developed Proxy Voting Guidelines which also help to inform its recommendations with regard to voting on select environmental and social issues for which the committees’ body of precedent provides a clear indication of a voting preference.
HMC determines how to cast votes related to governance. In 2015, HMC conducted a formal review of its approach to proxy voting on governance. As a result of this review, HMC developed a Proxy Voting Policy for governance-related proposals. The policy is being integrated into HMC's new automated research and proxy voting system, and will help HMC more consistently vote in a manner that supports its governance objectives.