Bishops to vote on conflict-of-interest policy

Published: 2003-11-11

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The U.S. bishops have been asked to adopt a policy to prevent conflict of interest in conducting business and to update their guidelines on socially responsible investing. The recommendations were made Nov. 10 by Archbishop James P. Keleher of Kansas City, Kan., chairman of the bishops' Committee on Budget and Finance, at the bishops' fall general meeting in Washington. The archbishop said that the bishops currently do not have a conflict-of-interest policy and that the current guidelines on socially responsible investing need to be updated to reflect new concerns since they were adopted in 1991. New concerns regarding socially responsible investments include stem-cell research, pornography, land-mine production, biotechnical research, labor sweatshops, human rights and predatory lending, said a background report prepared for the bishops.

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