SEC Commissioners speak on climate disclosure (again & again)

It shouldn’t be surprising given the heightened attention that new SEC Chair Gary Gensler has placed on ESG issues that all of the Commissioners have been outspoken on the topic as of late. I’ve been joking that “I wish I had a dime for every time that a SEC Commissioner has given on a speech on this topic.” But I am just joking – it’s the most important topic of our lifetime.

Here is a list of what has been said over the past few months that has been reduced to writing – up to 10 sets of remarks!

– Allison Herren Lee’s “Climate, ESG, and the Board of Directors: “You Cannot Direct the Wind, But You Can Adjust Your Sails”
– Gary Gensler’s speech with no name
– Elad Roisman’s “Can the SEC Make ESG Rules that are Sustainable?”
– Allison Herren Lee’s “Living in a Material World: Myths and Misconceptions about “Materiality”
– Elad Roisman’s “Putting the Electric Cart before the Horse: Addressing Inevitable Costs of a New ESG Disclosure Regime”
– Allison Herren Lee’s “A Climate for Change: Meeting Investor Demand for Climate and ESG Information at the SEC”
– Elad Roisman’s “An Honest Conversation about ESG Regulation”
– Hester Peirce’s “Rethinking Global ESG Metrics”
– Gary Gensler’s remarks about funds and sustainability
– Hester Peirce’s “Chocolate-Covered Cicadas”

Meanwhile, IOSCO, the international association for securities regulators, issued this “72-page Report on Sustainability-Related Issuer Disclosure,” setting out its vision for sustainability reporting…