Sierra Club's DC Council Scorecard, 2020-2025

Scorecard – Environmental Champions & Opponent – Methodology – Legislation Scored

How did your DC councilmembers vote on environment and climate issues? See how councilmembers acted on a range of policies from energy affordability to environmental justice between 2020 and 2025, and whether they were leaders for District residents and our climate.

Environmental Champions 

• Brianne Nadeau received bonus points for being the lead sponsor of the DC Bottle Bill.
• Charles Allen received bonus points for being the lead sponsor of the Healthy Homes Act.
• Janeese Lewis George received bonus points for being the lead sponsor of the Shine Safely Act.
• Robert White received bonus points for being the lead sponsor of the Greener Government Buildings Act.

Environmental Opponent

• Kenyan McDuffie earned points for co-sponsoring a small number of bills scored, but he lost an equal number of points for seeking to undermine two bills that were key Sierra Club legislative priorities, resulting in his score of 0%.

Methodology 

• Councilmembers were scored on actions they took to advance environmental and climate protections from 2020 to 2025. There were a total of 27 actions, but not all councilmembers were in office for all actions scored. If a councilmember was not in office for an action, they were not scored on it.
• Because the scorecard assesses actions through 2025, former Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie, who resigned in 2026, is included and Councilmember Doni Crawford, who was appointed in 2026, is not included.
• Scores are presented as a percentage of total points available that a councilmember earned.
• Actions scored include legislative votes, bill introductions, and signing letters to utility regulators and other officials regarding key environmental and climate priorities.
• Final passage votes were only scored for legislation with divided votes. If legislation passed unanimously, co-sponsorship (not the vote) for that legislation was scored.
• Each action was weighted with one, two, or three points. Actions on issues for which the Sierra Club had major campaigns are worth three points, actions for which Sierra Club was heavily involved are worth two points, and actions for which the Sierra Club was moderately involved are worth one point. 
• Lead sponsors of key Sierra Club legislative priorities were given additional points based on the weight of that item. These councilmembers are also recognized as Environmental Champions.
• Councilmembers who actively sought to undermine legislation on which the Sierra Club advocated, such as by seeking weakening amendments, were docked points based on that action’s weight. Any councilmember who sought to weaken key legislative priorities is designated an Environmental Opponent.

A Note on Our Scoring

• Our scoring system rewards leadership and taking stands when it was not easy to do so. Voting for a climate or environmental bill that passes unanimously is not as difficult as taking a stand on a divided vote, or as co-introducing legislation. Similarly, our system penalizes maneuvers that weaken or oppose climate or environmental progress.
• Our hope is that these scores highlight legislators who go the extra mile for climate and environmental policy, while also making it clear which legislators have taken on less leadership or have even actively worked against Sierra Club priorities.

Legislation Scored 

Clean Energy

✅ Clean Energy DC Building Code Act of 2021

• Requires newly constructed buildings to meet net zero energy standards and not burn fossil fuels
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 2 points: Allen, Nadeau, Henderson, Lewis George, Pinto

✅ Climate Commitment Act of 2021

• Codifies DC’s commitment to carbon neutrality by 2045 and requires DC government operations to be carbon neutral by 2040
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 2 points: Pinto, Allen, R. White, Nadeau, Lewis George, Henderson, Mendelson

✅ Greener Government Buildings Act of 2022

• Requires newly constructed DC government buildings to meet net zero energy standards and not burn fossil fuels
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 2 points: R. White, Allen, Lewis George, Nadeau, Pinto
• McDuffie sought amendments to weaken the bill and lost 2 points

❌ Local Solar Expansion Act of 2022

• Significantly increases subsidies for existing solar panels, raising utility bills
• Sierra Club opposed
• Councilmembers voting "no" are awarded 2 points: Lewis George

✅ Healthy Homes and Residential Electrification Amendment Act of 2024

• Creates a program to give low and moderate income DC families electrification and energy upgrades at no cost
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 3 points: Allen, Frumin, Pinto, Parker, Nadeau, R.White, Lewis George
• McDuffie sought an amendment to weaken the bill and lost 3 points

✅ 2023 Construction Codes Coordinating Board (CCCB) letter on all-electric commercial code

• Reminded body setting DC building code that current law requires all newly constructed buildings to be net zero by 2027
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-signers are awarded 1 point: Allen, Mendelson, Frumin, Henderson, Lewis George, Pinto, Nadeau, R. White, Parker, McDuffie

✅ 2024 Public Service Commission (PSC) letter on Project Pipes Phase 3

• Asked utility regulators to oppose Washington Gas proposal to charge DC residents $700 million for wasteful fossil fuel pipelines
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-signers are awarded 1 point: Allen, Mendelson, Nadeau, Pinto, Henderson, Frumin, Lewis George, R. White

✅ 2025 Public Service Commission (PSC) letter on District Safe

• Asked utility regulators to oppose new Washington Gas proposal to charge DC residents hundreds of millions of dollars for wasteful fossil fuel pipelines
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-signers are awarded 1 point: Allen, Lewis George, Nadeau, Pinto, Frumin, Henderson, Parker, R. White

✅ Shine Safely Act

• Would prohibit the sale of fluorescent lights, which contain the neurotoxin mercury, in favor LED lights, which use up to half as much electricity
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 2 points: Lewis George, Allen, Nadeau, Pinto

❌ Sensible Pool Building Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2025

• Would have allowed Ward 8 rec centers with pools to burn fossil fuels despite the health impacts of indoor fossil fuel combustion
• Sierra Club opposed
• Councilmembers voting "no" are awarded 1 point: Henderson, Lewis George, Mendelson, R. White, Allen, Bonds, Frumin

Zero Waste

✅ Zero Waste Omnibus Amendment Act of 2019

• Expanded recycling and composting programs and standardized recycling labeling
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 1 point: Nadeau, Allen, Mendelson, Bonds

✅ Bottle bill (Recycling Refund and Litter Reduction Amendment Act of 2025)

• Puts a refundable 10¢ deposit on beverage containers to boost recycling and reduce litter
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 3 points: Nadeau, Allen, Frumin, Bonds, R. White, Felder, Pinto, Lewis George, Henderson, Parker, Mendelson

Sustainable Transportation

✅ Electric Bicycle Rebate Program Amendment Act of 2023

• Created an e-bike rebate program providing up to $1,500 for a standard e-bike, depending on income
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 1 point: Allen, Frumin, McDuffie, Lewis George, Parker, Nadeau, R. White, Pinto

✅ Strengthening Traffic Enforcement, Education, and Responsibility (“STEER”) Act of 2023

• Empowers DC to sue out-of-state drivers with repeated safety violations that endangered people
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 1 point: Allen, Lewis George, Nadeau, Parker, Frumin, Henderson, McDuffie

✅ Public Life and Activity Zones Act (“PLAZA”) Act of 2023

• Creates pedestrian-priority street corridors by closing selected streets to car traffic for set time periods
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 1 point: Allen, Parker, Nadeau

Clean Water

✅ Accelerating a Lead-Free DC Amendment Act of 2025

• Creates a program for DC Water and the Department of Energy and Environment replace all lead water service lines by 2030
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 1 point: R. White, Allen, Nadeau, Frumin, Parker, and Lewis George, Pinto

✅ Lead-Free DC Omnibus Amendment Act of 2025

• Establishes workforce training, funding, and implementation policies to speed the replacement of lead pipes
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 1 point: Pinto, R. White, Henderson, Allen, Nadeau, Frumin, Parker, Lewis George

✅ District Waterways Management Authority Establishment Act of 2022

• Creates a District Waterways Management Authority and Commission to improve public access to DC's rivers
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 1 point: Allen, Pinto, Nadeau, T. White, McDuffie

Environmental Justice

✅ Environmental Justice Cumulative Impact Bill

• Establishes a compounding health impact review for environmentally harmful projects in overburdened communities
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 1 point: Parker, McDuffie, R. White

✅ Ivy City Resilience Hub Eminent Domain Authority Act of 2025

• Authorizes eminent domain to buy a toxic chemical plant in Ivy City and build a resilience hub on the site instead
• Sierra Club supported
• Co-sponsors are awarded 1 point: Parker, R. White

Democracy

✅ FY 2026 Local Budget Act - Henderson and Nadeau amendment to fund Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) 

• Provided funding to implement ranked choice voting, which voters approved by ballot initiative in 2024
• Sierra Club supported
• Councilmembers voting "yes" are awarded 1 point: Pinto, Henderson, Nadeau, Allen, Lewis George, Frumin, R. White, Parker

❌ Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) Implementation Clarification Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2025

• Would have prevented implementation of ranked choice voting for 2026 election (Councilmember Bonds' legislation to delay RCV)
• Sierra Club opposed
• Councilmembers voting "no" are awarded 1 point: Pinto, Henderson, Parker, Nadeau, Allen, Lewis George, R. White, Frumin

RFK Stadium

❌ RFK Redevelopment Act

• Provides subsidy over $1 billion to billionaire NFL team owners to build a stadium without adequate environmental protections in law
• Sierra Club opposed
• Councilmembers voting "no" are awarded 2 points: Nadeau, R. White

Contributors

Susie Gerety, Eve Hamilton, Lara Levison, Mike Litt, Larry Martin, Peter Quinn-Jacobs, Mark Rodeffer, Eva Sadana, Makario Sarsozo, Susan Schorr, and Scott Williamson contributed to the Sierra Club DC Council Scorecard.

Scorecard – Environmental Champions & Opponent – Methodology – Legislation Scored