Direct Lobbying Transparency
| Overall Assessment | Comment | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Strong | Westrock Co demonstrates strong transparency in naming the specific climate policies it lobbies and the outcomes it pursues, though its descriptions of the engagement mechanisms remain high-level. It discloses multiple distinct policy positions, calling for the treatment of “Biomass used to generate energy should be treated as carbon neutral where the energy is derived from forest derived industrial by-products, forest product manufacturing residuals, harvest residues, biomass waste derived feedstocks and forest derived feedstocks where the average carbon stocks per acre of U.S. timberlands, are stable or increasing on a broad regional scale using a reference point baseline approach”; advocating the “eligibility of biomass in renewable portfolio standards”; preferring a “carbon trading system in place rather than simply a tax on carbon emissions”; and seeking to “exclude commonly recycled from the definition of eligible feedstocks for bioenergy production tax credits.” Each of these proposals is paired with clear rationales and specific legislative or regulatory changes. By contrast, the company’s mechanism disclosures are confined to general statements—such as “We engage in and seek to shape GHG legislation and regulation impacting our industry or facilities”—without detailing whether it uses meetings, written submissions, or other outreach or naming the particular policymakers or agencies targeted. | 3 |