U.S. Sens. John Hoeven (R-ND) and Tim Scott (R-SC) are among a group of senators expressing concerns about a proposed Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rule on climate disclosures, particularly as they relate to farmers, ranchers, and agriculture producers.
The senators, along with 28 other senate colleagues, are calling on the SEC to rescind the proposal, which would require publicly-traded companies to include certain climate-related disclosures in their registration statements and periodic reports.
They say it would impose extensive and complex greenhouse gas reporting requirements on all entities within a company’s value chain, including farmers and ranchers who fall outside the SEC’s authority.
“We have serious concerns regarding the SEC’s regulatory overreach, as well as the impact that this proposed rule will have on the agricultural industry,” the senators wrote to SEC Chair Gary Gensler. “This substantial reporting requirement would significantly burden small, family-owned farms with a new, complex, and unreasonable compliance requirement, resulting in costly additional compliance expenses, reduced access to new business opportunities, and potential consolidation in the agriculture industry… This proposed rule moves well beyond the SEC’s traditional regulatory authority by mandating climate change reporting requirements that will not only regulate publicly traded companies but will impact every company in the value chain.”
Along with Hoeven and Scott, the letter was signed by Sens. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Roger Marshall (R-KS), James Risch (R-ID), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Steve Daines (R-MT), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Richard Burr (R-NC), Ted Cruz (R-TX), John Barrasso (R-WY), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Rick Scott (R-FL), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), John Kennedy (R-LA), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Mike Braun (R-IN), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Joni Ernst (R-IA), James Lankford (R-OK), John Cornyn (R-TX), Jerry Moran (R-KS), Lindsay Graham (R-SC), John Thune (R-SD), Todd Young (R-IN), John Boozman (R-AR) and Josh Hawley (R-MO).