PHOENIX -- Attorney General Mark Brnovich joined a 16-state coalition in pushing back against a Biden Administration initiative that would require companies to make policy statements unrelated to financial performance to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), a move the attorneys general argue serves a political agenda while decimating freedom of speech.
In comments filed late Monday to SEC Chairman Gary Gensler, the attorneys general expressed concerns that the proposed climate change disclosures are unnecessary from a market protection standpoint, particularly as the market is already responding to investors’ interest in such topics in other forums.
The attorneys general contend that responding to a supposed public demand for information about public companies’ climate measures is not a sufficient government interest to compel speech and is a violation of the First Amendment.
To pass constitutional muster, speech regulation must advance a constitutionally sufficient government interest, must be adequately related to advancing that end and may be required to use the least restrictive means, the comments read.
Arizona joined the West Virginia-led comments along with the attorneys general of Alaska, Arkansas, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah and Wyoming.
Read the coalition’s filed comments here.