S.E.C. Poised to Unleash a Sweeping “Climate Disclosure” Rule

S.E.C. Poised to Unleash a Sweeping “Climate Disclosure” Rule

How can you tell the coronavirus pandemic is winding down?

Because bureaucrats are now moving back to “climate change” as the priority panic issue.

And the officials who want a piece of the power pie has expanded beyond the Environmental Protection Agency, which has been keen to view life-essential carbon dioxide as a “pollutant” for regulations, fees, and general domain enhancement.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is poised to unleash rules mandating that public companies tell their shareholders and the federal government how they affect the climate.

The nation’s top financial regulator gave initial approval to the much-anticipated climate disclosure rule at a meeting on Monday, moving forward with a measure that would bolster the Biden administration’s stalled environmental agenda.

The proposed rule — approved by a 3-to-1 vote — aims to give investors a clearer picture of the risks that climate change might pose to companies, because of disasters like droughts and wildfires, changes in government environmental policies or consumers’ declining interest in products that contribute to global warming.

But the consequences could be more far-reaching: Environmental and corporate-governance advocates said the transparency the rule requires would hold companies accountable for their role in climate change, and give investors more leverage in forcing changes to business practices that contribute to rising global temperatures.

Will companies get tax breaks if global temperatures decrease? After all, there is a projection of a Maunder Minimum that is usually associated with global cooling. The Antarctic had its chilliest summer on record last year, and there was early freezing in the Arctic.

The regulations are open for public comment for 60 days before the SEC can finalize and enforce them. I am sure there will be many choice remarks on this idea, especially as the nation struggles with supply chain issues, inflation, and recovering from the burdens of the ill-considered pandemic response that has resulted in a myriad of unintended consequences.

Under the proposed rules, publicly traded companies will be required to explain in their regular disclosures to investors how certain climate-related risks can affect their finances. Potential risks include the rising frequency of severe weather, the potential costs of shifting away from fossil fuels and a company’s own efforts to limit its carbon footprint. Companies will be required to calculate these potential costs from data they already compile for regular disclosures to investors.

Companies will also be required to disclose their “Scope 1” emissions — the amount of greenhouse gas emissions they directly produce through their own business operations, such as manufacturing or mining — along with their “Scope 2” emissions, which come from the energy they purchase to keep their business running.

Companies would also be required to report their “Scope 3” greenhouse gas emissions, which include emissions from the goods and services purchased by the firm, if they have set public emissions reduction targets or if those emissions pose a direct financial risk to the business. Firms required to report Scope 3 emissions, however, will not face penalties if they come forward with mistakes or miscalculations in those figures.

The cost of compliance will be enormous and have a bearing on the price of purchasing goods. The hours, resources, and energy required to complete these forms will be staggering and hinder companies from transitioning to being publicly-traded entities.

But then again, there are other stock exchanges in the world. I am sure India might be open to companies conducting trades on its exchange without this flaming regulatory hoop.

I am sure the green justice activists in the Beltway and the associated media view this as “progress.” However, the reality is that the SEC has just polluted America’s business environment.

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