Jan. 15, 2024
To All involved at the SEC: I am urging the SEC to NOT allow NYSE to list "Natural Asset Companies" or NACs, pursuant to File No. SR-NYSE-2023-09. The continued efforts to financialize productive natural resources to subvert the legal system, to pervert the capital markets, and to cause harmful outcomes for both investors and US alike cannot be enabled. This endeavor is truly a money making scheme for wealthy large corporations with political objectives. NACs seek to use others' money, including that obtained via the capital markets, to buy the ability to control or "manage" productive public and private land and other natural resources. Their stated purpose in doing so is not to make a profit or to be productive, but rather to protect, conserve, restore and preserve these natural "assets", based on whatever their own definitions of those activities are. The truth is, they aren't seeking to manage resources to improve their earnings potential, rather they would be seeking to remove the productivity of assets in the name of some type of climate justice. Not only could this impact our ability to generate and access energy, critical minerals, water and food, but it could also put those decisions in the hands of institutions, such as foreign governments and their sovereign wealth funds, who could invest in these NACs and have de facto control over America's resources. If you allow these NACs, critical natural resources will be subject to the consolidation of a handful of wealthy and powerful individuals. And even more frightening, control of productive resources which could include our food supply, water, energy, tourism and more, would jeopardize the US and her people. You are all one of those people! Please think long and hard on this matter. You are giving this country to our children and grandchildren. Please vote NO on NACs so that our future generations have the ability to make a living and enjoy our natural resources as we have been able to do. Thank you for your consideration, Lee Andrea Knapp