The S.E.C. voted to force publicly traded companies to “disclose in their public filings the impact of climate change on their businesses — from new regulations or legislation they may face domestically or abroad, to potential changes in economic trends or physical risks to a company.”

What happens when these disclosures show how much the Obama Energy Tax would cost these companies — costs they will immediately pass on to their customers? Proponents of cap-and-trade may wind up regretting this particular bit of red tape.