The real effects of mandated information on social responsibility in financial reports: Evidence from mine-safety records

We examine the real effects of mandatory social-responsibility disclosures, which require SEC-registered mine owners to include their mine-safety records in their financial reports. These safety records are already publicly available elsewhere, which allows us to isolate and estimate the incremental real effects of including this information in financial reports. Comparing mines owned by SEC-registered issuers with mines that are not, we document that including safety records in financial reports decreases mining-related citations and injuries, and reduces labor productivity. Evidence from stock-market reactions and mutual fund holdings suggests that increased awareness of safety issues is a likely explanation for the observed real effects. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.