In another move that undermines investor protections in the United States, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently proposed to rescind its 2024 rule providing for mandatory corporate disclosure of climate-related information.
SHARE has submitted a comment letter arguing against the move, telling the SEC that:
Climate-related information is material, and current voluntary measures are not resulting in adequate disclosure of material information. Rescission will not ease – and may, in fact, increase – compliance costs for issuers. It will shift costs to investors, costs which will ultimately be borne by millions of American workers and savers. And it will contravene the Commission’s own mandate to protect investors, maintain fair and efficient markets, and facilitate capital formation.
The SEC has received more than 18,000 submissions on the issue, the majority of which were form letters, but many of which were submitted by leading U.S., Canadian and global shareholder voices arguing against the rescission on clear materiality grounds and the commission’s own earlier determination that current voluntary disclosures have been insufficient.
The SEC’s move came as no surprise as the agency, under its Trump-appointed chair, earlier decided not to defend the 2024 rule in court, and the current chair has been advocating for a number of changes that disempower investors.
