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BlackRock ( BLK ), JPMorgan CEOs among those to get letter

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Asks for confirmation of no weakening of climate targets

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Also seeks communications with Trump administration

By Simon Jessop, Nupur Anand and Saeed Azhar

NEW YORK/LONDON, May 15 (Reuters) - Democratic lawmakers

harshly criticized the chief executives of BlackRock ( BLK ),

JPMorgan ( JPM ) and other top finance companies for leaving

several global coalitions devoted to combating climate change,

urging them to uphold their previous commitments and policy

targets designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Against a backdrop of worsening extreme weather events and

rising financial risks, the members of Congress said the bosses

had "actively decided to cede leadership on combating climate

change," a letter to the executives seen by Reuters showed. The

letter, sent Thursday, also asks for records of their

communications with the Trump administration regarding any plans

to cut their work on environmental and social causes.

"We are disappointed that your organization appears to be

disregarding science and what's good for business, and instead

yielding to political pressure for short-term political favor,"

it said.

The chief executives of Morgan Stanley ( MS ), Citigroup ( C/PN )

, Bank of America ( BAC ), Wells Fargo ( WFC ), Goldman

Sachs ( GS ), Northern Trust ( NTRS ), Franklin Templeton

, State Street, Invesco ( IVZ ) and Pimco, part

of insurer Allianz, also received the letter, which

was led by California Rep. Maxine Waters, the ranking Democrat

on the House Financial Services Committee.

Pimco, Wells Fargo ( WFC ), Bank of America ( BAC ), Goldman Sachs ( GS ), Citi and

JPMorgan ( JPM ) have declined to comment, while the other companies and

banks did not immediately return a request for comment.

Each institution left either the Net Zero Banking Alliance,

the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative or Climate Action 100+,

members of which had either committed to cutting emissions

linked to the institution's activities or to engaging with

investee companies over climate.

When they left the groups, most of the institutions said

they still pledged to reduce emissions but made no reference to

the political pressure from some Republican politicians, who

accused the companies of unfairly seeking to limit financing to

the fossil fuel industry.

Industry emissions from the burning of coal, gas and oil are

the leading cause of man-made global warming and countries have

agreed to try and reduce them, although the administration of

President Donald Trump has recently pulled the U.S. out of the

deal.

As well as asking the CEOs to explain their decision to

leave the groups, the letter asked them to confirm their

intention to achieve their previously stated emissions-reduction

goals and explain how they intended to do it.

The letter also asked whether they would continue publishing

their progress or explain why not; to detail existing targets

and policies to cut emissions in line with the Paris Agreement

on climate; and to commit not to weaken them.

For the banks specifically, it asked them whether they still

intend to set targets and policies on so-called "facilitated"

greenhouse gas emissions, such as those linked to companies

issuing bonds a bank underwrites. The letter also asked whether

the banks would stick with the same timetable for emission

reduction goals.

And for all the companies, it asked them to detail

communications with the Trump administration regarding cutting

environmental, social and governance activities since Jan. 20,

including any directives to freeze funds for climate-related

federal programmes such as the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund.