We investigate whether environmental regulation reduce agency costs. We find that increases in environmental restrictions decrease liquidity and increase financial constraints. In addition, it increases the likelihood of the firms being acquired or delisted from the exchanges. Such adverse outcomes should lead the shareholders into taking actions that mitigate these risks. We notice that shareholders restructure the board of directors and incentivize CEOs with more stock ownership. These actions, in turn, reduce agency costs and lead to increases in future profitability for these firms.

中文翻译：

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环境法规、代理成本和公司绩效

我们调查环境监管是否降低了代理成本。我们发现，环境限制的增加会减少流动性并增加财务约束。此外，它还增加了公司被收购或从交易所退市的可能性。这种不利结果应促使股东采取行动减轻这些风险。我们注意到，股东重组了董事会，并用更多的股权激励首席执行官。这些行动反过来又降低了代理成本，并提高了这些公司未来的盈利能力。