Press Release  AG Campbell Co-leads Multistate Coalition In Defense Of Federal Climate Disclosures Rule

Boston — Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell is co-leading a coalition of 18 states, including the District of Columbia, seeking to join litigation to defend the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) climate disclosure rules against challenges brought by industry entities and other states. 

 The rules, published last month, require that public companies provide standardized disclosures of climate-related risks that have had or are likely to have an impact on the company’s strategy, operations, or financial condition; the company’s strategies to evaluate and mitigate climate-related risks; and information about the company’s climate-related targets and goals. The rules also require certain large public companies to report material greenhouse gas emissions. 

Climate change presents many risks to financial markets and investment portfolios—from risks to physical infrastructure due to more frequent and extreme weather events, to increased costs and economic impacts from greenhouse gas emissions reduction requirements and clean energy mandates, to potential disruptions of the global economy. The effects of climate change also give rise to growth opportunities for other industries—providing significant opportunities, in turn, for investors. By requiring publicly registered companies to provide comparable and reliable information about climate impacts and risks, the rules will enable investors—including Massachusetts as an institutional investor, as well as residents of the Commonwealth—to make more informed investment decisions. 

The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office has long advocated for the disclosure of climate-related risk information to accurately assess climate and other material risks.  Massachusetts, as part of a multistate coalition, urged the SEC to require climate-related disclosures in 2021 and commented in support of the proposed Rule in 2022. The Commonwealth also co-led a multistate coalition in February 2023 in support of a requirement that federal contractors disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and exposure to climate change.  

Attorney General Campbell’s pending lawsuit against fossil fuel producer ExxonMobil likewise seeks to protect Massachusetts investors from deceptive representations about climate-related risks. Last month, the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office also joined a multistate coalition in filing an amicus brief in the Fifth Circuit in support of a Department of Labor rule clarifying that ERISA retirement plan fiduciaries man consider environmental, social, and governance factors in assessing investment risk and returns. 

Attorney General Campbell is co-leading the multi-state coalition with the District of Columbia, and is joined by Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island,  Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin.  

This matter is being handled for Massachusetts by Glenn Kaplan, Chief of the Insurance and Financial Services Division, and Assistant Attorneys General Julia Jonas-Day and Michele Hunton, both of the Energy and Environment Bureau. 

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