Congress af the Ynited States Washington, DE 20515 May 11,2018 Mr, Jeffrey Bezos Chiet Executive Officer ‘Amazon.com, Ine 410 Terry Avenue N. Seattle, WA 98109 ear Mir. Bezos, As the chief executive of one ofthe world's leading corporate innovators, we ~the co-chairs of the House Tech Accountablty Caucus —want to engage Jou in a dialogue to purposefully work to resolve the issue of board and workplace diversity in the tech sector. Amazon has expressed an objective to be “Earth's most customer-centric company.” We have lite doubt that you ae sincere inthis mission, and support your objective of reaching and serving all customers in all markets. Doing this successfully however, requires a diverse and representative workforce and corporate leadership, ‘Amazon leadership's fat rejection ofa shareholder proposal supporting a ‘Rooney Rule’ inthe hiring process for new management and directors is astounding. Our astonishment is ‘compounded when you consider the fact that your “customer-centric” company — with over 300 rillion active users ~ has 2eo people of color on your 10-person Board of Directors. ‘Writing in opposition tothe shareholder propos, the Amazon board cited existing procedures that involve "complex conserations” when seeking women and minority candidates. We find this reasoning fo be misguided ‘Amazon's commercial success i due in large measure to its ability to simplify consumer purchasing by providing corsumers with a diversity of opions in terms of delivery speed, product size, and pricing. Tae complexity comes onthe back end, with supply chain logistics and algorithmic models to ensure proper and timely delivery. The same can be sid forthe merits ofthe Rooney Rule s having a diverse candidate pool ensures firm is presented with a robusta choice as possible. The complexity comes in finding the right candidate notin policies and procedures to seek diverse candidates. Is no secret thal the tech industry has a diversity problem, and your companys no exception. Acknowledging that the status quo is no longer acceptable, we would like te hear from you and you leadership team about your nex steps, andbow you will ereatea more diverse workforce and board of directors that more aptly represents the customers you seve The Rooney Rule shouldbe the lor, not the ceiling. As you prepare for your annual meeting of shareholders, we hope that you will have a robust conversation with key siakeholdes about sdding diversity in your C-Suite, having a more reresenative supplies and vendor xetwork, improving corporate social responsibility, and look to diversify collaborations between Amazon andthe greater community ‘We hope that you wil be wiling to hear suggestions from members of our caucus an how you can close your diversity deficit, create a more inclusive and representative bourd of firecors, and ¢ontinue your efforts to innovate and connect people from different communities. Please contact LaDavia Drane at LaDavia Drane@inail house gov and 202-225-6231, within 30, days to schedule a meeting with ws Sincerely, YeeteD.Carke Retin Kelly Member of Congress Menber of Congress ‘Bonnie Waton Coleman Eranvel Cleaver I Member of Congress Member of Congest