New York League of Conservation Voters
(212) 361-6350, Ext. 206
For Immediate Release: February 26, 2021
Shachar Sharon, ssharon@nylcv.org
NYLCV Announces Delegation Scores from LCV’s 2020 National Environmental Scorecard
Overwhelming Majority of Delegation Earn High Marks
New York, NY — The New York League of Conservation Voters (NYLCV) today announced that the New York congressional delegation scored exceptionally well on the national League of Conservation Voters’ 2020 National Environmental Scorecard. The Scorecard is the primary yardstick for evaluating the environmental records of every member of Congress, and is available for download here and online in both English and Spanish at scorecard.lcv.org.
In New York, both Senator Chuck Schumer and Kirten Gillibrand earned scores of 100% making New York only one of two states nationally to have a perfect score. In the House, 17 New York Congressmembers, or nearly two-thirds of the entire delegation, earned perfect scores of 100%. The House delegation average was 86% – higher than any other big state. These high marks demonstrate the importance of the environment and climate change to the delegation and their constituents.
New York’s congressional delegation is serving as a role model for other states to follow in terms of environmental leadership. The state is home to the Senate Majority Leader, chair of the House Democratic Caucus, chair of the House Subcommittee on the Environment and Climate Change for the Energy & Commerce Committee, and chair of the House Subcommittee on Energy for the Committee Science, Space, and Technology Committee.
“We are proud to have representatives that will fight for our future. So many of the New York congressional delegation stood up for our health and our environment. They are working every day to protect our air, water, land, and wildlife for all New Yorkers,” said NYLCV President Julie Tighe. “Now, with a new White House administration that is putting climate and the environment at the top of the agenda, we are excited to focus on policy that can be achieved and not constantly fighting rollbacks. There has never been a more important time to pass climate action legislation that will put us on the path to a clean energy future.”
The full delegation’s scores for 2020 were:
Senator Charles Schumer 100%
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand 100%
Representative Lee Zeldin (NY-1) 24%
Representative Peter King (NY-2) 52%
Representative Thomas Suozzi (NY-3) 100%
Representative Kathleen Rice (NY-4) 90%
Representative Gregory Meeks (NY-5) 100%
Representative Grace Meng (NY-6) 100%
Representative Nydia Velázquez (NY-7) 100%
Representative Hakeem Jeffries (NY-8) 100%
Representative Yvette Clarke (NY-9) 100%
Representative Jerrold Nadler (NY-10) 100%
Representative Max Rose (NY-11) 100%
Representative Carolyn Maloney (NY-12) 100%
Representative Adriano Espaillat (NY-13) 100%
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14) 95%
Representative Jose Serrano (NY-15) 86%
Representative Eliot Engel (NY-16) 100%
Representative Nita Lowey (NY-17) 100%
Representative Sean Patrick Maloney (NY-18) 100%
Representative Antonio Delgado (NY-19) 100%
Representative Paul Tonko (NY-20) 100%
Representative Elise Stefanik (NY-21) 48%
Representative Anthony Brindisi (NY-22) 100%
Representative Tom Reed (NY-23) 48%
Representative John Katko (NY-24) 62%
Representative Joseph Morelle (NY-25) 90%
Representative Brian Higgins (NY-26) 100%
Representative Chris Jacobs (NY-27) 33%
“During an incredibly difficult and unprecedented year and with the most anti-environmental president ever, pro-environment members of the 116th Congress paved the way for transformational action on climate and environmental justice,” said LCV Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Tiernan Sittenfeld. “Now the pro-environment trifecta — led by President Biden and Vice President Harris, Speaker Pelosi, and Leader Schumer — is poised to enact transformational progress that results in healthy, equitable, safe communities powered by clean energy.”
The 2020 Scorecard measures votes cast during the second session of the 116th Congress. It includes 21 House votes that advanced pro-environmental and pro-democracy bills, provisions, and government funding. In the Senate, for the fourth year in a row, the majority of the 13 scored votes were extreme and partisan nominations both to the federal bench and the Trump administration. For the first time, the 2020 National Environmental Scorecard includes votes on removing public monuments to racism and policing and criminal justice reform. The same damaging system—racism—is at the root of climate injustice, environmental injustice, and police brutality. The 2020 Scorecard therefore includes votes that reflect LCV’s belief that these struggles are intertwined and must be addressed together.
LCV has published a National Environmental Scorecard every Congress since 1970. The Scorecard represents the consensus of experts from more than 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, environmental justice, public health, public lands and wildlife conservation, democracy, and spending for environmental programs. The votes included in the Scorecard presented members of Congress with a real choice and helped distinguish which legislators are working for environmental protection. More information on individual votes and the Scorecard archive can be found at scorecard.lcv.org.
Earlier this month, LCV released a new report examining the environmental records of members of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC), Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC), collectively referred to as the Tri-Caucus. Using data from LCV’s National Environmental Scorecard, the report details how members of the Tri-Caucus were champions of strong environmental policies that address environmental injustice, helped chair a record number of hearings about climate change, and led on many of the critical pro-environmental bills during the 116th Congress.
The New York League of Conservation Voters is the only non-partisan, statewide environmental organization in New York that takes a pragmatic approach to fight for clean water, healthy air, renewable energy, and open space. For more information, visit www.nylcv.org.
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