CCAGW Annual Ratings

Corporate Disclosures – Passage

Description: 

Passage of the bill that would establish new disclosure requirements for publicly traded companies related to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) metrics; climate-related risks; political expenditures; executive pay; and tax information regarding overseas subsidiaries. It would direct the Securities and Exchange Commission to require publicly traded companies to disclose and define their ESG metrics as part of any filing that requires audited financial statements; require companies to disclose in any proxy or consent solicitation material for annual shareholder meetings a clear description of the link between ESG metrics and the company's long-term business strategy and processes used to determine the impact of such metrics on the business strategy; and require the SEC to establish a sustainable finance advisory committee to identify investment challenges and opportunities associated with sustainable finance and recommend policies to facilitate sustainable investments. It would require publicly traded companies to include in annual reports to the SEC information related to risks posed to the company by climate change, including a description of actions taken to identify and mitigate such risks and an evaluation of potential financial impacts of risk-management strategies. It would direct the SEC to establish rules within two years of enactment to standardize climate-related risk disclosures, including industry-specific reporting standards, standards for estimating and disclosing greenhouse gas emissions, and standards for disclosing fossil fuel-related assets. It would direct the SEC to require companies that issue securities to disclose certain political expenditures quarterly to the commission and shareholders -- including the date and amount of each expenditure and whether it was made in support of or opposition to a political candidate -- and to include in annual shareholder reports a summary of each political expenditure greater than $10,000 in the preceding year and planned political expenditures for the forthcoming year. It would require publicly traded companies to include in annual reports to the SEC information regarding pay raises for executive and non-executive employees, including the percentage increase in the median compensation for each group, and the ratio of the two numbers. It would require publicly traded multinational companies to disclose annual financial and tax information for overseas subsidiaries in each tax jurisdiction in which they operate, including the income taxes paid, profits or losses before income tax, assets, revenues generated from transactions with other internal entities, and number of full-time employees in each jurisdiction.

Vote Number: 
House Vote 169
Bill Number: 
HR 1187
CCAGW Position: 
Nay
Vote Results: 
Passed 215-214 : D 215-4; R 0-210