**Full Scorecard Available Here**
Santa Fe, N.M. – Today, Conservation Voters New Mexico (CVNM) released the statewide Conservation Scorecard for the 2017 legislative session. In the Scorecard, CVNM reports the votes cast on the most critical issues affecting our air, land, water, health and communities during the 2017 regular legislative session.
The average conservation score earned in the Senate in the 2017 Scorecard is 68%. The average conservation score earned in the House of Representatives in the 2017 Scorecard is 67%. An improvement of 12% in the Senate and 22% in the House. We are happy to report that the people Conservation Voters New Mexico Action Fund endorsed delivered exceptional results in the 2017 session.
“We were excited to see the extremely strong performance of so many new and returning members of the legislature in 2017. The knowledge, values and leadership are all in place to pass strong conservation legislation through both houses of the legislature,” says Ben Shelton, Political and Legislative Director, Conservation Voters New Mexico. “The onus falls on Governor Susana Martinez to work with pro-conservation leadership in the legislature to begin to repair her legacy in her last year in office.”
The 2017 Scorecard includes votes on 29 Senate and 26 House pieces of legislation on critical issues that New Mexico’s decision-makers faced in the 2017 legislative session. This legislation touched on a wide variety of important environmental and conservation topics including a nation-leading Renewable Energy Standard, banning coyote killing contests, wildlife trafficking, and efforts to transfer federal public lands to the state.
In New Mexico, the 2016 election was defined by promise. Exciting young progressive legislators like Representatives Angelica Rubio, Nathan Small, and Jeff Steinborn showed that Doña Ana County is becoming one of the most important areas in the state politically. Newcomer Representatives Daymon Ely and Derrick Lente offered a new vision for the central part of the state. And these new legislators along with many others added additional conservation strength with scores above 90% and many scoring 100%.
A key to this trend was new House and Senate leadership, House Speaker Brian Egolf and Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth. Their hard work behind the scenes helped to secure pro-conservation results demonstrated by the impressive scores from the 2017 legislature.
Our 2017 Scorecard offers insight into the records of each of our state legislators. In addition, you will find detailed descriptions of each piece of legislation CVNM scored along with the pro-conservation vote (yay or nay.) Please review the detailed scorecard for additional reporting opportunities.
CVNM Political and Legislative Director Ben Shelton is available to discuss the 2017 Scorecard in more depth and answer any questions you may have about legislation or the process by which the scores are calculated.
CVNM is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization connecting the people of New Mexico to their political power to protect our air, land, and water for a healthy Land of Enchantment. CVNM does this by mobilizing voters, helping candidates win elections, holding elected officials accountable, and advancing responsible public policies.
