By Jessica DiNapoli

NEW YORK, (Reuters) – The Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol was followed by recent protests for social justice and the disclosure of political donations set a new record. According to a Reuters study.

The Center for Political Accountability’s study found that American companies perceive new risks from political giving due to America’s hyperpartisan climate. This has led corporations to stop or reveal their contributions. The Center for Political Accountability calls on corporations to be transparent.

The study found that “unrest and angere political conflict” have dominated the past two year. It included the attack on the U.S. Capitol, two impeachments of President Donald Trump and efforts to reverse the 2020 election. In these volatile times, companies take action.

“They’ve adopted political spending policies to avoid or mitigate heightened risk,” according to the study.

A number of companies that had previously contributed to political campaigns were forced to halt their support for lawmakers who supported President Joe Biden’s election. [L1N2JN2ZQ]

Several companies like Delta Air Lines Inc (NYSE 🙂 have been vocal in their support of social and political issues such as voting rights. [L1N2OP2UL]

According to the new survey, 370 businesses either disclose all or part of their political spending or prohibit at least one form of it such as donations to trade organizations. The number of companies that disclosed their political spending is now 370, compared to 332 last year. [L1N2H31BW]

Bruce Freed is the president of Center for Political Accountability. He said that outright banning or disclosure of political contributions was a sign of top-flight corporate governance.

According to the study, the most significant changes in the last six years for companies have been related to “dark money,” which is tax-exempt groups that are able influence politics. From 2015 to 2021, there was almost a 100 percent increase in companies which prohibit or reveal contributions to these groups.

Intel Corp (NASDAQ:). The study highlighted the need to adopt a policy on corporate political contributions. This means that recipients will be screened for voting history and statements. Chipmaker will then communicate directly with these people.

The study highlighted Activision Blizzard Inc, a videogame company (NASDAQ:), and NVIDIA Corp (NASDAQ :), both artificial intelligence computing companies that have been criticized for their efforts to improve their policies regarding payments to “dark money” organizations.