Seventeen state financial officers have signed a letter urging the Securities and Exchange Commission to scrap Biden-era climate disclosure rules. The regulations require publicly traded companies to undertake costly environmental reviews reporting greenhouse gas emissions and other climate metrics.
In their letter, the signatories—responsible for managing billions in public funds—argue that rescinding these rules would generate annual savings of approximately $4.9 billion and total savings of roughly $7.9 billion. They characterize the regulations as an “unlawful expansion of the administrative state” poised to undermine private sector economic growth.
The SEC adopted the climate disclosure rules in March 2024. Opponents launched legal challenges, which were consolidated in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. The agency stayed the rules in April 2024 pending resolution, but President Donald Trump’s election rendered that stay permanent. In March 2025, the SEC under Acting Chairman Mark Uyeda declined to defend the rule.
Though never enforced, the regulations remain on the books. Utah Treasurer Marlo Oaks stated: “The Trump SEC is right to rescind the climate disclosure rule and refocus the agency on its fundamental responsibility of protecting investors and maintaining fair, orderly, and efficient markets.” He added that the ESG movement has long sought to use the SEC for climate agendas through disclosure mandates exceeding material financial information.
American Energy Institute CEO Jason Isaac emphasized: “The financial officers are right to support the Trump Administration’s efforts to rescind the Biden-era climate disclosure rules. Washington bureaucrats shouldn’t be weaponizing financial regulations to pressure companies into advancing far-left ESG policies that Congress never approved.” He also noted: “Americans want the SEC focused on protecting markets and investors, not turning our capital markets into a vehicle for climate activism.”
The letter was submitted ahead of an August 3 deadline regarding potential rule rescission. This action aligns with recent regulatory rollbacks during Trump’s second term, including the Environmental Protection Agency under Lee Zeldin overturning an Obama-era ruling that classified carbon emissions as pollutants under the Clean Air Act.
