FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
News from the Sierra Club
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
CONTACT:
Mike Berkowitz, 248-345-9808, mike.berkowitz@sierraclub.org
Sierra Club Releases First-Ever Report On Governor Snyder’s Performance
Gov. Snyder Gets a Failing Grade on Energy, Environment, Good Government Policies
MICHIGAN — The Sierra Club Michigan Chapter today released its first-ever gubernatorial Scorecard, which evaluates Rick Snyder’s performance on energy, environment, good government and related issues. Michigan’s chief executive got a failing grade, scoring 22% on the most important environmental actions taken during his first three years in office. The full scorecard is available here.
“Nearly 80 percent of decisions made by Gov. Snyder in our Scorecard contribute toward polluting our water, air, land and undermining public health and good government. These are the wrong priorities for residents of the Great Lakes State,” said Mike Berkowitz, Legislative and Political Director of the Sierra Club Michigan Chapter.
“Governor Snyder’s biggest environmental accomplishment over the past three years was establishing a regional transportation authority for southeast Michigan,” said Richard Barron, chair of Sierra Club’s Political Committee.
“When Gov. Snyder campaigned for election there was optimism that as governor of the Great Lakes State he would be a leader on clean energy, pollution protection, and water quality,” said Barron. “With the exception of transportation policy there’s been no substantive leadership on these issues, and in a majority of cases Michigan has moved backwards.”
The Scorecard release comes as Gov. Snyder prepares his 2014 State of the State address. It is intended to provide a substantive, detailed guide to his record on issues important to Sierra Club members and all residents of the Great Lakes State.
“Michigan used to be a leader in making conservation a top priority under Republican Governors such as Bill Milliken, but not anymore,” said James D’Amour, the Sierra Club Michigan Chapter’s Political Committee Vice Chair. D’Amour described Governor Snyder’s environmental record as “disappointing and disheartening for Republicans like me who care about clean air and water.”
The Scorecard includes 36 key decisions made by Gov. Snyder on environmental issues including 29 bills signed into law, two bills vetoed, and five administrative actions regarding permits and DEQ/DNR programs. Governor Snyder signed 21 bills into law that were direct attacks on environmental protections. He signed 6 bills designed to protect the environment and also vetoed one bill attacking environmental protections. He signed four bills into law and vetoed 1 that were direct attacks on our democracy. The five administrative actions weakened access to clean air, water and land.
The Sierra Club is the nation’s largest grassroots environmental organization, with over 150,000 members and supporters in Michigan.
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