Thank You to the Participants at our Composites 2024 Fly-In!
The Composites 2024 Fly-In aimed to support our efforts to include composites language in legislation supporting activities by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and to gain political support for the ACMA & IACMI grant to expand our industry’s ability to produce Environmental Product Declarations, a requirement for suppliers of federally funded infrastructure. Participants also pushed for changes to U.S. tax law to allow full research and development expensing in the year it occurs and to expand 529 savings plans to include tuition for technical certifications such as ACMA’s Certified Composites Technician. Participants began our day in the House of Representatives meeting with key staff for the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, who kindly posed with us for a photo on the dais.
SEC Releases Updated Climate Related Disclosure Rules
On March 6, the Securities and Exchange Commission released a scaled-back version of rules for climate related disclosures for publicly traded companies after Commissioners approved the new text on a narrow 3-2 vote. The updated disclosure rule requires covered companies to disclose material climate-related risks, activities to mitigate or adapt to such risks, and further information. A fact sheet on the updated disclosure rules can be found here. These disclosure rules begin to take effect for the largest publicly traded companies in fiscal years beginning in 2025, with longer phase ins for other covered companies, with some requirements not applying until 2028. The SEC estimates 2,800 U.S. companies and 540 foreign companies with business in the U.S. will be covered.
The final rules represent a scaled-back approach. The updated language covers Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, which include the emissions of the company itself, and only requires disclosure if the emissions are considered “material,” or important to investors. The SEC struck reporting requirements of Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions. Scope 3 emissions are indirect emissions linked to a covered company including emissions up and down a company’s value chain, including emissions from purchased goods and services. This meant the initial SEC disclosure rule would cover emissions by suppliers to publicly traded companies, but the final rule will not.
The new rule is not a settled issue. Congressional Republicans have announced an effort to overturn this under a process called the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to overturn rules issued by the Executive Branch. Additionally, the Attorneys General of West Virginia, Georgia, Alabama, Alaska, Indiana, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Wyoming and Virginia have challenged the rule in court, arguing that it exceeds the agency’s statutory authority.
ACMA is carefully studying this 900-page regulation. We will provide members with additional information as it develops. If you have questions related to this new rule, please contact ACMA’s Dan Neumann at dneumann@acmanet.org.