- In a letter to Secretary of the SEC Vanessa A. Countryman, a coalition of 18 Republican AGs, led by Montana AG Austin Knudsen, called on the Commission to extend the timeframe for a minimum of 60 days for public comment on regulations regarding environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing and disclosures regarding emissions from businesses’ entire supply chain.
- The Commission proposed two rules, one in April 2022 entitled The Enhancement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for Investors and one in June 2022 entitled Enhanced Disclosures by Certain Investment Advisors and Investment Companies about Environmental, Social, and Governance Investment Practices, both of which impose obligations on registrants and registered investment advisors to provide information regarding their climate and other ESG-related practices.
- The AGs’ letter responds to an October 7 notice by the Commission that a technical error may have resulted in the loss of comments to various rulemakings over a 15-month period and a proposal to provide 14 additional days during which comments can be resubmitted. The AGs allege that the short time period is insufficient to ensure that those affected are aware of the government glitch and know to properly respond, especially given the potentially far-ranging impact of the proposed climate and ESG rules.