Rep. Ashley Hinson Grills, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler on Climate Change Disclosure Rule
Representative Ashley Hinson (R-IA) asked Securities and Exchange (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler about the agency’s decision to adopt onerous climate change disclosures for companies.
Hinson asked about the SEC’s decision to require companies to disclose the alleged effects of extreme weather and climate change, a rule considered too onerous by companies like Amazon, even on the left.
Hinson asked, “Where here specifically did Congress give you the statutory authority, the jurisdiction, to enact this climate rule?”
Gensler said the agency must ensure that investors decide based on “full, fair and truthful disclosure.”
Hinson interrupted Gensler, noting that the Securities Act and the Stock Exchange do not appear to give the SEC statutory authority over securities and greenhouse gases.
“What he’s saying is that when a company offers a security for sale to the public, the public gets the description of the company, the material information, and they can’t mislead the public into mistake, and what is happening now is that the public, well over a thousand companies today, in the markets, are releasing climate risk information,” Gensler said.
“We’re neutral on merit,” Gensler said. He said they were trying to bring consistency to the disclosures that companies voluntarily provide to the public, which raises the question of the need to compel other companies to disclose the alleged risk of climate change and weather. extremes.
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler speaks during a House Appropriation Subcommittee hearing in Washington, DC, Wednesday, May 18, 2022. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty)
“Well, it’s very clear in these sections, it’s not explicit in terms of your lane, and I say it’s time to roll it up,” she said.
Hinson also asked about the SEC’s “expansive” reporting requirement for Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions, saying it would have a devastating impact on Iowa farmers. She reiterated that these anti-climate change measures are beyond the SEC’s statutory authority.
THE Wall Street Journal (WSJ) noted that the proposed climate change disclosure rule would require companies to provide a significant amount of data:
The proposed reporting rules would require public companies to include a range of climate data in their audited financial statements. Mandatory disclosures cover everything from costs caused by wildfires to losing a sales contract due to climate regulations, such as a cap on carbon emissions.
Companies should analyze climate-related costs and risks for each line item in their financial statements, such as revenue, inventory or intangible assets. All climate costs that represent 1% or more of the total of each item must be declared.
Under current rules, companies are generally only required to disclose climate-related costs and risks that they deem material or material to investors. SEC officials worry that too few companies are reporting such significant climate costs and risks.
THE WSJ also signaled that the SEC may scale back the rule after the agency was “taken over” by opposition force.
Sean Moran is a political reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter @SeanMoran3.
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