Sec. 12. “Third party standard” means a recognized standard for defining, reporting, and assessing corporate social and environmental performance that is:

(1) comprehensive because it assesses the effect of the benefit corporation and the benefit corporation’s operations upon the interests listed in IC 23-1.3-5-1(1)(B) through IC 23-1.3-5-1(1)(E);

(2) developed by an entity that is not controlled by a benefit corporation;

(3) developed by an entity that:

(A) has access to necessary expertise to assess overall corporate social and environmental performance;

(B) uses a balanced multistakeholder approach to develop the standard, including a reasonable public comment period;

(C) was not materially financed by any of the following organizations and not more than one-third (1/3) of the members of the governing body of the entity are representatives of:

(i) associations or businesses operating in the same industry, the performance of whose members is measured by the standard; or

(ii) businesses from the same industry or an association of businesses in that industry; and

(4) transparent because all the following information is publicly available:

(A) The criteria considered when measuring the overall social and environmental performance of a business.

(B) The relative weightings, if any, of the criteria described in clause (A).

(C) The identity of the directors, officers, material owners, and governing body of the entity that developed and controls revisions to the standard.

(D) The process by which revisions to the standard and changes to the membership of the governing body are made.

(E) An accounting of the revenue and sources of financial support for the entity, with sufficient detail to disclose any relationships that could reasonably be considered to present a potential conflict of interest.

As added by P.L.93-2015, SEC.3.