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After much anticipation, on March 6, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or the “Commission”) released its Final Rule—The Enhancement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for Investors—mandating climate-related disclosures by public companies.

Following a nearly two-year wait, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or “Commission”) released its Final Rule—The Enhancement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for Investors—on March 6, 2024.

Last week, the Governor of New Mexico signed House Bill 41 (“HB 41”) into law, establishing the Clean Fuel Standard (“CFS”), which, similar to programs in California, Oregon, and Washington, focuses on reducing the carbon intensity of transportation fuels.

On January 30, 2024, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and five co-plaintiffs representing a coalition of business groups filed a lawsuit against the state of California seeking to block the state’s new landmark climate disclosure laws.

The 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference (“COP28”) reached a significant development in international climate policy, ending with the “first Global Stocktake” calling for a “transition away from fossil fuels in energy systems.”

On November 17, 2023, the Department of the Treasury (“Treasury”) and the Internal Revenue Service (the “Service”) issued proposed regulations [REG-132569-17] regarding the definition of “energy property” and related rules applicable to the energy credit (the “Proposed Regulations”) available under section 48 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”).

In this program, we focused on SEC developments affecting, and practical aspects of preparing for, public companies’ annual meetings and annual reports.

Climate bill-sponsor California State Senator Wiener joined V&E and PwC for a co-hosted CLE program covering what you should know about the new California Climate Disclosure laws.

Welcome to Vinson & Elkins’ Securities and ESG Updates. Our aim is to provide insights into notable developments in securities reporting and the environmental, social and governance space over the quarter.

As public companies anticipate the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (“SEC”) final climate disclosure rules, which are expected to be released sometime fourth quarter of 2023, California has beaten the federal government to the punch.

Climate Week is about to kick off in New York, so Lauren Collins and Michael Joyce, both partners at the law firm of Vinson & Elkins, join the show to talk about what to expect from Climate Week, what kinds of news and announcements they will be keeping an eye on and how the overall conversation about Climate Week — and climate coverage in general — has evolved over the years.

On August 10, 2023, the Department of Treasury (the “Treasury”) and the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) issued final regulations (the “Final Regulations”) providing additional guidance to taxpayers on the “Low-Income Communities Bonus” (“LICB”) available under section 48(e) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.