Carbon offset experts urge Eighth Circuit to uphold SEC’s disclosure rule
WASHINGTON – A group of policy experts and academics, including Kathy Fallon and Rebecca Sanders-Demott of Clean Air Task Force (CATF), today submitted an amicus brief to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, arguing that the court should uphold the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) requirement that companies with emissions commitments disclose carbon offset use.
“A company aiming to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions has two main strategies: cutting emissions or offsetting them,” said Kathy Fallon, Land Systems Director at CATF. “When they choose to rely on carbon credits to counterbalance emissions, that introduces financial, reputational, and regulatory risks. The SEC’s requirement for offset disclosures is essential for investors to evaluate those risks.”
Without federal public reporting requirements, companies lack strong incentives to share transparent and detailed information about the true quality of their carbon offsets. In earlier comments, CATF experts emphasized that without SEC intervention, investors and consumers will struggle to effectively verify, assess, or compare corporate climate claims.
“Companies often turn to carbon credits as a way to offset their emissions, but many of these credits are low-quality,” said Rebecca Sanders-Demott, Ecosystem Carbon Science Director at CATF. “Low-quality credits not only pose significant reputational risks but can also lead to potential litigation over misleading emissions claims and regulatory risks if those credits do not represent real reductions. Although it demands higher upfront costs, investing in high-quality credits is crucial for genuine emissions reduction.”
The brief argues that the way public companies allocate capital to manage the financial and reputational risks associated with carbon offset use is material to both investors and the public. The SEC’s requirement for disclosure of carbon offset use, including transparency into the underlying projects and key attributes of these offsets, addresses immediate risks facing companies and investors. The experts find that this aspect of the rule is supported by reasoned decision-making, is within the Commission’s authority, and should be upheld.
The experts in this brief are represented by CATF attorneys. Read the full amicus brief here.
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Clean Air Task Force (CATF) is a global nonprofit organization working to safeguard against the worst impacts of climate change by catalyzing the rapid development and deployment of low-carbon energy and other climate-protecting technologies. With more than 25 years of internationally recognized expertise on climate policy and a fierce commitment to exploring all potential solutions, CATF is a pragmatic, non-ideological advocacy group with the bold ideas needed to address climate change. CATF has offices in Boston, Washington D.C., and Brussels, with staff working virtually around the world. Visit catf.us and follow @cleanaircatf.
