What This Bill Does
This bill changes the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to stop the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) from requiring certain companies to publicly report greenhouse gas emissions. The bill specifically protects companies that produce, make or harvest agricultural products (farm goods) from having to disclose emissions created upstream or downstream in their business operations.
Who It Affects
Companies that produce, manufacture or harvest agricultural products. The Securities and Exchange Commission.
Key Provisions
• The SEC cannot require companies to disclose greenhouse gas emissions from upstream activities (early stages of producing a good or service) or downstream activities (processing materials into finished products and delivering them to customers) related to agricultural products. (Sec. 2)
• The bill defines greenhouse gas to include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, nitrogen trifluoride, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons and sulfur hexafluoride. (Sec. 2)
• The SEC cannot use a legal exemption process to get around this prohibition. (Sec. 2)
What Changes
The SEC loses the power to require agricultural companies to report on greenhouse gas emissions created before or after their direct manufacturing, production or harvesting activities.
Important Definitions
Agricultural product: Not specified in bill text
Downstream activities: Processing materials into a finished product and delivering that product or providing a service to the end user.
Upstream activities: Activities in the initial stages of producing a good or service.
Greenhouse gas: Carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, nitrogen trifluoride, hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons or sulfur hexafluoride.
Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
II
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 391
To amend the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to prohibit the Securities
and Exchange Commission from requiring an issuer to disclose informa-
tion relating to certain greenhouse gas emissions, and for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
FEBRUARY 13, 2023
Mr. BOOZMAN (for himself and Mr. BRAUN) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Hous-
ing, and Urban Affairs
A BILL
To amend the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 to prohibit
the Securities and Exchange Commission from requiring
an issuer to disclose information relating to certain
greenhouse gas emissions, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Protect Farmers from
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the SEC Act’’.
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•S 391 IS
SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON REQUIRING AN ISSUER TO DIS-
1
CLOSE INFORMATION RELATING TO CERTAIN
2
GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS.
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Section 23 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
4
(15 U.S.C. 78w) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
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lowing:
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‘‘(e) PROHIBITION ON REQUIRING AN ISSUER TO
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DISCLOSE INFORMATION RELATING TO CERTAIN GREEN-
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HOUSE GAS EMISSIONS.—
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‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection:
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‘‘(A) AGRICULTURAL PRODUCT.—The term
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‘agricultural product’ has the meaning given the
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term in section 207 of the Agricultural Mar-
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keting Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1626).
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‘‘(B)
DOWNSTREAM
ACTIVITIES.—The
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term ‘downstream activities’ includes activities
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that relate to processing materials into a fin-
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ished product and delivering that product or
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providing a service to the end user.
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‘‘(C)
GREENHOUSE
GAS.—The
term
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‘greenhouse gas’ means—
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‘‘(i) carbon dioxide;
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‘‘(ii) methane;
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‘‘(iii) nitrous oxide;
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‘‘(iv) nitrogen trifluoride;
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‘‘(v) hydrofluorocarbons;
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•S 391 IS
‘‘(vi) perfluorocarbons; or
1
‘‘(vii) sulfur hexafluoride.
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‘‘(D) UPSTREAM
ACTIVITIES.—The term
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‘upstream activities’ includes activities that re-
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late to the initial stages of producing a good or
5
service.
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‘‘(2) PROHIBITION.—The Commission may not
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require an issuer to disclose greenhouse gas emis-
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sions from upstream activities or downstream activi-
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ties in the value chain of the issuer from the produc-
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tion, manufacturing, or harvesting of an agricultural
11
product.
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‘‘(3) NONAPPLICABILITY
OF
EXEMPTIVE
AU-
13
THORITY.—Section 36 shall not apply to this sub-
14
section.’’.
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Æ
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