Key Points -
On Monday, March 21, 2022, the SEC in a 3-1 vote proposed amendments to require public companies to provide certain climate-related information in their registration statements and annual reports. The...more
With 2022 underway, the Biden-Harris administration is continuing to implement its “whole-of-government” response to climate change. In 2021, the administration focused on building public-private partnerships on clean energy,...more
2/8/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Clean Power Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
NHTSA ,
Oil & Gas ,
Proxy Season ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Reflecting back on the 26th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), or “COP26,” it may well become known as the “Pledge and Commitment COP.” Governments,...more
As we previewed before the 26th meeting of the Conference of the Parties of the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP26, or the “Conference”), ongoing international discussions have produced notable initiatives to...more
11/8/2021
/ Agricultural Sector ,
Banking Sector ,
Biodiversity ,
Climate Change ,
COP ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Supply Chain ,
United Nations
Yesterday, we highlighted some of the developments on coal at the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26), including issuance of a “Global Coal to Clean Power Transition Statement” committing to...more
As the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow approaches, many countries are turning their sights on methane emission reductions as a major prong of their international climate commitments. Over the...more
Key Points -
In the lead-up to November’s COP26 meeting in Glasgow, the United States has joined much of the rest of the world in its pursuit of a clean-energy economy that reduces emissions and environmental impacts from...more
The U.S. Senate recently passed the bipartisan Growing Climate Solutions Act (Act) by a 92-8 vote to help American farmers, ranchers and private forest owners adopt, and ultimately profit from, activities that reduce or...more
Yesterday evening, President Biden signed Congress’s resolution to use the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to reject a September 2020 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule that rescinded methane emission standards...more
This spring, Democratic members of both houses of Congress reintroduced the Climate Risk Disclosure Act, or CRDA, a bill that would require every public company to issue climate-related financial disclosures. While prior...more
According to media reports, during last week’s annual Conference on Financial Market Regulation—hosted jointly by the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Division of Economic and Risk Analysis, Lehigh University and...more
Democratic members of both houses of Congress reintroduced last month the Climate Risk Disclosure Act (“Act”), H.R. 2570, a bill that would require every public company to issue climate-related financial disclosures. This...more
President Biden’s Leaders Summit on Climate has wrapped up. The event saw world leaders highlighting their countries’ respective climate commitments, calling for collective action, and attending breakout sessions designed to...more
Key Points
- On Earth Day, the Biden-Harris administration announced a new target for the United States to achieve a 50 to 52 percent reduction in economy-wide GHG emissions by 2030, which constitutes the country’s new NDC...more
5/3/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Clean Power Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Electricity ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC) ,
NHTSA ,
Paris Agreement ,
Zero-Emission Vehicles
Late last week, newly confirmed Department of the Interior (DOI) Secretary Deb Haaland took two major steps to advance the Biden-Harris administration’s climate priorities and accelerate the shift to a clean energy future....more
In the wake of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC or “Commission”) recent request for comment on climate change disclosures and actions related to environmental, social and governance (ESG) matters, Commissioner...more
On Earth Day, April 22, President Biden will launch a two-day Leaders Summit on Climate, a key lead-up meeting to this November’s United Nations climate talks in Glasgow. The President invited over 40 world leaders to the...more
In March, House Democrats re-introduced the Climate Leadership and Environmental Action for Our Nation’s (CLEAN) Future Act, a comprehensive climate package that aims to transition virtually every major sector of the U.S....more
Yesterday, the United States Department of the Interior (DOI) held a public forum at which stakeholders from government, industry, non-profit groups and academia discussed their visions for the future of the federal oil and...more
Key Points
- On Wednesday, March 10, 2021, the U.S. Senate confirmed Michael Regan as the next EPA Administrator.
- Although Regan and most of the Biden-Harris administration’s other high-level EPA officials have fairly...more
The Biden administration’s Interagency Working Group on the Social Cost of Greenhouse Gases (the “Working Group”) took its first step to update the costs to society from carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide pollution....more
Many investors and other stakeholders have long sought universal requirements for public companies to disclose the social and climate impacts of their operations. If recent developments at the United States Securities and...more
On February 24, 2021, Acting Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Allison Herren Lee issued a statement directing the Division of Corporation Finance to “enhance its focus on climate-related disclosure in public...more
On Tuesday, March 2, Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce (E&C) Committee introduced a sweeping climate proposal—the Climate Leadership and Environmental Action for our Nation’s (CLEAN) Future Act—an amended version of...more
Late last week, the Justice Department withdrew nine Trump-era policy and guidance documents that shaped how the Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD) enforced environmental law during the past...more