Jun. 12, 2022
Dear Commissioner Gary Gensler, I just wrote to the SEC with concerns about their proposed climate disclosure rule, File Number S7-10-22. The SEC is rushing to jam through a rule that raises huge issues and I have oshared these concerns with the SEC. The SEC proposed rule is 510 pages long, with 1,068 technical footnotes and 750 direct questions, but the SEC has only given farmers 39 days to review and comment. That is not good and transparent government. And it is impossible to understand the scope and detail of what will be required for me. Unlike corporations currently regulated by the SEC, farmers and ranchers, like myself, don’t have a team of compliance officers or attorneys dedicated to handling SEC compliance issues. There are many questions about how our privacy will be protected, what the substantial costs and legal liabilities will be, and whether reporting requirements will disqualify small, family-owned farms from doing business with public companies, or companies that supply public companies, which would have the unfortunate effect of causing more consolidation in agriculture. This is an example of overreach by the Securities and Exchange Commission. What are you going to do to stop the SEC? Regards, Scott Marker