SEC Climate Rule Opens A New Front In Biden’s War On Oil And Gas

SEC Climate Rule Opens A New Front In Biden’s War On Oil And Gas

Securities and Exchange Commission, Chairman Gary Gensler testifies before a Senate Banking, ... [+] Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee hearing on "Oversight of the U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission" on Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2021, in Washington. (Bill Clark/Pool via AP) President Joe Biden promised to "end" the use of oil and natural gas in the United States during his campaign, and also talked about mounting a "whole of government" approach to achieving that goal. Since taking office, he has worked to follow through on those promises, cancelling the Keystone XL pipeline, repeatedly suspending the federal oil and gas leasing program and even attempting to place a climate activist, Sarah Bloom Raskin, on the board of the Federal Reserve. On Monday, Biden's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) got into the act, issuing a new proposed regulation mandating climate-related disclosures, a vast expansion of its regulatory authority that some believe exceed its' purview. "Today's action hijacks the democratic process and disrespects the limited scope of authority that Congress gave to the SEC," Sen. Pat Toomey (R., Pa.) was quoted as saying. "This is a thinly veiled effort to have unelected financial regulators set climate and energy policy for America." One of