Youngkin again proves to be a barrier to environmental progress

 

For Immediate Release:
Friday, May 9, 2025

Contact:
Lee Francis | Chief Program and Communications Officer
Virginia League of Conservation Voters
(434) 989-3197 | lfrancis@valcv.org

 

RICHMOND – Today, the Virginia League of Conservation Voters released its 2025 Conservation Scorecard, which ranks all 140 members of the legislature based on their votes on key environmental legislation during this year’s General Assembly session.

The full 2025 Scorecard can be viewed and downloaded here.

The 2025 General Assembly saw lawmakers pass more than 50 pro-environmental measures, with very few of these becoming law this year due to an obstructionist Governor who vetoed hundreds of bills this year including measures that would have lowered energy bills, helped secure a clean, affordable energy transition, created good-paying jobs, reduced pollution, and protected clean water from toxic, forever chemicals.

“Rather than do the hard work to ensure we move forward with clean, affordable electricity, responsibly address Virginia’s unsustainable data center growth, and ensure a conservation legacy as most of his recent predecessors have done, our governor chose to play partisan politics and Virginia’s environment suffered,” said Michael Town, executive director of the Virginia League of Conservation Voters. “The legislature by and large did its job this year, passing a number of measures to lower Virginians’ electric bills and secure a healthier environment. It’s time for Virginia to have leadership that will get the job done instead of standing in the way of progress.”

Overall, this year’s Conservation Scorecard ranks lawmakers based on 18 key votes in the House of Delegates and 17 votes in the Senate across a wide array of issue areas, everything from energy and climate to water quality and democracy. This year’s Scorecard reflects deepened partisanship with Democrats in both chambers voting alongside Virginia LCV’s position 100% of the time. The House Republican Caucus averaged 30% with scores ranging from 6% to 59%; Senate Republicans averaged 23% with scores landing between 7% and 40%.

Seventy-two lawmakers, 21 Senators and 51 Delegates, scored a perfect 100-percent score in 2023, earning the designation of “Legislative Hero” for voting alongside Virginia LCV’s position on top conservation priorities every time this year.

Virginia LCV also recognized five lawmakers for their individual leadership this year on different environmental issues. These included Senator Schuyler VanValkenburg (D-Henrico) and Delegates Katrina Callsen (D-Charlottesville), Josh Thomas (D-Prince William), Phil Hernandez (D-Norfolk), and Bonita Anthony (D-Norfolk).

 

2025 Legislative Heroes

Senator Lashrecse Aird

Senator Lamont Bagby

Senator Jennifer Boysko

Senator Jennifer Carroll Foy

Senator Creigh Deeds

Senator Adam Ebbin

Senator Barbara Favola

Senator Ghazala Hashmi

Senator Mamie Locke

Senator Louise Lucas

Senator Dave Marsden

Senator Jeremy McPike

Senator Stella Pekarsky

Senator Russet Perry

Senator Danica Roem

Senator Aaron Rouse

Senator Saddam Salim

Senator Kannan Srinivasan

Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell

Senator Schuyler VanValkenburg

Senator Angelia Williams Graves

Delegate Bonita Anthony

Delegate Alex Askew

Delegate Elizabeth Bennett-Parker

Delegate David Bulova

Delegate Katrina Callsen

Delegate Betsy Carr

Delegate Nadarius Clark

Delegate Laura Jane Cohen

Delegate Joshua Cole

Delegate Kelly Convirs-Fowler

Delegate Rae Cousins

Delegate Karrie Delaney

Delegate Michael Feggans

Delegate Debra Gardner

Delegate Jackie Glass

Delegate Cliff Hayes

Delegate Dan Helmer

Delegate Rozia Henson

Delegate Phil Hernandez

Delegate Charniele Herring

Delegate Patrick Hope

Delegate Michael Jones

Delegate Karen Keys-Gamara

Delegate Paul Krizek

Delegate Amy Laufer

Delegate Destiny LeVere Bolling

Delegate Alfonso Lopez

Delegate Michelle Maldonado

Delegate Marty Martinez

Delegate Adele McClure

Delegate Delores McQuinn

Delegate Candi Mundon King

Delegate Cia Price

Delegate Sam Rasoul

Delegate Atoosa Reaser

Delegate David Reid

House Speaker Don Scott

Delegate Holly Siebold

Delegate Briana Sewell

Delegate Irene Shin

Delegate Mark Sickles

Delegate Mark Simon

Delegate Shelly Simonds

Delegate JJ Singh

Delegate Rip Sullivan

Delegate Josh Thomas

Delegate Luke Torian

Delegate Kathy Tran

Delegate Jeion Ward

Delegate Vivian Watts

Delegate Rodney Willett

 

 

About us:
The Virginia League of Conservation Voters serves as the political voice of the state’s conservation community, working to make sure Virginia’s elected officials recognize that our natural heritage is an environmental and economic treasure for all. Virginia LCV works with conservation leaders across Virginia and strives for a conservation majority in state government. We secure good public policies on the state level and hold public officials accountable for their positions on environmental issues. For more information, visit www.valcv.org.

 

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For Immediate Release: 
Wednesday, April 9, 2025

 

Media Contact:
Lee Francis | Chief Program and Communications Officer
Virginia League of Conservation Voters
(434) 989-3197 | lfrancis@valcv.org

 

RICHMOND – Yesterday, as part of a package of measures aimed at boosting the fossil fuel industry, President Trump issued an Executive Order attacking state-level policies intended to expand affordable and clean energy and that address the climate crisis. Specifically, the EO directs the U.S. Attorney General to identify state laws that address climate change, environmental, social and governance, or “ESG” initiatives, environmental justice, and carbon emissions, and to take action to block them.

In response to this action, Michael Town, executive director of the Virginia League of Conservation Voters, issued the following statement:

“Ironically, Virginia’s where we are in our clean energy transition in part because of Trump’s refusal to take climate change seriously during his first term. His failed leadership then in the face of the growing climate crisis compelled Virginia policymakers to step up and take bold action that led to a cleaner energy mix, billions of dollars of investment in our economy, and thousands of good-paying jobs. This illegal Executive Order is a blatant handout to Trump’s ‘Big Oil’ donors at our expense. At a time when renewable energy is our cheapest option to keep the lights on, this Order would instead prop up expensive, dirty and outdated fossil fuels – raising Virginians’ energy bills at a time when this Administration’s reckless policies are already hurting Virginia families and endangering our economy.”

About us:
The Virginia League of Conservation Voters serves as the political voice of the state’s conservation community, working to make sure Virginia’s elected officials recognize that our natural heritage is an environmental and economic treasure for all. Virginia LCV works with conservation leaders across Virginia and strives for a conservation majority in state government. We secure good public policies on the state level and hold public officials accountable for their positions on environmental issues. For more information, visit www.valcv.org.

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For Immediate Release:
Tuesday, March 25, 2025

Media Contact:
Lee Francis | Chief Program and Communications Officer
Virginia League of Conservation Voters
434-989-3197 | lfrancis@valcv.org

 

RICHMOND – Yesterday marked the deadline for Governor Youngkin to act on the legislation that made it to his desk from the 2025 General Assembly session. His nearly 160 vetoes included a number of commonsense, bipartisan measures to protect our environment, create good-paying clean energy jobs, and expand clean and affordable renewable energy.

Youngkin also handed down a number of toxic amendments with the goal of undermining our state’s clean energy goals. Lawmakers will reconvene in Richmond next Wednesday to take up this host of measures at the one-day veto session on April 2.

“Time after time, Governor Youngkin says one thing and does another,” said Michael Town, executive director of the Virginia League of Conservation Voters. “He says he cares about cutting energy costs, then turns around and kills legislation to lower energy bills. He says he cares about jobs, and then vetoes bills to expand training for the clean energy industry and efforts to ensure these workers earn a living wage. Youngkin claims to have done more than any Governor to clean the Bay, but just killed legislation protecting our clean water from toxic forever chemicals. Virginians are sick and tired of the hypocrisy, and we’ll be doing everything we can between now and Election Day to elect leaders with the integrity and dedication to environmental protection that we deserve.”

Virginia Beach Delegate Michael Feggans carried legislation this year to expand the offshore wind workforce in an effort to support one of Hampton Roads’s fastest growing industries as the nation’s largest offshore wind farm nears completion off our coast.

“This veto is incredibly disappointing but not unexpected coming from a Governor that’s done everything he can to stand in the way of our clean energy future,” said Delegate Michael Feggans. “Because of Virginia’s clean energy goals, the Hampton Roads economy is seeing millions of dollars of investment and thousands of jobs. We should be doing more, not less, to support this thriving industry and to ensure the next generation of clean energy workers is ready to power our future. Youngkin’s veto unfortunately makes that goal that much harder.”

Senator Jeremy McPike (D-Prince William) carried a bill this year to protect Virginians from the harmful forever chemical PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), which are known to lead to a number of harmful health outcomes, including cancer, liver and thyroid issues, high blood pressure and reproductive harm. This bill passed unanimously in the Senate and with broad bipartisan support in the House.

“In killing this legislation, Governor Youngkin is putting the interests of big corporate polluters above you and your family’s health,” said Senator Jeremy McPike. “We all deserve clean drinking water, and we must do everything we can to keep harmful forever chemicals out of our water supply. While I’m incredibly disappointed in the Governor’s actions, I will keep fighting to protect our waterways from toxic pollution.”

Senator Mamie Locke (D-Hampton) successfully carried legislation to find new ways to cut energy costs for low-income Virginians who often face disproportionately higher electric bills. This legislation also passed out of the Senate unanimously and saw broad bipartisan buy-in in the House.

“Governor Youngkin took away one of our best tools to cut energy costs when he illegally took Virginia out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, and now he’s killed another pathway to help Virginians in need cut their electric bills,” said Senator Mamie Locke. “It’s clear that this Governor cares more about playing politics than actually doing anything to cut energy costs for everyday Virginians. Because of his actions, Virginians will continue to struggle and we’ll be further behind in achieving a clean and affordable energy future.”

Measures that Youngkin killed include:

• HB 1616 (Feggans) – a bill to expand workforce training and professional development for the offshore wind industry.

• HB 1791 (Sullivan) – would create the Electric Vehicle Rural Infrastructure Program and Fund to expand EV charging in rural and low-income areas.

• HB 1935 (LeVere Bolling) and SB 777 (Locke) – establishes a Low-Income Energy Efficiency and Weatherization Task Force to develop pathways to cutting home energy costs for needy Virginians.

• HB 2037 (Bulova) – would allow localities to require developments with large parking lots to include solar canopies.

• HB 2356 (Mundon King) and SB 853 (Rouse) – requires clean energy companies to pay workers a prevailing wage and include apprenticeships.

• SB 1319 (McPike) – would protect clean water from industrial PFAS contamination.

About us:
The Virginia League of Conservation Voters serves as the political voice of the state’s conservation community, working to make sure Virginia’s elected officials recognize that our natural heritage is an environmental and economic treasure for all. Virginia LCV works with conservation leaders across Virginia and strives for a conservation majority in state government. We secure good public policies on the state level and hold public officials accountable for their positions on environmental issues. For more information, visit www.valcv.org.

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For Immediate Release:
Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025

Contact:
Lee Francis | Chief Program and Communications Officer
Virginia League of Conservation Voters
(804) 225-1902 | lfrancis@valcv.org

Both U.S. Senators, three Representatives earn perfect, 100% marks

RICHMOND – Today, the Virginia League of Conservation Voters released the Virginia delegation’s scores for the League of Conservation Voters’ 2024 National Environmental Scorecard, highlighting the voting records of our state’s members of Congress on pressing environmental, climate and democracy issues.

Since 1970, LCV’s Scorecard has been the primary yardstick for evaluating the environmental records of members of Congress. It is available for download here and online at scorecard.lcv.org.

The 2024 Scorecard shows that some of a majority of Virginia’s delegation stood up for our democracy and environmental protections when these issues were under attack. For the second year in a row, extreme members in the House of Representatives embraced chaos. They pushed messaging bills and radical amendments on government funding that were so harmful their own leadership pulled them on more than one occasion — resulting in the least productive Congress in recent history.

“In the face of an unprecedented barrage of attacks on our environment and our democracy most of Virginia’s congressional delegation did the right thing. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like these attacks are going to let up anytime soon. Now more than ever, we will need these members to continue to stand strong as Trump and his extreme allies try to gut our nation’s bedrock environmental laws and institutions,” said Michael Town, executive director of the Virginia League of Conservation Voters.

“2024 saw the most extreme members of the House Republicans again manufacturing wasteful, cruel chaos at the expense of the health and safety of our environment, our democracy, and our economy,” said LCV Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Tiernan Sittenfeld. “Unfortunately we must look at 2024’s mostly fruitless attempts to provide more giveaways to Big Oil and other polluters while leaving communities across the country less safe as a trial run for what Trump and his captured Congressional leadership will do in 2025.”

For the third year, the 2024 Scorecard highlights the leadership of the Tri-Caucus. Leadership of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC), Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), and Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) scored an average of 97% on the 2024 Scorecard. These champions in Congress led and supported many of the climate, conservation, environmental justice, and equitable democracy bills and initiatives in 2024, in addition to helping to educate constituents and connect communities to the transformational investments within the affordable clean energy plan.

This year, the 2024 Scorecard includes eight Senate votes, half of which were confirmations of qualified, diverse judges and other nominees and half were attacks on environmental protections. In the House, LCV scored 33 votes, 14 of which were poison pill policy amendments on government funding bills or the extreme underlying bills themselves, two of which were using or further weaponizing the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to block environmental safeguards, and the rest undermined programs and laws that advance a safe climate, environment, and democracy.

The full delegation’s scores for 2024 are:

U.S. Senate

 

U.S. House of Representatives

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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To: Interested parties
From: Lee Francis, Virginia League of Conservation Voters
Re: Virginia Clean Economy Act Truth Vs. Fiction
Date: Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025

 

On Monday, Jan. 13, Governor Youngkin issued his “State of the Commonwealth,” where he made false claims about the Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA), our state’s blueprint to reach 100% clean electricity generation by mid-century. 

Passed in 2020, the VCEA is a flexible framework that directs our big electric utilities to invest in clean, renewable and carbon-free energy generation, alongside energy efficiency and energy storage, while also expanding distributed generation sources like rooftop solar, and bringing more competition to our energy marketplace – all while gradually phasing out fossil fuel generation. From its outset the VCEA prioritized reliability and also kept the door open to new energy technologies – necessary components in a law intended to guide energy decision-making for three decades – while also ensuring energy needs are being met in the most cost-effective way. 

As legislative attacks continue at the General Assembly seeking a wholesale repeal of the VCEA or to undermine key components of the Act, Youngkin’s allies at the General Assembly will continue to spread misinformation and disinformation – efforts likely to continue after session in the lead-up to the 2025 elections. 

Please keep the following facts in mind when reporting on this topic: 

Claim: The Virginia Clean Economy Act, passed in 2020, simply is not working.

Truth: After the VCEA was passed, clean energy jobs in Virginia grew more than 3.5 times faster than overall employment in Virginia. In 2022, there were 113,565 jobs in clean energy in Virginia, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Made possible by the VCEA, the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project alone accounts for nearly 1,000 jobs and $143 million in annual economic output. When complete, CVOW will generate enough clean energy to power 660,000 homes. 

While it is driving clean energy jobs and investment, the long-term success or failure of the VCEA will hinge on how well it is implemented and whether decision-makers and regulators hold our utilities accountable to meeting its benchmarks. Dominion Energy, for example, is already not meeting the VCEA’s energy efficiency resource standard. 

Claim: Today, Virginia’s demand for power is growing because Virginia is now growing rapidly.

Virginia’s annual population growth rate hasn’t exceeded 1% since 2012. See the below chart with U.S. Census Bureau Data going back to 2020:

Virginia Population Growth 2020-2024 (U.S. Census Bureau)
Year	Population	Growth Rate
2024	8,811,195	.88%
2023	8,734,685	.59%
2022	8,683,414	.28%
2021	8,658,910	.25%
2020	8,637,615	.95%

So Virginia’s human population isn’t driving energy demand – at least not at anywhere near the scale that Youngkin claims. 

It’s true that demand projections are higher than when the VCEA passed, but that’s because of out-of-control energy demand from the data center industry – the same sector that Youngkin applauds and encourages in his State of the Commonwealth while discouraging legislative action to secure a more responsible and sustainable industry. 

This demand would exist with or without the VCEA, as would issues around transmission and siting. But it’s a myth to assume that we can’t meet rising demand with clean generation – it’s been done before. And it’s irresponsible policy to increase energy costs on Virginia ratepayers in order to subsidize and meet the demands of one of the wealthiest industries in the world – an industry that already pays no sales or use taxes in Virginia – as Youngkin has proposed by opposing any legislative intervention. 

Claim: [The VCEA] is driving up rates, driving down reliability, and constricting our economic growth.

Virginia’s economy has grown while the VCEA has been law. Our GDP increased by nearly 11 percent from 2020 – the year the VCEA was passed – to 2023, moving from $533.8B to $590.8B. 

The largest driver of bill increases in Virginia in recent years has been from the cost of volatile fossil fuels, costs that our utilities recover and then some, which spiked in 2022 due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The legislature recognized this issue in 2023 when they passed utility rate reform (SB 1265 and HB 1770) – legislation that the Youngkin Administration helped negotiate. These reforms included ordering the State Corporation Commission to review rates for big electric utilities every two years instead of three, and authorizing the SCC to roll Rate Adjustment Clauses, or RACs, into base rates, while amortizing fuel costs. This legislation also shifted from a peer group review model to determine utilities’ profit margins to a performance based model, cut allowable overearnings in half and gave the SCC more authority to cut rates even further.

These protections, paired with consumer protections already built into the VCEA that cap how much ratepayers can be charged and the law’s energy efficiency measures, serve as a hedge against bill spikes.

Household energy costs would be astronomically higher to double our electric generation, and build more natural gas generation,“lots of it,” as Youngkin has proposed, alongside other speculative, unproven and costly technology. According to a report by the International Energy Agency, utility-scale solar projects now cost an average of around $40 per megawatt hour, roughly half the price of coal or natural gas projects. 

Investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency (using less energy), are our best hedge against higher electric bills while meeting energy demands. 

About us:
The Virginia League of Conservation Voters serves as the political voice of the state’s conservation community, working to make sure Virginia’s elected officials recognize that our natural heritage is an environmental and economic treasure for all. Virginia LCV works with conservation leaders across Virginia and strives for a conservation majority in state government. We secure good public policies on the state level and hold public officials accountable for their positions on environmental issues. For more information, visit www.valcv.org.

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For Immediate Release:
Monday, Jan. 6, 2025

Media Contact:
Lee Francis | Deputy Director
Virginia League of Conservation Voters
434-989-3197 | lfrancis@valcv.org

 

RICHMOND – Today, the Biden Administration announced it would be taking action to permanently protect the East Coast’s Outer Continental Shelf from oil and gas exploration, including areas off Virginia’s coast. Exerting authority under Section 12(a) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, Biden also moved to protect shelf areas off the West Coast, the eastern Gulf of Mexico and additional portions of the Northern Bering Sea in Alaska.

In response to this ruling Michael Town, Executive Director of the Virginia League of Conservation Voters, issued the following statement:

“Offshore drilling poses a huge threat to our environment, public health, coastal communities and their economies, fisheries, and vital marine ecosystems. Today’s action from the Biden Administration will help ensure the long-term protection of communities in Virginia that would otherwise be in harm’s way from an incoming Administration that has consistently put polluters’ interests and profits above our wellbeing. Virginia’s energy future is clean, and drilling off our coast has no place in an economy that’s rapidly shifting away from harmful fossil fuels. We applaud this action from President Biden and hope he will do everything in his power to safeguard our environment before the end of his term.”

 

About us:
The Virginia League of Conservation Voters serves as the political voice of the state’s conservation community, working to make sure Virginia’s elected officials recognize that our natural heritage is an environmental and economic treasure for all. Virginia LCV works with conservation leaders across Virginia and strives for a conservation majority in state government. We secure good public policies on the state level and hold public officials accountable for their positions on environmental issues. For more information, visit www.valcv.org.

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For Immediate Release:
Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024

Media Contact:
Lee Francis | Deputy Director
Virginia League of Conservation Voters
434-989-3197 | lfrancis@valcv.org

Comprehensive report cites pro-polluter appointments and attacks on environmental safeguards, Virginia’s democracy

 

RICHMOND – Today, the Virginia League of Conservation Voters released its 2024 Gubernatorial Scorecard ranking Governor Youngkin based on his Administration’s actions on environmental and democracy issues.

Download the Full Scorecard Here

The Scorecard’s overall grade of “F” is based on Youngkin’s environmental agenda (D), executive actions (F), legislative actions (D-) and overall governance (F).

“Make no mistake about it: Glenn Youngkin is failing Virginia. He’s put polluters in charge, undermined our democracy, and taken away critical tools to protect Virginians from pollution. The end result is an environment that’s less clean and more communities left in harm’s way,” said Michael Town, executive director of the Virginia League of Conservation Voters. “The coming year’s elections will determine whether Virginia gets back on track securing a clean energy future or continues to backslide. We’ll be doing everything we can in 2025 to secure a Conservation Majority and get Virginia back on the path to progress.”

Highlights from the report include:

• Polluter appointments to the State Air Pollution Control Board and Environmental Justice Advisory Council;

• Joining the pro-fossil fuel “Governors’ Coalition for Energy Choice” and criticizing unprecedented federal investments in climate action and clean energy programs;

• The Administration’s back-door repeal of Virginia’s Advanced Clean Cars Standards;

• Sweeping voter roll purges weeks before an election, and the lowest rate of voting rights restorations from any Administration in the past decade;

• A record number of gubernatorial vetoes and a number of harmful amendments to legislation and the budget;

• A blatant tilt to the far-right echoing the Trump campaign’s anti-immigrant sentiments and false claims of voter fraud.

“Time after time, this Administration has put divisive politics ahead of what’s right for Virginia. This has translated into dirtier air, fewer tools to combat the climate crisis, and more of us in harm’s way,” said Virginia Senator Mamie Locke, a multi-time Virginia LCV Legislative Hero and Chair of the Senate Rules Committee. “With Donald Trump headed back to the White House, we need to be doing more – not less – to advance a healthy environment and a strong democracy. Virginia LCV’s Scorecard is a vital tool in holding this Administration accountable and showing what’s at stake in 2025, a critical election year in Virginia.”

“This Administration has consistently shown it cares more about getting soundbites on Fox News than finding common ground with us in the legislature. Virginia LCV’s Scorecard shows how Youngkin’s Corporate-CEO mindset is leading to missed opportunities to cut pollution, clean up our waterways, and safeguard our environment – all while undermining the laws passed by this General Assembly,” said Delegate Alfonso Lopez, Chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture Chesapeake and Natural Resources and a Career Legislative Hero. “While Youngkin works to elevate his own political profile, we will be working to clean up the Chesapeake Bay, create even more clean energy jobs, and preserve our natural resources.”

Virginia LCV published its first Gubernatorial Scorecard in 2022 alongside its General Assembly Scorecard, which has been published every year since the organization’s founding in 2000. Both Virginia LCV’s legislative and gubernatorial scorecards are the only comprehensive tools available for Virginians to gauge whether their elected officials are prioritizing a healthy environment and a strong democracy.

About us:
The Virginia League of Conservation Voters serves as the political voice of the state’s conservation community, working to make sure Virginia’s elected officials recognize that our natural heritage is an environmental and economic treasure for all. Virginia LCV works with conservation leaders across Virginia and strives for a conservation majority in state government. We secure good public policies on the state level and hold public officials accountable for their positions on environmental issues. For more information, visit www.valcv.org.

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