Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan received an overall grade of “Needs Improvement” on Tuesday in a report by the Maryland League of Conservation Voters, which said the governor could do more to protect the state’s natural resources and promote renewable energy.
The environmental advocacy organization said the governor sometimes fails to back his “lofty aspirational goals” of bipartisan cooperation and climate conservation with legislative action.
“His actions have not matched his words,” said Ed Hatcher, who chairs the group’s board of directors.
The league, which aims to hold elected officials accountable through its biennial scorecards, ranked Mr. Hogan in six categories: energy and climate change; transportation; administration and appointments; land preservation and program open space; water quality; and democracy.
Mr. Hogan received “mixed” scores in the categories of administration and appointments, and democracy. He received “needs improvement” grades for the energy and climate change, transportation and water quality categories.
The group assigned only one “excellent” score to Mr. Hogan, in Land Preservation and Program Open Space, for approving and funding land preservation programs.
“We appreciate the Maryland League of Conservation Voters and all the great work they do, but we wholeheartedly disagree with their assessment,” Mr. Hogan’s press office said in a statement emailed to the University of Maryland’s Capital News Service. “Since taking office, the Hogan administration has consistently supported efforts to improve air and water quality in our state and will continue to make it a focus going forward.”
Earlier this month, Mr. Hogan announced $65 million in proposals to protect Maryland’s natural resources while stimulating job growth, including initiatives to promote electric car use and jobs in clean energy industries.
But in May, the Republican governor vetoed the Clean Energy Jobs Act, a bill that would have increased the amount of energy Maryland gets from renewable sources such as wind and solar power to 25 percent by 2020.
League Executive Director Karla Raettig said Mr. Hogan’s agenda alone is insufficient to support Maryland’s environmental needs, and her organization supports state lawmakers’ plans to override his veto in this year’s legislative session.
“The clean energy programs within that agenda do not justify the veto of the Clean Energy Jobs Act,” she said. “They can work in harmony.”
President Trump and the new administration could threaten Maryland’s existing climate protections, she said, putting the state’s government on defense.
By working with Mr. Hogan, the group hopes to push back against Mr. Trump’s plans to curtail environmental regulations.
“We will not be able to rely on the federal administration to back up the environmental laws in Maryland,” Ms. Raettig said. “We are really depending on Governor Hogan to protect the Chesapeake Bay, our clean air, land and water.”
Ms. Raettig said leaders in the organization have met with Mr. Hogan’s deputy chief of staff, Jeannie Haddaway-Riccio, to find common ground with the governor on how to introduce and implement environmental policies in the future.
“They recognize that the environmental community and the administration need to work closer so that we can protect the values of Maryland,” Ms. Raettig said. “We hope to see him really step up in the coming years.”
⦁ This article is based in part on wire service reports.
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