ConservAmerica November Newsletter

Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) receives his Congressional Champion Award at ConservAmerica’s Annual Awards Dinner. Also pictured: Jeff Kupfer, president, ConservAmerica (L) and Bruce Harris, Walmart (R). For more photos from the awards dinner, click here.

The holiday season is officially upon us! As the year comes to a close, it’s a race to the finish for Congress with the ever-looming funding bills still top of order. We joined more than 70 organizations this week in sending a letter to House and Senate appropriators advocating for clean energy innovation programs at DOE as they work through the funding bills. Though budgets are the priority, permitting reform is also still a whisper in the background according to E&E’s list of Congressional To-Do’s; we’re realistic but we remain hopeful.

ConservAmerica held its annual reception to honor members of the Congressional Roosevelt Conservation Caucus on November 14 in Washington, DC. This year’s recipients of the Congressional Champions Award are Senator John Barrasso of Wyoming, Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Rep. Garret Graves of Louisiana’s 6th District, and Rep. John Curtis of Utah’s 3rd District. The award recognizes members for their commitment to advocating for innovative and commonsense environmental, energy, and conservation policies. Thank you to our many generous sponsors for making the reception possible.

Speaking of the Roosevelt Conservation Caucus, ConservAmerica coauthored an op-ed this month with caucus member Rep. David Valadao on the impacts of offshore leasing on California. We also offered commentary on the SEC’s climate disclosure rule and on the need for the Republican presidential candidates to offer a strong environmental agenda.

One Republican focused on climate is Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon, Chair of the Western Governors’ Association (WGA). The WGA held its annual winter meeting earlier this month with the approval of four policy resolutions including improving cross-boundary management of national forests and rangelands and increasing voluntary and proactive species management. Gordon has made making Wyoming "carbon negative" a priority since 2018 and decarbonizing the West a primary focus of his WGA chairmanship.

We’ll wrap things up by reminding you to register for our December 6 webinar on competitive electricity markets. We’ve got a great panel lined up for a conversation on the benefits of competition and steps state policymakers can take to improve reliability, accountability, and affordability by embracing free-market reforms that prioritize consumer preferences. Hope to see you there!

November Highlights

Commentary: Offshore leasing's impact on California

by ConservAmerica President Jeff Kupfer and Congressman David Valadao (R-CA)

There’s no question that America’s energy landscape is rapidly evolving. But even as the shift toward more renewable energy gains momentum, we can’t lose sight of the pressing need for our existing sources of energy — not just to fuel our cars or to keep the heat running in our homes, but for much, much more.

Commentary: GOP presidential candidates: The environment is also a conservative issue

By Quill Robinson and Jeff Kupfer

At the last two Republican presidential debates, each GOP hopeful made the case that he or she had the right solutions to the issues Americans care about most.

At the most recent debate, they discussed the Israeli response to the Hamas atrocities, traded barbs over America’s involvement in Ukraine, argued about how to fix social security and health care and described how they would address pocketbook issues.

Commentary: SEC Climate Shaming Rule Could Create Real Harm

By Todd Johnston

October is upon us. And in addition to the fall weather, the business community is also anxiously awaiting the release of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) climate-disclosure rule, whose deadline was pushed back to this fall.

Since the rule’s introduction in March 2022, there has been much speculation among stakeholders in the political, legal, and business community on what the final rule will entail.

Webinar Replay: Strategies for Effective Wildfire Management

On Tuesday, October 31, ConservAmerica and the Property and Environment Research Center (PERC) held a webinar on Strategies for Effective Wildfire Management. Click through to watch the video replay.

Western Governors' Association Holds Annual Winter Meeting

The Western Governors' Association wrapped up its annual winter meeting in Jackson, Wyoming, in early November with the approval of four policy resolutions focused on strengthening the state-federal relationship, improving cross-boundary management of national forests and rangelands, increasing voluntary and proactive species management and combating the opioid crisis.

Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon, Chair of the WGA, opened the first day of the three-day gathering by highlighting the West's shared values and the governors' ability to work together to meet the region's evolving challenges.

With your help, we can continue to provide leadership on environmental and conservation issues based on the principles of respect for free markets, property rights, and personal responsibility.

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