©2026 League of Conservation Voters
2011 Scorecard Vote
267
144
21
Issues
Representative David McKinley (R-WV) sponsored H.R. 2273, the Coal Residuals Reuse and Management Act, which would fail to protect the health of communities from the dangers of coal ash pollution. Coal ash, the toxic byproduct of burning coal that’s laden with arsenic, lead, and other heavy metals, is stored across the country in nearly 700 largely unregulated sludge impoundments. It can be catastrophic when these sludge impoundments fail–such as when more than one billion gallons of ash spilled across 300 acres after a Tennessee dam failed in 2008–and dangerous chemicals can leach from them into water Americans count on. Yet this bill would afford communities fewer protections from these toxic sludge ponds than they currently receive from their local household garbage landfill. On October 14, the House passed H.R. 2273 by a vote of 267-144 (House roll call vote 800). NO IS THE PRO-ENVIRONMENT VOTE. The Senate has taken no action on this legislation.
©2026 League of Conservation Voters