Springfield, IL – Today, the Illinois Environmental Council (IEC), state affiliate of the League of Conservation Voters (LCV), announced the Illinois congressional delegation’s scores on LCV’s 2021 National Environmental Scorecard. The Scorecard is the primary yardstick for evaluating the environmental records of members of Congress since 1970 and is available for download in English here, in Spanish here and online at scorecard.lcv.org.
2021 was an unprecedented year. We endured heightened federal attacks on the foundation of our democracy and in Illinois, we continue to face the staggering costs of climate change, the losses from an ongoing global pandemic and reckoning with systemic environmental racism. The 2021 National Environmental Scorecard had a historically high percentage of votes related to justice and democracy in both chambers, reflecting these intersecting challenges. Those critical democracy-related votes combined with the record number of diverse Biden nominees resulted in a record number of scored votes in the Senate.
“We are proud to have representatives that will fight for our future alongside this administration,” said Jen Walling, executive director of the Illinois Environmental Council. Thirteen members of our delegation stood up for Illinois’ health and our environment, while others continue to side with corporate polluters over our health and environment and have refused to protect our right to vote at a critical moment for the country. We know the work is still not done; the future of our planet and our democracy are at stake. Illinois needs our entire delegation to work with the White House and their colleagues in Congress to pass the Build Back Better Agenda and vital voting rights protections, now.
Pro-environment and pro-democracy leaders across both chambers and the White House undid much of the damage from the Trump administration and made progress in key areas. While the Build Back Better Act and vital democracy reforms passed the House, they remain stalled by unanimous Republican opposition in the Senate.
In the past 50 years, LCV has never scored the basic votes that uphold our country’s peaceful transfer of power and electoral outcomes. This year was different. With the unprecedented January 6th insurrection and so many attacks by Republican members of Congress on the fundamental tenets of our country’s governance, LCV scored these votes in both chambers.
“While 2021 was an incredibly difficult year for our democracy and our climate, it was a sea change from the Trump presidency,” said LCV Senior Director of Government Affairs Matthew Davis. “Our pro-environment, pro-democracy trifecta made strides toward an equitable clean energy future in 2021. Illinois has clear champions for our environment and democracy and others who are not delivering for their communities at a critical time. We see the last year as the foundation for accomplishing the transformational change we need in 2022. The Biden-Harris administration took bold steps towards tackling the interwoven climate and racial justice crises, the House passed the Build Back Better Act and democracy reforms, and now it’s up to the Senate to pass the transformational investments needed to combat the climate crisis and protect our democracy.”
The 2021 Scorecard includes 22 House votes, half of which were justice and democracy-related votes such as the vitally important voting rights bills. The 34 Senate votes include six justice and democracy votes. This reflects the need to safeguard the fundamentals of our governance from numerous federal judiciary and state and local policy attacks on our democracy and voting rights which primarily target people of color.
The full delegation’s scores for 2021 are:
Senator Duckworth, Tammy – 100 percent
Senator Durbin, Dick – 100 percent
Representative Rush, Bobby L. – 100 percent
Representative Kelly, Robin – 100 percent
Representative Newman, Marie – 100 percent
Representative García, Jesús – 100 percent
Representative Quigley, Mike – 100 percent
Representative Casten, Sean – 100 percent
Representative Davis, Danny K. – 96 percent
Representative Krishnamoorthi, Raja – 100 percent
Representative Schakowsky, Jan – 100 percent
Representative Schneider, Brad – 100 percent
Representative Foster, Bill – 100 percent
Representative Bost, Mike – 9 percent
Representative Davis, Rodney – 22 percent
Representative Underwood, Lauren – 100 percent
Representative Miller, Mary – 0 percent
Representative Kinzinger, Adam – 26 percent
Representative Bustos, Cheri – 100 percent
Representative LaHood, Darin – 17 percent
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.
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