Contact: Chuck Porcari (cell: (240) 286-7566) or Mark Sokolove (cell: (703) 599-7656) or (202) 785-8683

WASHINGTON - The League of Conservation Voters (LCV), the political voice of the national environmental and conservation community, today announced its endorsement of Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D) for reelection in OregonÆs 3rd Congressional district. Blumenauer, a national leader on livable communities and Smarth Growth, has an 89% lifetime LCV score.

"LCV endorses Rep. Blumenauer because he is an great representative who has worked effectively to enhance the quality of life for Portland families and communities around the nation," said Betsy Loyless, LCV Vice President for Policy. "He is the leading voice in Congress for promoting livable communities that improve quality of life and protect the environment."

As a founder of the Livable Communities Task Force, Rep. Blumenauer has been recognized throughout the country for his work to create more communities that are livable and make efficient use of land and other resources. The Congressman bikes to and from votes on Capitol Hill, and established the Congressional Bike Caucus to recognize the importance of biking as an alternative mode of transportation and a means to decrease the nationÆs reliance on imported fossil fuels. To that end, Rep. Blumenauer has also helped gain federal funding for PortlandÆs light rail system as a clean, environmentally-friendly form of transportation.

In June, Blumenauer led the House effort to secure funding for the Portland/Vancouver Metropolitan Greenspaces Program, after the Bush Administration refused to allocate federal funding for this unique program that began in the late 1980Æs. The Metropolitan Greenspaces Program is a partnership between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Metro area that provides grants for urban projects that focus on environmental education, habitat enhancement and watershed health.

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The nonprofit League of Conservation Voters (LCV) is the political voice of the national environmental and conservation community. LCV, which is not a partisan organization, is the only national organization working full-time to hold Congress and the president accountable for their environmental actions. For more information, please visit us on the web at www.lcv.org.