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SEC Chairman Gensler Re-Affirms Focus on Climate Disclosures

SEC Chairman Gensler Re-Affirms Focus on Climate Disclosures
Friday, December 3, 2021

SEC Chairman Gensler, in a set of prepared remarks before the Investor Advisory Committee that focused on cryptocurrency, nonetheless availed himself of the opportunity to once again emphasize that "investors . . . are looking for consistent, comparable, and decision-useful disclosures" concerning "climate . . . risks."

This repeated emphasis on climate disclosures by the leaders of the SEC reinforces their oft-stated intent to promulgate new regulations that will detail disclosure requirements for companies focusing on climate change risk. Such regulations have been a stated priority of the Biden Administration since its inception, although they have not yet been promulgated or implemented. The constant statements by senior SEC officials about these expected climate disclosures reinforces that this initiative has not been abandoned by the Biden Administration's SEC, and that these new regulations are still expected to be issued.

{ Today, investors increasingly want to understand the climate and cybersecurity risks, as well as the human capital, of the companies whose stock they own or might buy. Large and small investors, representing literally tens of trillions of dollars, are looking for consistent, comparable, and decision-useful disclosures in these areas to determine whether to invest, sell, or make a voting decision one way or another.

 

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