The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has extended the comment period on proposed ESG rules that may compel public firms to disclose their climate risks and impact on the environment.
The SEC has received broad criticism in regards to the rushed nature of the rulemaking that could saddle public firms with millions of dollars in additional expenses if they are forced to comply with the rule proposal. Revealed earlier this year, the document was almost 500 pages long with more than 200 questions. Many interested parties had complained to the SEC they simply do not have sufficient time to address all of the possible changes. Interested parties will now have until June 27, 2022, to submit their feedback.
The SEC also announced that it will reopen the comment periods on the proposed rulemaking on ATS’s that may impact digital assets. Some industry insiders saw the move by the Commission as a poorly veiled attempt to add new regulations targeting crypto while ostensibly addressing Treasury markets.
SEC Chairman Gary Gensler commented on the additional time saying they benefit from hearing from the public on proposed rule changes.
The public comment period for the proposed rulemaking “The Enhancement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for Investors,” Release Nos. 33-11042, 34-94478 (March 21, 2022) will now end on June 17, 2022. The scope and comment process for this release remains as stated in the original Federal Register notice of April 11, 2022.
The public comment periods for the proposed rulemakings “Private Fund Advisers; Documentation of Registered Investment Adviser Compliance Reviews,” Release Nos. IA-5955 (Feb. 9, 2022) and “Amendments Regarding the Definition of ‘Exchange’ and Alternative Trading Systems (ATSs) That Trade U.S. Treasury and Agency Securities, National Market System (NMS) Stocks, and Other Securities,” Release No. 34-94062 (Jan. 26, 2022) will be reopened for 30 days following publication of the reopening release in the Federal Register. The scope and comment process for both releases will remain as stated in the original Federal Register notices of March 24, 2022, and March 18, 2022.