Madness Continues: SEC Approves Climate Rule Forcing Companies To Disclose Emissions
Some corporations will soon have to step up their carbon footprint reporting after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday passed a climate-change disclosure rule.
WRITTEN BY RAMSEY TOUCHBERRY ON MAR 6, 2024. POSTED IN NEWS
Madness Continues: SEC Approves Climate Rule Forcing Companies To Disclose Emissions
Some corporations will soon have to step up their carbon footprint reporting after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday passed a climate-change disclosure rule.
The regulation, which was under consideration for two years, will require certain public companies to disclose information to investors about their direct greenhouse gas emissions and those created by the energy they consume. [emphasis, links added]
“Our federal securities laws lay out a basic bargain. Investors get to decide which risks they want to take so long as companies raising money from the public make what President Franklin Roosevelt called ‘complete and truthful disclosure,’ ” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler, a Democrat. “The rules will provide investors with consistent, comparable, and decision-useful information.”
Notably, the SEC made two significant reversals that will frustrate environmentalists and dealt a gut punch to climate-conscious ESG investing, but gave wins to businesses and others opposed to disclosures related to climate change.
Mr. Gensler [pictured above] said the changes were in direct response to an outpouring of concern from relevant stakeholders, including more than 24,000 public comments.
The Democratic-led commission dropped so-called Scope 3 emissions reportingthat would have required the disclosure of indirect emissions from companies’ supply chains and customers, such as the footprint of farmers whom banks lend to or the gasoline used to transport products.
Critics warned such reporting would be overly costly and burdensome for corporations, and could negatively impact who publicly traded companies choose to do business with, including the agriculture industry. …
In addition, the SEC altered the reporting of direct emissions and those from energy usage — known as Scope 1 and 2 emissions — to be at the discretion of the companies themselves.
Only those that determine such information is vital enough to be deemed “material” for investors will need to report it. Smaller companies will be exempt.
The SEC estimates about 2,800 U.S.-based companies will need to make the disclosures along with more than 500 foreign-based companies doing business in the U.S.
The rule passed the five-member commission 3-2 along party lines, with its three Democratic commissioners voting in favor and its two Republican commissioners against.
Read full post at Washington Times
This will die in court. The S.E.C does not have the legal authority to make this regulation. Because climate-change deals crosses the Rubicon of energy, environment, politics, and the economy, Every regulatory body will claim jurisdiction to gain a foot hold in some way. Keep this in main the U.S. and Canadian oil & gas sector quite arguably are under some of the most hostiles political and regulatory environments. The taxes, fees, regulations, legal challenges would make you believe that the operate in a third nation that is trying to extract as much from them as possible. Yet with each over reach we hit all time highs in production & consumption.
Nut jobs in charge