Fog hovers over the dome of the U.S. Capitol on Dec. 10 —Kent Nishimura—Getty Images

For the last year, I’ve been asking corporate executives how they might expect anticipated Democratic victories in the midterm elections to shape the future of the U.S. climate and energy agenda. I was surprised how often they gave the same answer: investigations.

Democratic control of congressional committees would give Democrats new subpoena power and new dedicated staff to conduct investigations. Companies may be compelled to turn over documents, and CEOs could be called to testify before Congress about how they have approached a range of issues.

Corporate executives have largely worried about staying on the right side of President Trump over the last few years.…