.Delegate Talmadge Branch >> Environmental Scores

Press Release

Maryland's State Legislators Shift in Favor of Environment

Conservation Scores are up for State Legislature in 2007; Trends Show
Significant Improvement in House of Delegates, Strong Performance by
"Freshmen," and Bi-Partisan Support

Annapolis, MD. Today the Maryland League of Conservation Voters released its
now-annual legislative scorecard. The 2007 Maryland General Assembly
Scorecard grades each member of the state legislature on their key
environmental votes for the 2007 legislative session.

Overall, scores went up in 2007 compared to last year's scorecard. The
average score for the Senate was 69 percent, while the average for the House
of Delegates was an impressive 80 percent.

A total of sixty legislators scored a perfect 100 percent and no legislators
scored a 0 percent for the first time since 1982. Eight legislators earned
scores below 20 percent.

"We believe the high -- and greatly improved -- scores coming out of this
year's legislative session show the importance of the environment as an
issue for legislators and the public," said Executive Director Cindy
Schwartz.

"We're very proud of the House of Delegates -- which has an average score
of 80 percent -- up from 67% last year. This surely is a reflection of the
strong leadership of Speaker Mike Busch who can boast of his own perfect 100
percent score."

"We are also happy to note that our 'Fabulous Freshmen' stood out with
above-average scores. This trend, combined with a marked improvement overall
particularly for Republican Senators and Delegates is surely a good sign for
the future of the environment in our state."

The General Assembly Scorecard measures floor and committee votes on a wide
range of important conservation issues including growth, the Chesapeake Bay,
and global warming. Notable bills included in the 2007 General Assembly
Scorecard are: the Clean Cars Act, which cleans up pollution that damages
our water, endangers our health, and contributes to global warming; and the
Global Warming Solutions Act, which would have made Maryland a leader in the
fight against global warming by significantly reducing greenhouse gas
emissions.

Trends and Highlights in the 2007 General Assembly Scorecard

* Legislators that were endorsed by the Maryland LCV in the 2006
elections scored an average of 30 points higher than their non-endorsed
counterparts. (See attached charts.)
* The House of Delegates average score is up 13 points from 2006.
House Republicans have nearly doubled their average score (26 percent in
2006 to 50 percent in 2007)
* The Senate average score is up 10 points from 2006. Senate
Republicans have nearly tripled their average score (13 percent to 38
percent).
* By region, most Senate averages have gone up. Southern Maryland went
from 64 percent to an all-time high of 91 percent. Western Maryland,
Harford County, and the Eastern Shore are also at all-time highs. (See
attached charts.)
* Every region in the House of Delegates went up from 2006. All are at
all-time highs (except Baltimore City which is just 2 percent below its
highest).

Since many important decisions are made in legislative committees, the
General Assembly Scorecard includes committee votes as well as floor
votes-each committee vote is counted the same as a floor vote. This year,
several bills addressing energy efficiency issues that were defeated in
committee are included in this Scorecard, and thus highlight the importance
of scoring these votes.

"The high conservation scores we saw this year are an encouraging sign.
They reflect heightened public awareness of environmental issues, especially
growth, the Bay, and global warming. Now, with a serious budget deficit
looming, we face significant challenges. The difficult budget decisions will
surely be a test of legislators' mettle when it comes to the environment,"
concluded Ms. Schwartz.

The Legislative Scorecard is based on public information from Maryland
General Assembly records. With input from leaders of Maryland's conservation
community, votes included are on bills, resolutions, appointments,
amendments and committee votes considered important because of their
potential impact on the state's environment.

These particular votes, chosen by the Maryland League of Conservation
Voters' Board of Directors in conjunction with the staff of Environment

Maryland, offered legislators clear choices on a range of conservation
issues. The full scorecard is available online at www.mdlcv.org.

Highest Scores

Senate (100%): Britt, Brochin, Conway, Exum, Frosh, Lenett, Middleton,
Pinsky, Raskin, Rosapepe, Zirkin

House (100%): Ali, Barkley, Barnes, Beidle, Bobo, Branch, Bronrott, Busch,
Cane, Cardin, Carter, G. Clagett, V. Clagett, Conaway, Conway, Davis,
Dumais, Frush, Gaines, Griffith, Gutierrez, Guzzone, Hammen, Haynes, Healey,
Heller, Hixson, Holmes, Hubbard, James, Jones, Lafferty, Lawton, Lee, Levi,
Manno, McIntosh, Montgomery, Morhaim, Niemann, Proctor, Ramirez, Robinson,
Rosenberg, Sophocleus, Stein, Stukes, Valderrama, Waldstreicher

Lowest Scores (below 20%)

Senate (below 20%): Greenip, Harris, Hooper, Kittleman, Mooney

House (below 20%): Bates, Miller, Wood

Note: Freshmen are in italic

Averages

2007 05-06 03-04

Senate 69% 59% 68%
Republicans 38% 13% 18%
Democrats 82% 79% 90%

House 80% 67% 73%

Republicans 50% 26% 32%

Democrats 91% 85% 92%