State Attorney General Eric Schneiderma🍸n is conducting an investigation to determine whether Exxon lied to investors and the public about the risks of climate change, sources said Thursday.
One source said the AG’s office has issued subpoenas requesting documeꦆn🎀ts and statements from Exxon that date back as far back as the 1970s.
The source likened the probe to the government’s decades-long probes into tobacco companies for mislea෴ding the public about the health dange༒rs of smoking.
Those firms subsequently coughed up bil🦩lions of dollars in settlements and in court verdicts.
Schneiderman i𒁏s using powers under the state Martin Act, which gives him broad discretion to investigate firms doing business in New Yor🐎k.
The source said the AG is examining all financial reports that oil giant has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as statementꦜs made to customers and the general public about what its research turned up about global warming.
Exxon confirmed the Schneiderman investigation, but denied any w🃏rongdꦅoing.
“We have received a subpoena for production ❀of documents relating to climate change from the Attorney General of New York and are assessing our response,” said company spokesman Scott Sil❀vestri.
“ExxonMobil has included inform𝓡ation about the business risk of climate change for many years in our 10-K, Corporate Citizenship Reports and in other reports to shareholders.
“We unequivocally reject allegations that ExxonMobil suppressed climate change research contained in media reports that are inaccurate distortions of ExxonMobil’s nearly 40-yea🍌r history of climate research that was conducted publicly in conjunction with the Department of Energy, academics and the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change,” he added.