Extractive industry payment disclosure rules finalized

The finalized rules:

• Require public disclosure of payments to governments by companies engaged in the commercial development of oil, natural gas or minerals at the project level.
• Define ‘project level’ and outline required disclosures of payments to any foreign government or the US federal government.
• Define ‘control’ to exclude entities or operations in which an issuer has a proportionate interest.
• Include certain exemptions and relief, including: 
  • two conditional exemptions for situations in which a foreign law or a pre-existing contract prohibits the required disclosure;
  • exemptions for smaller reporting companies and emerging growth companies; and
  • relief for issuers that have recently completed their initial public offering or an acquisition.
• Require disclosure by deeming the payment information to be furnished to, but not filed with, the SEC using Form SD; and
• Specify the compliance date to start with the fiscal year ending no earlier than two years after the effective date of the final rules.