Client Alert: Australia Passes Law to Begin Mandatory Climate Reporting

Australia voted today to pass the Treasury Laws Amendment bill.

This will introduce mandatory climate-related reporting requirements for large and medium-sized companies. Starting as early as 2025 for the largest companies, these requirements will include disclosures on climate-related risks, opportunities, and greenhouse gas emissions across the value chain.

The Australian Accounting Standards Board (AASB) is currently developing disclosure standards aligned with IFRS S1 and IFRS S2 for Australian companies. These disclosure standards are expected to be published soon and the Australian Auditing and Assurance Board is in the process of developing climate disclosure assurance standards which are expected to issue in late 2024. 

Client Alert: California Senate Extends Climate Disclosure Reporting Deadline

The California Senate has voted to approve an amendment to California's climate disclosure laws, granting the California Air Resources Board (CARB) an additional six months to develop regulations related to the reporting of greenhouse gas emissions.

The amendment introduces several changes to California Health and Safety Code 38532 (introduced as California Senate Bill 253) and California Health and Safety Code 38533 (introduced as California Senate Bill 261). The proposed amendment was introduced as SB 219 and effectively extends the previous January 1, 2025, reporting deadline to July 1, 2025, for purposes of reporting out greenhouse gas emissions under California Health and Safety Code 38532 (CA SB 253). Currently, the reporting deadlines have not changed for California Health and Safety Code 38533 (CA SB 261).