SEC seeks full climate-rule rescission; 60-day comment clock starts

May 29, 2026 is now the new regulatory date for U.S. climate disclosure: the Securities and Exchange Commission proposed rescinding its 2024 climate-related disclosure rules in full, with public comments open for 60 days after the proposing release appears in the Federal Register.

The market stake is compliance cost and filing scope for public companies. The 2024 rules required climate-related information in registration statements and annual reports, including greenhouse-gas emissions, management of climate-related risks, and financial statement effects from severe weather events. If the rescission is finalized, registrants would no longer face that specific SEC climate-reporting framework under the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

The timeline matters for issuers and investors. The SEC approved the climate amendments in March 2024. On April 4, 2024, the agency stayed the rules while consolidated litigation proceeded in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. On March 27, 2025, the Commission voted to end its defense of the final rules. On Sept. 12, 2025, the Eighth Circuit held the petitions in abeyance until the Commission reconsidered the rules through notice-and-comment rulemaking or renewed its defense.

The SEC’s May 29 proposal says the rules should be rescinded because the agency views them as beyond statutory authority and inconsistent with a registrant-specific materiality approach. The release also cites costs to public companies and shareholders, plus the agency’s capital-formation objective, as policy grounds for removing the rules entirely.

For equity markets, the immediate impact is not a single ticker move but a disclosure regime reset. Energy, utilities, industrials, insurers, banks and large-cap multinational issuers had the highest exposure to climate-risk reporting systems, audit workflows and legal review. ESG-data vendors and compliance software providers also face a changed demand curve if the rule is withdrawn rather than rewritten.

The next watch point is the 60-day comment file and any follow-on litigation after a final SEC vote. Investors should track whether large issuers keep voluntary climate disclosures in 10-K risk sections and sustainability reports, because exchange-listed companies may still face state, foreign or customer-driven reporting demands outside the SEC rulebook.

Not investment advice. Verify all figures with primary sources before acting.