Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania Endorses Zidek and Madden for Delco Council Endorsement a first of its kind for Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania
Press Release •
Brian Zidek and Kevin Madden are proud to announce that the Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania has endorsed their campaigns for County Council. This marks the first time that Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania has endorsed County Council candidates in Delco.
Environmental Groups Endorse Judge Ceisler and Judge Fizzano Cannon for Commonwealth Court
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Harrisburg – Today, Judge Ellen Ceisler (D) and Judge Christine Fizzano Cannon (R) earned endorsements from Sierra Club PA and Conservation Voters of PA. The two statewide environmental organizations chose to endorse Ceisler and Fizzano Cannon for seats on the Commonwealth Court, often the first court of appeals for issues impacting air, water, and public health. Sitting Supreme Court Justice Debra Todd also earned endorsement from Conservation Voters of PA for retention.
“Impact Fee” Now a “Severance Tax” in Name Only
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Harrisburg, PA – The Pennsylvania State House Energy and Environmental Resources Committee Tuesday approved an amendment gutting Representative Kate Harper’s bill proposing a modest severance tax. The amended bill now strikes any semblance of a real severance tax on natural gas and instead renames the existing “impact fee” a “severance tax” in an act of legislative deception.
“This move shows the blatant actions representatives now take to serve the natural gas industry rather than the people of Pennsylvania, hiding behind semantics and giving the industry another pass,” said PennFuture President and CEO Larry Schweiger.
Conservation Voters of PA Executive Director Josh McNeil said, "George Orwell would have recognized the actions of this committee today. It's funny that what they called 'the Maher amendment,' the rest of the world calls 'a blatant attempt to mislead the public and avoid doing the right thing for Pennsylvania.'"
LEAGUE OF CONSERVATION VOTERS RELEASES 2016 NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL SCORECARD
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Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania and the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) today unveiled the scores of the Pennsylvania delegation in LCV’s new 2016 National Environmental Scorecard. The Scorecard includes 17 Senate votes and 38 House votes. 38 votes sets a new record as the most votes ever scored in the House, reflecting the fact that, under Speaker Paul Ryan, the current U.S. House remains the most anti-environmental in history. This is in direct contrast to President Obama who led the way on combating climate change and protecting our environment. The Scorecard is available in both English and Spanish at scorecard.lcv.org.
The 2016 Scorecard scores votes cast during the second session of the 114th Congress. The average House Republican score for 2016 was five percent, while the average House Democrat score was 94 percent.
CONSERVATION VOTERS OF PENNSYLVANIA, PENNFUTURE ANNOUNCE PARTNERSHIP
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HARRISBURG, PA - January 10, 2017 – Two of the state’s leading environmental organizations, PennFuture and Conservation Voters of PA, announced the formation of a strategic alliance enhancing the groups’ power to respond to today’s unprecedented anti-environmental political climate at the federal and state levels.
By combining the policy, advocacy and legal resources of PennFuture with the political strength and skill of Conservation Voters of PA, the partnership expands the ability of both organizations to promote policies that advance clean energy and protect natural resources. Together, the groups will bring expanded capacity to hold legislators accountable, mobilize voters, and shine a spotlight on candidates’ records on clean air, water and energy issues.
8,467 PENNSYLVANIANS TELL THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION TO REJECT PERMITS TO THE PENNEAST PIPELINE
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PHILADELPHIA, PA - On the heels of a new report issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency expressing “significant concerns” about the proposed PennEast pipeline’s environmental impact, today a coalition of eight national and state organizations submitted comments signed by 8,467 individuals to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) opposing the project.
Eighty-five percent of the PennEast pipeline is slated to cut through the Delaware River watershed, and could affect the drinking water of approximately 8 million people in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. Under the Clean Water Act the DEP has the authority to analyze all proposed energy infrastructure to ensure Pennsylvania’s waterways are protected, and has twice asked for public comment on its water quality certification permitting process. National organizations CREDO, Daily Kos, and the League of Conservation Voters joined with state allies Clean Air Council, Clean Water Action, Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania, PennFuture, and Sierra Club of Pennsylvania to mobilize their members during this latest public comment period.