Statement of Bob Perciasepe

President, Center for Climate and Energy Solutions

September 9, 2020

On the release of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) Climate-Related Market Risk Subcommittee of the Market Risk Advisory Committee report on Managing Climate Risk in the U.S. Financial System:

“This CFTC report is a powerful testament to the broad and growing consensus within the financial community that climate change poses grave long-term risks to the financial system. Its findings underscore the need for urgent and decisive action to address these growing risks. Among the more than 50 recommendations it offers, the report describes carbon pricing as the “single most important step to manage climate risk and drive the appropriate allocation of capital.” We strongly concur that economy-wide pricing is a powerful magnifier for complementary climate policies.

“The report also echoes other recommendations in C2ES’s Getting to Zero: A U.S. Climate Agenda, such as integration of climate-related risks into periodic stress testing and expanded corporate disclosure of material climate-related risk. C2ES underscored the benefits of corporate disclosures for physical and transition risk in our June 2019 testimony to the CFTC’s Market Advisory Committee. We look forward to continuing to work with policymakers, companies, and other stakeholders to advance many of the recommendations laid out in the report.”

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To reach a C2ES expert, contact Alec Gerlach at press@c2es.org.

About C2ES: The Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES) is an independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit organization working to forge practical solutions to climate change. Our mission is to advance strong policy and action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, promote clean energy, and strengthen resilience to climate impacts. Learn more at www.c2es.org.