Environment Washington legislative scorecard highlights bi-partisan support for environment, public health

Environment Washington

Seattle, WA – Environment Washington today released its 2018 Legislative Scorecard tracking how state representatives and senators voted on bills that could protect our air, water, and health. The Washington State Senate scored 73 percent, and the Washington State House of Representatives had a score of 69 percent.

“There is strong, bi-partisan support for environmental policies in Washington state, but we still have work to do,” said Bruce Speight, Environment Washington Director. “The good news is that 73 legislators from the two branches voted with us 100% of the time, which means our planet and our families are represented by a lot of real environmental champs. The bad news is that 50 legislators voted against the environment more than half of the time.”

House Democrats scored 99 percent while House Republicans scored 37 percent. Senate Democrats scored 96 percent while Senate Republicans scored 40 percent. 47 state representatives and 26 senators scored 100%.

“We applaud the legislators who voted with us 100% of the time, including State Senators Joe Fain, Kevin Ranker, and Guy Palumbo,” continued Speight.

There was broad bi-partisan support for policies that increase building energy efficiency, incentivize electric car adoption, ban invasive Atlantic salmon, strengthen oil transportation safety, and ban toxic chemicals in food packaging and firefighting foam.

“With 50 legislators scoring less than 50 percent, it’s obvious we have a lot more work to do to make sure our elected officials represent the majority of Washingtonians who want to see a cleaner, greener, healthier planet for future generations,” concluded Speight. “We are eager to work with both parties to advance policies that protect our air, water and open spaces in Washington.”

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Environment Washington is a statewide, membership-based environmental advocacy organization. www.environmentwashington.org.