Vermont Conservation Voters released the Vermont federal delegation’s scores for the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) 2022 National Environmental Scorecard, highlighting our state’s leaders’ tremendous action to protect our environment and democracy, and build a clean energy future. Since 1970, LCV’s Scorecard has been the primary yardstick for evaluating the environmental records of members of Congress. It is available for download in English here, in Spanish here, and online in both languages at scorecard.lcv.org.
2022 was the best year ever for climate action in Congress, with the passage of the landmark Inflation Reduction Act that invests roughly $369 billion in advancing clean energy, creating good jobs, and fighting climate change and environmental injustice. This clean energy plan was finalized against a backdrop of devastating and costly climate-fueled extreme weather and oil and gas companies’ exploitation of Putin’s unlawful war on Ukraine. Every member of our state’s delegation came together with Democrats nationwide to make the country’s first transformational climate law a reality. Unfortunately, not a single Republican voted for this popular, affordable clean energy plan.
“We are proud to have representatives that will stand up for our state’s health and environment,” said Justin Marsh, political outreach director, Vermont Conservation Voters. “Senators Leahy and Sanders and Representative Welch worked every day to protect our air and water and build a clean energy future for all Vermonters. We know the work is not done. The future of our planet and our democracy are at stake. Vermont must build on this tremendous success and pass pending legislation such as the Affordable Heat Act to ensure we can implement and invest these dollars so it benefits every Vermonter now and in the future.”
“With Senator Leahy’s retirement last year, we recognize with immense gratitude all he has done at the federal level to conserve land and water in Vermont,” said Lauren Hierl, executive director, Vermont Conservation Voters. “Leahy’s advocacy has enabled a vast array of conservation gains in Vermont that further our goals of clean water, healthy forests, sustainable and healthy communities, and action on the climate crisis. Vermonters have benefited tremendously from Senator Leahy’s many years of service.”
“What a year of historic progress! In 2022, pro-environment majorities in the House and Senate showed the world what’s possible when leaders are committed to delivering the action on climate, clean energy, jobs and justice voters demand,” said LCV Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Tiernan Sittenfeld. “In a year that saw more suffering from the climate crisis and more pain at the pump as oil and gas companies raised energy costs, environmental champions in Congress took transformative climate action to begin to insulate the U.S. from volatile fossil fuel prices and build an affordable clean energy future. This year, we are all in to support the swift, effective, and equitable implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act, work with Vermont’s champions in Congress to continue to fight for popular action on climate and environmental justice and block attempts to roll back environmental safeguards, and support the Biden-Harris administration’s finalization of critical health and climate protections across the agencies.”
The 2022 Scorecard includes dozens of votes on other impactful climate and environmental bills, as well as a number of votes in both chambers on legislation that would strengthen democracy including the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and the DISCLOSE Act. To safeguard equity, LCV’s 2022 Scorecard included votes in both chambers to protect same-sex and interracial marriages as well as reproductive rights.
The increasing winter temperatures and more-frequent weather events that continue to affect our communities and industries required an all-of-government approach that Congress helped deliver, despite relentless attempts by the fossil fuel industry and other entrenched interests to put their profits over the best interest of Vermonters.
The 2022 Scorecard includes 23 votes in the Senate and 19 votes in the House, with the vote on the IRA counting twice in both chambers.
The full delegation’s scores for 2022 are:
Senator Patrick Leahy (D) – 91% (94% Lifetime)
Senator Bernie Sanders (I) – 100% (91% Lifetime)
Representative Peter Welch (D) – 95% (95% Lifetime)
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 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.