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WESTPORT, Conn. As the first municipality in the state to ban plastic bags, Westport is an environmentally-friendly community. So are all three of the towns state legislators, according to a bipartisan environmental group that tracks lawmakers voting records.
State Sen. Toni Boucher, state Rep. Jonathan Steinberg and state Rep. Kim Fawcett, who represents a small portion of Westport, received scores of 100 percent on the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters 2012 Environmental Scorecard. These scores were based on how each legislator voted on environmental issues during the 2012 legislative session.
Protecting Connecticuts environment is one of my top priorities, Steinberg, a Democrat, said in a statement. Receiving a perfect rating from a great group like the League of Conservation Voters is truly humbling.
This year, the scorecard graded legislators' votes on 15 bills that came up during the session. According to the scorecard, all three legislators voted in favor of pro-environmental legislation. The scorecard shows five bills Steinberg and Fawcett, a Democrat, voted in favor of and seven bills Boucher, a Republican, voted in favor of.
In addition to 2012 scores, this years scorecard showed each lawmakers lifetime score. Steinberg, elected in 2010, earned 93 percent. Fawcett, who was first elected in 2006, received 91 percent. Boucher, first elected in 2008, earned 74 percent.
According to the league, environmental priorities are trending upward in the state legislature. On the 2011 Environmental Scorecard, the average score was 76 percent, compared with 91 percent in 2012. This year 53 more legislators received scores of 80 percent or higher than last year.
See the full scorecard and more information about the ranking systems at the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters website.
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