Gordon Joins 15 Republican Governors Bashing SEC Climate Rule

Governor Mark Gordon announced in a press release that he's joined 15 other Republican governors in signing a letter against a proposed rule by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

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The letter to President Joe Biden and SEC Chairman Gary Gensler opposes a proposed rule that would require publicly traded companies to make detailed disclosures about their company's greenhouse gas emissions and impact on climate change.

According to the letter, the governors take issue with the proposed rule because of the undue burden it would place on businesses, the uncertainty surrounding climate predictions, and the amount of federal overreach it would cause.

The SEC for its  part has said that the proposal would be beneficial to investors who care about the impact of greenhouse gases and would like to know, before investing, how certain companies are contributing to climate change.

According to a fact sheet provided by the SEC, the proposed rule would not take effect until companies file their disclosure compliance data in 2024 for the 2023 fiscal year, and would include a variety of phase-in periods for filers, and certain exemptions for smaller companies.

The proposed federal rule has a comment period that's open until June 17, and has, from March 18 to May 13, received 1,347 comments from the public, with a mix of support and opposition to the rule.

In a recent report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, more policy action is needed to limit how much warming the planet experiences, as global temperatures are on track to increase by around 3 degrees Celcius, which would be disastrous for the planet.

Gordon said:

"This is yet another example of shortsighted federal overreach targeting Wyoming’s energy industry," Gordon said. "While energy prices are skyrocketing, the Biden Administration continues to use its powers to suppress free markets and discourage oil and gas investment, rather than cultivating market solutions to climate concerns. We should reject this action to further burden our domestic energy industry."

Along with Gordon, governor's from Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Utah also signed onto the letter.