On July 4, 2025, the European Commission (EC) adopted a “Delegated Act Amending the Taxonomy Disclosures, Climate and Environmental Delegated Acts,” marking a significant shift in how companies will interact with the European...more
In a widely anticipated move, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has announced that it will no longer defend the agency’s climate disclosure rule issued during the Biden administration. The disclosure rule...more
3/28/2025
/ Biden Administration ,
Climate Change ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Final Rules ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
On February 26, the European Commission released a series of key proposals and communications to reshape the European Union’s (EU) regulatory framework. Alongside the overall framework communication Clean Industrial Deal, the...more
Earlier this week, Mark Uyeda, the Acting Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), began the process of unwinding that agency’s final climate disclosure rule enacted during the Biden administration. In a...more
Key topics in Akin’s July 2024 Sustainability/ESG Policy and Regulatory Update include: Updated Assessment of SFDR by EU Regulators: The European Supervisory Authorities have proposed changes to the Sustainable Finance...more
8/2/2024
/ Corporate Governance ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
European Commission ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Products ,
Greenwashing ,
NRDC ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
SFDR ,
Sustainability ,
UK
Good afternoon! This is Akin’s newsletter on climate change policy and regulatory developments, providing information on major climate policy headlines from the past week and forthcoming climate-related events and hearings...more
Good afternoon! This is Akin’s newsletter on climate change policy and regulatory developments, providing information on major climate policy headlines from the past week and forthcoming climate-related events and hearings...more
Akin’s newsletter on environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) policy and regulatory developments, provides a timely digest of ESG topics, news items and other relevant information regarding significant ESG policy...more
3/7/2024
/ Climate Change ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
Final Rules ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Policy Updates ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sustainability ,
UNFCCC
Good morning! This is Akin’s newsletter on climate change policy and regulatory developments, providing information on major climate policy headlines from the past two weeks and forthcoming climate-related events and...more
3/4/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
Biden Administration ,
Boycotts ,
Climate Change ,
Cross-State Air Pollution ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Hydrogen Power ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Good evening!
This is Akin’s newsletter on climate change policy and regulatory developments, providing information on major climate policy headlines from the past two weeks and forthcoming climate-related events and...more
Good evening!
This is Akin’s newsletter on climate change policy and regulatory developments, providing information on major climate policy headlines from the past two weeks and forthcoming climate-related events and...more
On May 2, 2023, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) signed into law House Bill 3 (HB3), legislation that, among other things, blocks the consideration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in state and local investment...more
President Biden issued his first veto to reject a Congressional Review Act measure to shoot down the Department of Labor’s environmental, social, and governance-related (ESG) rule. Governors are also pushing back on the Biden...more
In light of anticipated lawsuits, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chair Gary Gensler is reportedly considering rolling back the commission’s proposed climate-risk disclosure rule. Meanwhile, House Republicans...more
Sen. Joe Manchin’s (D-WV) permitting reform hit the end of the road, failing with a vote of 47-47—however, Senate Democrats and Republicans signaled interest in addressing permitting approval in the new Congress....more
[co-author:Leila Fleming]
Good evening! This is Akin Gump’s weekly policy newsletter on climate change policy and regulatory developments, providing information on major climate policy headlines from this past week and...more
12/9/2022
/ Australia ,
Biden Administration ,
Climate Change ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Department of the Interior ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
EU ,
FEMA ,
Greenwashing ,
India ,
Methane ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Renewable Fuel Standard ,
Solar Energy ,
Tariffs ,
Tribal Lands
In November 2022, the U.S. government, acting through the Department of Defense, General Services Administration, and National Aeronautics & Space Administration, issued a proposed rule that would amend the Federal...more
12/9/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Climate Change ,
Compliance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Risk Management ,
System For Award Management (SAM) ,
Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD)
[co-authors: Kerry Mackenzie and Leila Fleming]
The Treasury Department’s Federal Insurance Office issues a request for public comments regarding climate-related financial risk. Meanwhile, the Securities Exchange...more
[co-author: Leila Fleming]
Good evening! This is Akin Gump’s weekly policy newsletter on climate change policy and regulatory developments, providing information on major climate policy headlines from this past week and...more
Legislation to “prevent corporate greenwashing” by requiring major companies doing business in California to publicly disclose their scope 1, 2 and 3 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions has cleared two critical committees....more
As corporations increasingly make public commitments to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, allegations of “greenwashing” have been elevated to the global stage. Consumers, investors and government bodies alike are seeking...more
Two recent rulings by California state court judges have struck-down California statutes that were intended to foster diversity at California-based public companies. In the first case, Crest v. Padilla, No. 20-STCV-37513...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) proposed amendments on climate-related disclosures would require public companies, or “registrants,” to provide detailed climate-related information in their registration...more
On March 30, 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Division of Examinations (the “Division”) released its 2022 examination priorities. The Division announced an enhanced focus on five “significant areas”:...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Division of Examinations (the “Division”), on March 30, 2022, released its 2022 examination priorities (the “Division’s 2022 priorities”), highlighting the “annual...more