Sen. Elizabeth Warren
Elizabeth WarrenRep. Bobby Rush tests positive in breakthrough case The 10 races that will decide the Senate majority Cardin on future of Biden spending bill: 'A lot of us are gonna be disappointed' MORE (D-Mass.) is calling on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to require public companies to disclose climate risks posed by their activities.
She wrote a letter to SEC Chairman Jay Clayton as the agency is proposing changes to financial disclosure requirements. The changes wouldn't add any particular mandate to disclose climate risks.
“The climate crisis will have a significant impact on our economy, and without meaningful requirements for companies to disclose their exposure to climate change risk, I am concerned that the proposed rule would not give investors and the public the information needed to make well-informed investment decisions,” Warren wrote on Tuesday.
An SEC spokesperson declined to comment on Warren’s letter.
In January, Clayton said that the "issue of environmental and climate-related securities law disclosures has received increasing attention" and said SEC staff's "focus on and work in this area will continue." He did not, however, commit to a specific policy change.
Warren, meanwhile, has also introduced legislation that would require public companies to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and fossil fuel assets.
Publicly traded companies are not required to disclose climate-related risks, but do need to disclose risks if they are material to investors.
