Huntington Local

This statement arrived yesterday from the office of Steve Israel, a Democrat who represents the Huntington area in Congress:

Huntington, NY— Today the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) awarded Congressman Steve Israel with a 100% rating for his environmental record in Congress. Israel was one of three elected officials in New York to receive a perfect rating on the LCV’s national environmental scorecard for the first session of the 110th Congress which can be accessed online at http://www.lcv.org/scorecard/.

“I’m honored by this recognition of my efforts to fight for the environment, protect Long Island Sound and achieve energy independence” said Congressman Israel. “These priorities are critical to Long Island’s economic competitiveness and our nation’s security.”

Each year, LCV selects key votes in both the House of Representatives and the Senate and scores every member of Congress on these votes. The report card measured a number of topics including Congressional commitment to increasing renewable energy sources, decreasing global warming and pollution, implementing fuel efficiency standards and rejecting dangerous environmental policies such as offshore drilling.

Congressman Israel has been named Environmentalist of the Year for 2007 by the Long Island Sierra Club and received the 2007 Environmental Equinox Award from Citizens Campaign for the Environment. As a member of the House Appropriations Committee, he secured $5 million in FY2008 for Long Island restoration and conservation programs. As the Co-Chair of the Long Island Sound Caucus, he has successfully fought for more than $40 million in funding for the restoration of Long Island Sound since coming to Congress. Congressman Israel co- authored the Long Island Sound Stewardship Act – legislation signed into law in 2006 that authorizes a $25 million per year stewardship initiative to protect and preserve the Sound’s shorelines and open spaces. As a new member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water, Congressman Israel fought to increase the federal energy efficiency and renewable energy budget to $1.7 billion, rejecting the President’s $238 million cut and adding $248 million above 2007 funding levels.