The Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) is an organization that creates voluntary environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) reporting standards. The organization’s purpose and standards are similar to standards set by the International Accounting Standards Board and the Financial Accounting Standards Board. The standards, adopted by businesses voluntarily, serve as an alternative to government-imposed ESG standards. ¹

Industry Standards

Sustainability Accounting Standards Board provides industry-tailored voluntary ESG reporting standards for the consumer goods, mining, finance, healthcare, infrastructure, environmentalist energy, manufacturing, services, technology, and transportation industries. ²

Sustainability Accounting Standards Board maintains a database of companies that have committed to adopt its ESG reporting standards. Companies that have agreed to work with SASB include Ralph Lauren, . ³

Implementation Guidance

Beyond setting frameworks and standards for ESG reporting, Sustainability Accounting Standards Board provides execution guidance for businesses that need assistance organizing their voluntary reporting program. SASB provides guidance on how to establish a foundation for ESG reporting, choosing the right framework and standard, deciding where to disclose reports to, and how to assess readiness for reporting and continuous improvement. ⁴

Unifying Standard Setting

On July 12, 2020, Sustainability Accounting Standards Board and Global Reporting Initiative, another standards-setting organization, announced that they had agreed to collaborate on an understanding that would allow companies to use standards set by both organizations interchangeably for ESG reporting. ⁵

Agriculture Industry

Sustainability Accounting Standards Board has begun inquiries into demand for ESG standards within the meat and dairy industry. The advent of artificial meat, as well as dairy alternatives such as soy milk, almond milk, and oat milk, have cut into the agriculture industry’s profits. At least one of the reasons for the switch is concern regarding greenhouse gas emissions associated with the agriculture industry. SASB believes ESG standards may be one path through which the industry can gain back market share by demonstrating adherence to ESG standards or outperforming ESG standards. Given the voluntary nature of the standards, SASB will only design such standards if the agriculture industry agrees that there is a need for these standards. ⁶

Finances

In 2018 Sustainability Accounting Standards Board received $13,346,723 in contributions and $14,713,085 in total revenue. ⁷ The same year, the organization possessed $7,268,977 in net assets after accounting for all liabilities. ⁸

Leadership

Mathew Welch is the president of SASB. Before joining SASB, Welch held senior leadership roles at Kaplan Test Prep and The Rotary Foundation. ⁹

1. “About” Sustainability Accounting Standards Board. https://www.sasb.org/about/
2. “Download SASB Standards” Sustainability Accounting Standards Board. https://www.sasb.org/standards/download/
3. “Companies Reporting with SASB Standards” Sustainable Accounting Standards Board. https://www.sasb.org/company-use/sasb-reporters/
4. “Implementation Primer” Sustainability Accounting Standards Board. https://www.sasb.org/implementation-primer/
5. “Promoting Clarity and Compatibility in the Sustainability Landscape” Sustainability Accounting Standards Board. https://www.sasb.org/blog/gri-and-sasb-announce-collaboration-sustainability-reporting/
6. “Today in Market Feedback: Alternative Meat & Dairy” Sustainability Accounting Standards Board. https://www.sasb.org/blog/today-in-market-feedback-alternative-meat-dairy/
7. “Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax” Guidestar.org. Accessed January 30, 2021. Part I. Lines 8-12.
8. “Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax” Guidestar.org. Accessed January 30, 2021. Part I. Line 22.
9. “Mathew Welch” Sustainable Accounting Standards Board. https://www.sasb.org/about/staff/