Seven of the largest industry associations collaborate with Source
Intelligence and Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP to launch the first
cross-industry resource center, addressing the SEC’s Conflict Minerals
compliance regulation.
Washington, DC, January 21, 2014 - Seven of the world’s largest industry associations collaborate with
Source Intelligence
and Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP to launch the first cross-industry
training and resource center, addressing the Securities and Exchange
Commission’s (SEC) Conflict Minerals compliance regulation.
Source Intelligence
has developed the Conflict Minerals Resource Center (CMRC) to support
over 15,000 member companies who collectively generate over $3 trillion
(USD) in GDP and hundreds of thousands of U.S. jobs.
Key
representatives from the American Apparel & Footwear Association
(AAFA), the Fashion Jewelry and Accessories Trade Association (FJATA),
the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), the National Electrical
Manufacturers Association (NEMA), the National Retail Federation (NRF),
the Toy Industry Association (TIA) and the United States Fashion
Industry Association (USFIA) worked with Source Intelligence and Schulte
Roth & Zabel to align training and resource center priorities to
provide member companies with the information they need to comply with
the SEC regulation.
The goal of the joint initiative is
to deploy easy-to-use Conflict Minerals compliance tools across the
seven industry associations. By providing the member companies and their
vendors and contractors with the information and resources needed to
meet the compliance requirements, all players along the supply chain can
spend less time navigating policy, and more time producing the products
and services that generate economic growth and jobs.
These
tools will help companies understand the complicated requirements of
the regulation, recognizing that it is the responsibility of individual
companies to identify their specific compliance obligations and handle
the real challenges that remain as they design their own programs.
On
August 22, 2012, the SEC adopted a final rule to implement Section 1502
of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act
(Dodd-Frank). The rule requires publicly-held companies to disclose
whether their products contain conflict minerals as defined by the law:
tin, tantalum, tungsten or gold (3TG) originating from the Democratic
Republic of the Congo (DRC) and specific adjoining countries.
The
first report, covering calendar year 2013, is due to the SEC by May 31,
2014. The SEC and Government Accountability Office estimate that
approximately 6,000 issuers and 280,000 non-issuer companies will be
directly or indirectly impacted by the rule.
“
Source Intelligence
is honored to be entrusted with providing the nation’s leading
manufacturing and retail companies with the most complete resource for
managing conflict minerals compliance,” commented Jess Kraus, CEO and
co-founder of Source Intelligence. “Our market leadership servicing
global brands has enabled us to build the largest network of suppliers
in the world. Source Intelligence and Schulte Roth & Zabel, the
premier law firm in conflict mineral compliance, are combining our
experience, best practices and resource libraries to provide a
comprehensive training and resource center to inform and educate
companies in these vital industries.”
Access the conflict minerals training and resource center by registering today at
http://conflictmineralsresources.com
About the Associations
Representing
more than 1,000 world famous name brands, the American Apparel &
Footwear Association (AAFA) is the trusted public policy and political
voice of the apparel and footwear industry, its management and
shareholders, its four million U.S. workers, and its contribution of
$350 billion in annual U.S. retail sales.
The Fashion
Jewelry & Accessories Trade Association represents the interests of
manufacturers, suppliers and retailers of jewelry and accessories. With
more than 225 member brands, FJATA serves as the key voice on industry
issues to state, federal, and international regulatory agencies, and
actively promotes industry safety and compliance initiatives. Our
members comprise a highly dynamic and competitive segment of the fashion
industry, providing jewelry and accessories to adults and children
worldwide.
The National Association of Manufacturers
(NAM) is the largest manufacturing association in the United States,
representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector
and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs nearly 12 million men and
women, contributes more than $1.8 trillion to the U.S. economy annually,
has the largest economic impact of any major sector and accounts for
two-thirds of private-sector research and development.
The
National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) is the association
of electrical equipment and medical imaging manufacturers. Founded in
1926 and headquartered in Rosslyn, Virginia, its 400-plus member
companies manufacture a diverse set of products used in the generation,
transmission, distribution, and end use of electricity as well as
medical diagnostic imaging. Worldwide annual sales of products in the
NEMA scope exceed $140 billion.
The National Retail
Federation (NRF) is the world’s largest retail trade association,
representing discount and department stores, home goods and specialty
stores, Main Street merchants, grocers, wholesalers, chain restaurants
and Internet retailers from the United States and more than 45
countries. Retail is the nation’s largest private sector employer,
supporting one in four U.S. jobs – 42 million working Americans.
Contributing $2.5 trillion to annual GDP, retail is a daily barometer
for the nation’s economy. NRF’s This is Retail campaign highlights the
industry’s opportunities for life-long careers, how retailers strengthen
communities, and the critical role that retail plays in driving
innovation.
www.nrf.com
Toy
Industry Association™, Inc. (TIA) is the not-for-profit trade
association representing all businesses involved in creating, producing
and delivering toys and youth entertainment products for kids of all
ages. The Association represents more than 600 companies that
collectively account for approximately 85% of domestic toy sales. Toy
safety is the number one priority for the toy industry. TIA has a long
history of leadership in toy safety including the development of the
first comprehensive toy safety standard more than 30 years ago, and
working with government, consumers and industry on ongoing programs to
ensure safe and fun play.
The United States Fashion
Industry Association (USFIA) represents the fashion industry: textile
and apparel brands, retailers, importers, and wholesalers based in the
United States and doing business globally. Founded in 1989 as the United
States Association of Importers of Textiles & Apparel with the goal
of eliminating the global apparel quota system, USFIA now works to
eliminate the tariff and non-tariff barriers that impede the industry’s
ability to trade freely and create economic opportunities in the United
States and abroad.
About the Contract Award Winners
About Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP (www.srz.com):
Schulte
Roth & Zabel ("SRZ") is a full-service law firm with offices in New
York, Washington, D.C. and London. The firm's practices include
investment management; regulatory & compliance; bank regulatory;
business reorganization; distressed investing; employment & employee
benefits; environmental; finance; individual client services;
intellectual property, sourcing & technology; litigation; mergers
& acquisitions; real estate; securities & capital markets;
structured products & derivatives; and tax.
SRZ is a
leader in global conflict minerals compliance. The firm is actively
advising public and private companies and trade associations across a
wide range of industries and throughout the supply chain on conflict
minerals compliance. As part of its leadership in this area, SRZ has
published more articles, Alerts and White Papers, participated in more
programs and been quoted in the press significantly more than any other
law firm. SRZ is also the only law firm with an Advanced Conflict
Minerals Rule Compliance webinar series. This ongoing series features
third-party experts and thought-leaders from across the compliance
spectrum, including from the upstream, downstream, trade association,
NGO, governmental and investor communities. SRZ's conflict minerals
practice is part of its global public companies practice, which is
headed by New York-based partner Michael R. Littenberg.
About Source Intelligence® (www.sourceintelligence.com):
Source
Intelligence® is an information knowledge company that helps customers
make informed decisions about business partners to offer products that
meet legal, ethical, and environmental standards. Our cloud-based
information and analytics platform provides customers with visibility
into product supply chains and material sources in order to comply with
the law, minimize operational and brand risk, and improve efficiency.
As
a leading provider of conflict minerals compliance programs, Source
Intelligence protects customers’ interests with private industry’s
largest network of suppliers, a platform to manage and connect business
partners, and a portfolio of compliance programs for all regulated
materials. Founded in 2009 by career experts in environmental solutions,
management consulting and analytics, Source Intelligence® has
headquarters in Carlsbad, California and operations around the world.
Contact:
Lina Ramos
Source Intelligence
1921 Palomar Oaks Way, Ste 205
Carlsbad, CA 92008
(877) 916 6337
lramos@sourceintelligence.com
http://sourceintelligence.com
Midwest Black Hair Magazine,
an international upscale hair and beauty magazine, will be hosting the
“Care 4 Hair” event. Started in November 2011, this magazine has been
devoted to showcasing African American hair styles, promoting hair and
beauty stylist, supporting small businesses, putting a spotlight on hair
& beauty events, and providing hair, beauty, and health information
through monthly articles. Celebrities have also graced the pages of
Midwest Black Hair Magazine, such as Nicole Ari Parker and Countess
Vaughn. Monthly issues of Midwest Black Hair Magazine can be found at www.MidwestBlackHair.com.
