The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is evaluating to what extent companies use outside parties to review their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reports as the SEC considers expanding disclosure rules.  The SEC recently stated that third party review of ESG reports are inconsistent and "the level of assurance, or in some respects the reporting of the assurance, are not always as clear as it might be."

The SEC is drafting rules aimed at requiring carbon emissions disclosure and necessitating that companies evaluate the risks and opportunities that they face due to climate change.