League endorses candidates

The Nevada Conservation League released its full list of endorsements for this year’s election cycle. NCL released early endorsements back in March, which included Debbie Smith, Senate District 13, and Sheila Leslie, Senate District 15, both of whom were selected as Legislators of the Year by the NCL in 2011.

According to the NCL newsletter, “Each of these candidates either has a strong record on environmental issues or has proven through our interview process that they will place a high priority on protecting our state’s natural resources. These endorsements follow our early endorsements that were issued in March. Endorsements were not considered for candidates running unopposed.”

Several of the legislatures endorsed by NCL scored 100 percent on its 2011 scorecard, which graded each Nevada legislator for their commitment to environmental issues (“Nevada representatives get schooled,” Feb. 16). These include Assembly District 11 Olivia Diaz, Assembly District 3 Peggy Pierce, Assembly District 24 David Bobzien, Assembly District 31 Skip Daly, and Leslie.

Assembly District 30 candidate Lauren Scott expressed disappointment not to have NCL’s endorsement. On Scott’s Facebook page, she posted a link to her endorsement questionnaire and wrote, “The Nature Conservation League decided not to endorse my candidacy. … Apparently, using legislative mandates to force utility customers to pay higher energy costs (by expanding the RPS) and gutting tax revenues for local communities (by subsidizing green energy projects through tax incentives) is considered the best way to make Nevada a better place to live by some.” Scott is a member of the Nevada Conservancy and faces Democratic opponent Mike Sprinkle, who received NCL’s endorsement.

View the full list of NCL’s picks on the RN&R Green with NV blog at http://bit.ly/J5brf0.