On March 6, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC or Commission) adopted final rules requiring expansive new climate-related disclosures in Form 10-K and Form 20-F annual reports and most registration statements (the Rules). The disclosure requirements quickly became the subject of litigation challenging their validity; federal lawsuits were consolidated before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. On April 4, 2024, the SEC announced that it was staying implementation of the Rules pending resolution of the litigation. On March 27, 2025, the Commission voted to end its defense of the Rules and yield any oral argument time back to the court. Eighteen states that had previously intervened to defend the Rules then requested the court to hold the litigation in abeyance, and the court agreed to do so.
Yesterday, in response to a request from the Eighth Circuit for a status update on the litigation, including indicating whether the Commission intends to review or reconsider the Rules, the SEC submitted a status report in which it states that it does not intend to review or reconsider the Rules. The Commission went on to request that the court lift the current stay on the litigation, continue considering the parties' arguments on the scope of the Commission's power to adopt the mandatory disclosure obligations on climate risk in the Rules and exercise its jurisdiction to decide the case. It further states in the filing, "If the Court were to uphold the Rules in whole or in part, any reconsideration of them would be subject to Commission deliberation and vote of its members, and the Commission cannot prejudge that action. Moreover, a decision from this Court would inform the scope and need for such action, including providing insights as to the Commission's jurisdiction and authority." State of Iowa v. Securities and Exchange Commission, 24-cv-1522.
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