Congressional Democrats have been exerting pressure on insurance regulators to integrate climate-related financial risks as part of their supervisory role; a letter was recently sent by Democratic members of the House and...more
Regulatory Updates -
Governor Newsom (D-CA) recently proposed a two-year delay to California’s sweeping new mandatory climate disclosures, which apply to all large companies—public or private—doing business in California....more
8/2/2024
/ Chevron Deference ,
Climate Change ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Sustainability
On June 4, 2024, a number of Congressional Democrats (10 Senators; 28 Congressmen) sent a letter to SEC Chairman Gensler, urging that the SEC “enforce existing SEC climate disclosure-related guidance” while the legal...more
On April 22, 2024, the federal government issued a rule “amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR)” to “implement a requirement for agencies to procure sustainable products and services to the maximum extent...more
On April 22, 2024, the federal government issued a rule “amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR)” to “implement a requirement for agencies to procure sustainable products and services to the maximum extent...more
On March 6, 2024, the SEC issued its long-awaited climate disclosure rule, which mandates the disclosure of climate-related risks and Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions, among other things. The rule was immediately...more
Last week, the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority issued guidance on its proposed anti-greenwashing rule, which will come into effect at the end of May 2024. (Greenwashing is when a product, service, or firm is...more
The European Parliament has now approved the “Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive,” which will apply to both EU companies and to non-EU companies doing business in the European Union. (There is a phased...more
On March 6, 2024, the SEC issued its long-awaited climate disclosure rule, nearly two years after the draft rule was proposed in March 2022. Significantly, this rule required that: (1) companies disclose climate-related...more
The Securities & Exchange Commission ("SEC") issued its long-awaited final rule concerning climate disclosures, entitled “The Enhancement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for Investors” (“Climate Disclosure...more
3/15/2024
/ Carbon Pricing ,
Climate Change ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Final Rules ,
Governance Standards ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Investment ,
Renewable Energy ,
Risk Assessment ,
Safe Harbors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Severe Weather ,
Sustainability
Recently, a pair of bills were proposed in the New Hampshire state legislature that would make it a felony to knowingly invest state or taxpayer funds based upon ESG criteria in violation of fiduciary duty. Specifically, the...more
Federal Regulatory Developments -
In a recent filing with the Office of Management and Budget, the Securities & Exchange Commission disclosed that the vote by the SEC Commissioners as to whether to issue the SEC’s...more
1/3/2024
/ Climate Change ,
Disclosure ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
OMB ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sustainability
Federal Regulatory Developments -
The SEC has still not issued its final climate-related disclosure rule (originally proposed in March 2022), despite prior indications that it would do so in the fall of 2023. Recently, SEC...more
Federal Regulatory Developments -
On September 20, 2023, the SEC approved amendments to the “Names Rule,” which had initially been proposed in May 2022. This rule requires investment funds to “adopt a policy to invest at...more
11/3/2023
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Climate Change ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Investment Funds ,
Sustainability
Public media reports have stated that the SEC’s Enforcement Division has been “sen[ding] document requests, including subpoenas” to asset managers in connection with ESG marketing. Apparently, these actions by the SEC’s...more
State and Local ESG Regulation.
Despite recent public statements by notable Republican federal officials, including an SEC Commissioner, that have expressed considerable skepticism towards the SEC’s proposed ESG...more
Regulatory Developments -
During the past several weeks, there have been a couple of notable developments in connection with the SEC’s proposed climate disclosures rule, “The Enhancement and Standardization of...more
Climate Change Litigation: Beginning in 2017, an array of state and local governments began pursuing claims against major fossil fuel producers — particularly the major oil companies (Chevron, Exxon, BP, Shell, and...more
S&P recently purchased Shades of Green, which has been described as "the largest external reviewer of sustainable bond and green financing frameworks." This acquisition emphasizes the recent strategic move by major ratings...more
SEC Enforcement: In its yearly summary of enforcement activity, the SEC chose to highlight ESG-related issues as one of only a handful of subject matter areas that the SEC is focused on, indicating the significant priority...more
12/14/2022
/ Climate Change ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sustainability
Regulatory Developments. During the past month, there have been two notable developments in connection with the SEC’s proposed climate disclosures rule — “The Enhancement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for...more
Regulatory Developments Among State AGs. Over the past few weeks, various state attorneys general have either issued guidance or initiated enforcement actions in connection with ESG ratings. Specifically, among other things,...more
Today's edition of the New York Times featured an opinion piece that critiqued ESG investing--and not from the perspective that "values" investing is economically counter-productive. (For that viewpoint, the editorial page...more
Climate Change Tort Litigation -
Beginning in 2017, an array of state and local governments have pursued claims against major fossil fuel producers — particularly the major oil companies (Chevron, Exxon, BP, Shell, and...more
In June 2022, the Supreme Court issued its decision in West Virginia v. EPA, which held that, under the “major questions doctrine,” the EPA lacked the authority under the Clean Air Act to devise emissions caps based on the...more
8/10/2022
/ Clean Air Act ,
Energy Sector ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Greenwashing ,
Investment ,
National Emissions Standards ,
SCOTUS ,
Sustainability ,
West Virginia v EPA