Two oil company executives are urging the Securities and Exchange Commission to act quickly on re-proposing a rule that, sent back to it after a successful legal challenge, would have required energy and mining companies to disclose payments made to government officials around the world. Consider it a matter of “hurry up and wait,” however, because a goal is slowing the rapid pace of similar regulations in the European Union.
In a letter to SEC Chairman Mary Jo White, Simon Henry, chief financial officer, for Royal Dutch Shell, and Patrick Mulva, vice president and controller for Exxon Mobil, explained that their industry – which aggressively fought the Dodd-Frank Act rule – is now concerned that the Commission may have put take two of the rule on the back-burner. The problem, they write, is that a similar requirement is percolating in Europe, notably in the UK. “We believe that the UK timetable is material to U.S. consideration of this issue,” they wrote, adding that this “increases the urgency” for the SEC to re-propose its rule in 2014.
