SEC adopts act on disclosing payments to foreign governments

Oil, gas and mining companies in the United States will have to disclose payments to governments for the commercial development of oil, natural gas or minerals, under the new rules adopted by the SEC. 

The United States Securities and Exchange Commission informed in its statement on Monday, are intended to further the statutory objective to advance U.S. foreign policy interests by promoting greater transparency about payments related to resource extraction.

SEC Chair Mary Jo White said the rules, mandated by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform and protection act, will provide enhanced transparency.

Under the final rules, companies must disclose payments made to further the commercial development of oil, natural gas, or minerals.

Commenting on the rules, API Director of Tax and Accounting Policy Stephen Comstock said the act fails to strike the right balance between informing foreign citizens of government revenues and protecting the competitiveness of American companies.

“There appears to be no meaningful difference between this rule and the previous rule struck down by the Courts, so our concerns remain the same. The SEC’s rule forces U.S. companies to disclose proprietary information to its competitors while foreign entities do not. This can give some large industry players an advantage on future business projects, and can fundamentally harm American jobs,” Comstock said.

He added that SEC ignored industry efforts to disclose information without giving an unfair advantage to competitors. Comstock also called for a closer look at the impact of the new rule in order to determine next steps.

LNG World News Staff