The SEC will be closed Wednesday, January 1st in observance of New Year’s Day. The EDGAR System will not receive, process or accept filings on this day. Filings with a due date of January 1 will be due the following business day.

Last week, the SEC voted to propose rules that would require resource extraction issuers to disclose payments made to foreign governments or the US federal government for the commercial development of oil, natural gas, or mineral resources. These proposed rules come after a series of SEC actions, court proceedings, and Congressional actions. As mandated by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, the SEC first adopted rules pertaining to resource extraction issuers in 2012, which were subsequently vacated by the US District Court for the District of Columbia. The SEC then adopted new rules in 2016, but these rules were disapproved by a joint resolution of Congress pursuant to the Congressional Review Act. After the 2016 rules were vacated, the statutory mandate remains in effect, requiring the SEC to issue a rule in these regards. Furthermore, that rule must not be “substantially the same”, according to the Congressional Review Act. These new proposed rules attempt to meet that mandate.

The SEC will be closed Tuesday, December 24 and Wednesday, December 25 due to the closure of the federal government in these two days. The EDGAR System will not receive, process or accept filings on either of these days. Filings with a due date of December 24 or December 25 will be considered timely if filed on or before December 26.

On December 18th, the SEC proposed amendments to the definition of accredited investor, which is one of the principal tests for who is eligible to participate in private capital markets. The changes would update and improve the definition to identify more effectively those institutional and individual investors who have the knowledge and expertise to participate in these markets. By amending this and other related definitions, more investors would be able to participate in private offerings through the addition of new categories of natural persons that may quality as accredited investors based on their professional knowledge, experience, or certifications. The proposal would also expand the list of entities that may qualify as accredited investors by allowing any entity that meets an investments test to qualify, among other ways. Specifically, the changes focus on the definition of "accredited investor" in the SEC's rules and the definition of "qualified institutional buyer" in Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933.

To aid filers avoid missing deadlines and reduce congestion around busy important filing dates, the SEC provides an anticipated peak filing schedule. Peak EDGAR filing times are estimated using historical data. The 2020 schedule is now available from the SEC.