Columbus, OH — Today, the Ohio Environmental Council (OEC) Action Fund released the Ohio delegation’s scores on the League of Conservation Voters’ 2019 National Environmental Scorecard. The Scorecard is the primary yardstick for evaluating the environmental records of every member of Congress, and is available in both English and Spanish at scorecard.lcv.org.
“The Trump administration continues to roll back critical environmental regulations that are designed to protect the health of our planet and our people, but we’re more determined than ever to hold members of Congress accountable for denying our families’ fundamental rights to clean air, safe drinking water, vibrant public lands, and a healthy environment,” said OEC Action Fund President Heather Taylor-Miesle. “In the face of climate change, there is no time to waste. We need our representatives in Congress to fight for Ohio’s communities and push back against Trump’s anti-science, pro-polluter agenda.”
The 2019 Scorecard measures votes cast during the first session of the 116th Congress. In Ohio, three House members and Senator Brown earned a score of 80 percent or greater, while nine House members earned an abysmal score of 10 percent or less. The average House score for Ohio was just 29 percent and the average Senate score was 64.5 percent. The full delegation’s scores for 2019 are:
Senator Brown (D) - 100 percent
Senator Portman (R) - 29 percent
Representative Chabot (R) - 10 percent
Representative Wenstrup (R) - 3 percent
Representative Beatty (D) - 96 percent
Representative Jordan (R) - 0 percent
Representative Latta (R) - 7 percent
Representative Johnson, B. (R) - 7 percent
Representative Gibbs (R) - 7 percent
Representative Davidson (R) - 7 percent
Representative Kaptur (D) - 100 percent
Representative Turner (R) - 14 percent
Representative Fudge (D) - 93 percent
Representative Balderson (R) - 3 percent
Representative Ryan, T. (D) - 66 percent
Representative Joyce (R) - 21 percent
Representative Stivers (R) - 10 percent
Representative Gonzalez (R) - 21 percent
“We are grateful to Speaker Pelosi and her pro-environment majority for prioritizing climate action and protections of our air, water, lands, wildlife, and democracy,” said LCV Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Tiernan Sittenfeld. “While pro-environment leaders supported policies that will protect communities across the country, especially low-income communities and communities of color, from the negative impacts of climate change-fueled extreme heat, natural disasters, and toxic pollution last year, Senate Majority Leader McConnell’s refusal to act on hundreds of important House-passed bills put the health of our children and families at risk for the benefit of his corporate polluter friends.”
The 2019 Scorecard includes 35 House votes that span the chamber’s assaults on clean air and water, lands and wildlife protections, investments in clean energy and so much more. In the Senate, the majority of the 14 votes scored are confirmation votes on Trump’s anti-environmental nominees.
LCV has published a National Environmental Scorecard every Congress since 1970. The Scorecard represents the consensus of experts from about 20 respected environmental and conservation organizations who selected the key votes on which members of Congress should be scored. LCV scores votes on the most important issues of the year, including energy, climate change, public health, public lands and wildlife conservation, and spending for environmental programs. The votes included in the Scorecard presented members of Congress with a real choice and help distinguish which legislators are working for environmental protection. More information on individual votes and the Scorecard archive can be found at scorecard.lcv.org.
The Ohio Environmental Council Action Fund is committed to protecting and enhancing the environment and the health of all Ohio communities. We will continue to fight for Ohio’s access to clean water, healthy air, vibrant public lands and a strong democracy.
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