Rep. Neguse Named Most Effective Democratic Member of U.S. House for Advancing Environment and Public Lands Policy

 

Washington, D.C. — This week, Colorado Congressman Joe Neguse was named the most effective Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives in both the Environment and Public Lands policy areas for the 118th Congress. The Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL) released these rankings as part of their Interest & Legislative Effectiveness Scores (ILES) for 2023 to 2025, identifying the top performing lawmakers in each area, by party, for both the House and the Senate. Neguse already earned the title of the 2nd most effective House Democrat, the 7th overall most effective lawmaker in the entire House, and most effective lawmaker of the Colorado House delegation when the organization released Legislative Effectiveness Scores (LES) for the 118th Congress earlier this year. 

 

The Colorado Congressman successfully had 12 bills signed into law last Congress, including notable wins like the enactment of the Upper Colorado and San Juan River Basins Endangered Fish Recovery Programs Reauthorization Act, Drought Preparedness Act, Water Data Improvement Act, Biking on Long Distance Trails (BOLT) Act, Improving Outdoor Recreation Coordination Act, Forest Service Flexible Housing Partnerships Act, Stop the Spread of Invasive Mussels Act, and more. 

 

This year, despite Republicans holding a majority in the House, Congressman Neguse has once again proved to be a successful champion for these issues: defeating plans to sell off millions of acres of public lands across the West, securing a pay increase for Federal wildland firefighters and a commitment from the U.S. Forest Service to better protect frontline personnel, and acquiring millions of dollars in Joint Chiefs funding to restore and protect lands in Colorado.

 

“As the representative for a congressional district that spans nearly 12,000 square miles — across three national forests, a national park and countless acres of public lands — I can think of no greater honor than for our office to be recognized for our efforts to protect the environment and safeguard our state’s treasured public lands. In Colorado, the great outdoors are central to our way of life, and the Center for Effective Lawmaking’s findings underscore our peoples’ shared commitment to ensuring that everyone can enjoy clean air, clean water, and the benefits of the outdoors for generations to come. I’m incredibly proud of the work we accomplished in the 118th Congress and remain committed to delivering results for all those I’m privileged to represent,” said Congressman Neguse. 

 

Read the full report HERE.

 

A statement shared by the Center for Effective Lawmaking on Neguse’s scores reads: “Our analysis found that Representative Neguse ranked as the most effective Democratic House Member in the policy area of Environment in the last Congress. This is in addition to our previous analysis showing him ranked as one of the most effective Democratic House Members in the last Congress overall, as well as one of the most effective Representatives in terms of having their sponsored standalone bills substantially incorporated into the laws of other members of Congress. We congratulate the Representative for his hard work and setting an example for promoting the importance of effective lawmaking.” 

 

Congressman Joe Neguse has represented Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District since 2019. He serves as the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Federal Lands and as a senior member of House Leadership. This recognition from Center for Effective Lawmaking adds to his growing list of commendations for effective lawmaking. In March, he was recognized by GovTrack.us for writing the 2nd most laws of any member of the U.S. House of Representatives during the 118th Congress. He was also listed as the overall Member of Congress with the most amount of bipartisan support on his proposals.