Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, along with Representatives Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Gregory Meeks (D-NY), Stephen Lynch (D-MA), Al Green (D-TX), Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO), Bill Foster (D-IL), Joyce Beatty (D-OH), Juan Vargas (D-CA), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Ritchie Torres (D-NY), Sylvia Garcia (D-TX), Nikema Williams (D-GA) and Sam Liccardo (D-CA), sent a letter to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Paul S. Atkins strongly opposing the Commission’s proposal to eliminate the March 2024 climate-related disclosure rules.

In the letter, the lawmakers warn that eliminating the rules would deprive investors of critical information about the financial risks companies face from climate change at a time when climate-related events are becoming increasingly more common and disruptive to businesses and the broader economy. They argue that the SEC has a responsibility to ensure investors have consistent, standardized information necessary to evaluate these risks and make informed decisions with their money.

“Stripping away these rules denies investors the information they need to accurately assess a company’s long-term value and to make sound, well-informed decisions with their hard-earned money,” the lawmakers wrote.

The lawmakers also dispute the Commission’s argument that the SEC exceeded its statutory authority in adopting the rules. They point to the SEC’s longstanding authority under federal securities laws to determine what information public companies must disclose to investors, as well as the Commission’s decades-long history of requiring disclosures in response to evolving market risks and economic conditions. The letter notes that the SEC has required various forms of environmental disclosure dating back to the 1970s and argues that climate-related disclosures fall within the Commission’s traditional role of ensuring investors have relevant information when making investment decisions.

The lawmakers added, “…nothing in the governing statutes, case law, or legislative history has changed since March 2024, and Congress has amended neither the Securities Act nor the Exchange Act. The only thing that has changed is the composition of the Commission.”

The letter also pushes back on arguments that climate disclosures are unnecessary or immaterial to investors. The lawmakers point to data showing that companies actively managing climate risks can realize significant financial benefits, while 80 percent of investors want the opportunity to invest in companies that consider environmental sustainability. Investors and financial institutions representing hundreds of trillions of dollars in assets have also sought climate-related information from companies to inform their investment and financing decisions.

The lawmakers conclude by urging the Commission to maintain the existing disclosure framework and withdraw its proposal to rescind the rules.

Full list of signers includes: Nydia Velázquez (D-NY), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Gregory Meeks (D-NY), Stephen Lynch (D-MA), Al Green (D-TX), Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO), Bill Foster (D-IL), Joyce Beatty (D-OH), Juan Vargas (D-CA), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Ritchie Torres (D-NY), Sylvia Garcia (D-TX), Nikema Williams (D-GA), Sam Liccardo (D-CA).

Read the full letter HERE.

Background:

• June 16, 2021 — Passed climate-risk disclosure legislation through the House. Then Chairwoman Waters led House passage of a broader ESG disclosure package, which would require public companies to disclose financial and business risks associated with climate change. Read Waters' floor statement on passage of the legislation. 
  
• March 21, 2022 — Applauded the SEC's proposed climate-disclosure rule after years of Committee action. Then-Chairwoman Waters joined committee Dems in a letter to commending the SEC's proposed rule requiring climate-related disclosures by public companies. Waters highlighted that, under her leadership, the Committee had already held four hearings on the issue and advanced legislation from Committee Democrats over the previous two Congresses. Read Waters and Committee Dems statement on the proposed SEC rule. 
• October 6, 2023 — Pressed SEC Chair Gary Gensler to quickly finalize the rule. Waters urged Gensler to finish the long-awaited climate-risk disclosure rule, warning that climate change and transition risks threatened Americans' investments, retirement savings, businesses and broader financial stability. She argued that investors needed consistent and comparable information to understand those risks. Read Waters' letter urging Gensler to finalize the climate-risk disclosure rule. 
  
• March 7, 2024 — Supported the SEC's final climate-disclosure rule while pushing for stronger protections. After the SEC finalized the rule, Waters welcomed the creation of standardized climate-risk disclosures but criticized the Commission for significantly weakening its original proposal. She specifically raised concerns about the treatment of Scope 1 and 2 emissions and the elimination of Scope 3 requirements, while emphasizing the real financial consequences of climate change for investors, homeowners and renters. Read Waters' statement on the final SEC climate-disclosure rule.
  
• April 10, 2024 — Defended the climate rule against Republican attacks in a full Committee hearing. At a Republican-led hearing titled “Beyond Scope: How the SEC's Climate Rule Threatens American Markets,” Waters defended the rule as a commonsense investor protection, arguing that climate change affects companies' financial health and investors have a right to understand how the companies they own are responding to those risks. Read Waters' opening statement defending the SEC climate rule. 
  
• June 5, 2024 — Led 36 lawmakers with Senator Elizabeth Warren in pressing the SEC to defend and enforce the rule. Waters and Warren led 36 lawmakers urging the SEC to remain focused on climate risk despite litigation challenging the rule. They called on the Commission to enforce its existing climate-risk guidance while the rule was stayed, use every available resource to defend the rule in court and robustly implement it once the stay was lifted. Read the Waters-Warren letter and Committee release. 
  
• September 17–19, 2024 — Fought Republican legislation restricting the SEC's disclosure authority. Waters opposed H.R. 4790, warning that it would restrict the SEC's authority to determine what information public companies must disclose, including environmental and climate-related information, and undermine investors' access to information about the companies they own. She testified against the legislation before the Rules Committee on September 17 and opposed it again on the House floor on September 19. Read Waters' September 17 testimony against H.R. 4790. Read Waters' September 19 floor statement. 
  
• December 29, 2025 — Demanded SEC oversight after Chairman Paul Atkins abandoned the climate-rule defense. Waters called for a long-overdue oversight hearing with Atkins amid sweeping changes at the SEC, including the Commission's retreat from climate-risk disclosure. The request put the Administration's reversal of climate-related investor protections squarely within the Committee Democrats' broader oversight of Atkins' leadership. Read Waters' request for an SEC oversight hearing. 
  
• February 11, 2026 — Confronted Atkins directly over halting the SEC's defense of the climate rule. When Atkins finally appeared before the Committee, Waters criticized his SEC for having “halted the SEC's defense of the climate disclosure rule” even as the California wildfires demonstrated the material financial risks associated with climate change. She placed the decision within a broader critique that Atkins' SEC was prioritizing Wall Street and billionaires over investors. Read Waters' February 2026 opening statement confronting Atkins.
  
  

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