SEC's Conflict-Minerals Reporting Rule: A Progress Report

By now, all manufacturers are fully up to speed on the Securities Exchange Commission's new rule about disclosing the presence of conflict minerals in their products … aren't they? Not exactly. A lot of companies have yet to determine their use of tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold from gang-controlled mines in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighboring regions. The complexity of global supply chains makes that a vexing challenge. Still, manufacturers are on their way to compliance. Our guest on this episode is Ryan Lynch, business development manager for the Information Insights division of Underwriters Laboratories (UL). He provides a report card on efforts to ferret out conflict-minerals content, while identifying the obstacles that stand in the way. He also offers a solution for companies that have yet to come up to speed, and speculates about how the SEC requirement, part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, might be expanded in future to cover additional countries and raw materials.