News Release

OHIO SENATE: In Renacci vs. Brown, Stakes Are High for Ohio’s Clean Energy Jobs, Air & Water

Senator Sherrod Brown fights for Ohioans as Jim Renacci sells out clean air, water & land to corporate polluters & his fellow Washington lobbyists

Washington, D.C. – Lobbyist-turned-Congressman Jim Renacci would threaten Ohio’s clean air, water, and growing clean energy economy if elected to the U.S. Senate – and the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) Victory Fund will be out in force to ensure Ohioans know that Senator Sherrod Brown is the only candidate who will fight for our health and environment.

LOBBYIST JIM RENACCI:                      

X Repeatedly voted to slash funding to protect clean drinking water

X Opposed efforts to restore funding to the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and voted to eliminate safeguards to prevent invasive species from invading Lake Erie

X Voted to gut the Environmental Protection Agency and severely weaken its ability to enforce clean air, clean water, and public health safeguards

X Was still a registered lobbyist when elected to Congress and failed to disclose nearly $50,000 in donations

X Has a pathetic 3 percent lifetime score on LCV’s National Environmental Scorecard

SENATOR SHERROD BROWN:

✓ Champions clean water, including having two bills signed into law to protect drinking water from lead contamination

✓ Fights to protect Lake Erie from toxic algae, including working across the aisle to pass the Drinking Water Protection Act

✓ Secured funding for the first-ever wind farm in Lake Erie and supports expanding clean, renewable energy jobs in Ohio and across the country

✓ Stands up to Big Oil and the Koch Brothers by pushing to repeal billions in tax breaks for polluting special interests

✓ Has a stellar 93 percent lifetime score on LCV’s National Environmental Scorecard

“Jim Renacci is out of step with Ohio and has no business representing us in the U.S. Senate,” said Aryeh Alex, Director of the Ohio Environmental Council Action Fund. “While Senator Sherrod Brown has been a champion for clean water – passing bills to fight lead contamination and working to clean up Lake Erie, which supports 124,000 Ohio jobs – Renacci’s voting record shows he only cares about making profits for the polluting special interests who fund his campaigns.”

“Ohioans have a clear choice this November between Sherrod Brown, who has worked with both parties to protect clean water and to build a renewable energy economy, and lobbyist Jim Renacci who doesn’t care about our communities,” said Pete Maysmith, LCV Victory Fund Senior Vice President for Campaigns.“Renacci would be one of the most anti-environmental members of the U.S. Senate – he’s simply too extreme for Ohio.”

Urging Governor Kasich to Veto Budget Bill’s State Lands Drilling Amendment

“This week, the Conference Committee working on Ohio’s budget submitted Amended Substitute House Bill 49 (H.B. 49) to Governor Kasich. The bill includes an amendment that eliminates the governor’s authority to appoint members of the Oil and Gas Leasing Commission (R.C. 1509.71), the state body charged with leasing state lands to the oil and gas industry. The bill would give the governor’s appointment authority to the Speaker of the Ohio House and President of the Ohio Senate. Governor Kasich has declined to appoint members to the Commission since its creation in 2011.

Lawmakers Considering Vote to Increase Electric Bills

A bill being rushed through the Ohio Legislature during the lame duck session could cause residential and small business electric bills to skyrocket. Senate Bill 320 and House Bill 554 will reduce cost effective energy efficiency targets, and allow special rate exemptions for big corporations, resulting in untold rate increases.

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OEC Action Fund Announces Scores from LCV’s 2015 National Environmental Scorecard

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Read the full scorecard in English here

Lea la tarjeta nacional de evaluaciones completa en Español aquí

The Ohio Environmental Council  Action Fund today unveiled scores for the Ohio Congressional delegation as part of the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) 2015 National Environmental Scorecard. The Scorecard includes the most votes ever scored and reveals the most anti-environmental Congress in our history. This is in direct contrast to President Obama who led the way on combating climate change and protecting our environment. The full Scorecard is available in both English and Spanish at scorecard.lcv.org

“Once again, too many members of Congress were complicit in extreme attacks on both bedrock environmental laws and more recent progress to protect our air, water, public lands and wildlife,” said Aryeh Alex, Director of the OEC Action Fund. “Despite last year being the hottest year on record, this Congress failed to take action on climate change and instead, put polluters’ agenda ahead of the health of Ohioans."

The 2015 Scorecard includes votes cast during the first session of the 114th Congress. Both chambers seemingly left no environmental issue untouched in 2015, with assaults on the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the Antiquities Act. It includes 35 House votes, which ties the record for the most votes scored in the House for the fourth time in five years, and 25 votes in the Senate, the second highest number ever included.

The good news is that the Scorecard also includes many votes led by environmental allies who stood up for climate change science, clean energy, public lands, and wildlife protections, among other issues. Thanks to President Obama and environmental champions in Congress virtually all of the legislative attacks on the environment and public health were defeated.

In Ohio, four House members and one Senator earned a score of 80 percent or greater on the 2015 Scorecard, while eleven House members and one Senator earned an abysmal score of 10 percent or less.

“The 2015 Scorecard shows that the radical leadership in the House and Senate wasted no time pursuing big polluters’ agenda last year, and their environmental assault is well underway in 2016,” said League of Conservation Voters President Gene Karpinski. “Fortunately, we have a growing force of environmental allies, including the president, as well as many in Congress, who are working tirelessly to combat climate change, transition to a clean energy economy and safeguard our air, water, lands and wildlife.”