The North Carolina League of Conservation Voters (NCLCV) is a left-leaning environmentalist advocacy and electoral campaign group. NCLCV is part of a family of organizations that includes the North Carolina League of Conservation Voters Foundation (NCLCVF) and the Conservation PAC. ¹

NCLCV advocates for environmentalist policy that supports weather-dependent energy and condemns conventional fuels and carbon-emissions-free nuclear energy. ^{2 3 4}

Background

North Carolina League of Conservation Voters advances its environmentalist agenda primarily through voter mobilization, policy advocacy, and election influence. ⁵

The NCLCV group opposes carbon-emissions-free nuclear energy. ⁶ The group has advocated for weather-dependent energy instead, calling nuclear energy an “outdated, overpriced, and insecure technology” and labeling small modular nuclear reactors “unproven.” ^{7 8} According to a 2018 proposal, the Nature Conservancy noted that zero-carbon nuclear plants produced 7.8 percent of total world energy output and recommended reducing carbon emissions by increasing nuclear capacity to 33 percent of total world energy output. ⁹ In 2021, the Department of Energy reported that “nuclear energy produces more electricity on less land than any other clean-air source.” ¹⁰

The group is also a strong opponent of conventional fuels, including natural gas. ^{11 12}

History

North Carolina League of Conservation Voters was founded in 1968 under the name Conservation Council of North Carolina (CCNC). In the 1970s, the CCNC took legal action against two nuclear power plants. In 1983, CCNC fought to oppose ratification of the Southeastern Radioactive Waste Compact in the General Assembly, a compact which allows states to rotate responsibility over low-level radioactive waste within the region. ^{13 14}

In 1999, the Council created the Conservation PAC to campaign for candidates who would support environmentalist efforts that align with the values of the CCNC. ¹⁵

In 2002, CCNC worked alongside other environmentalist groups to pass the North Carolina Clean Smokestacks Act, which applied new emission regulations on coal-fired plants. ^{16 17} In 2007, the CCNC worked with other advocates to establish the Renewable Energy Portfolio Standards (REPS). ¹⁸ REPS required 12.5 percent of investor-owned utilities’ energy to be “renewable,” and did not include nuclear energy as a source. ¹⁹

In 2011, CCNC officially became the NCLCV and in 2014, the foundation created a voter engagement field program. ²⁰

Activities

North Carolina League of Conservation Voters has been working to create a General Assembly Green Caucus that will promote its energy agenda and protect from pollutants like hog waste and coal ash. ²¹ To monitor decisionmaker’s alignment with NCLCV values, the organization also created a Legislative Scorecard to see how legislators vote on environmental issues. ²² NCLCV also has an awards event, the Green Tie Awards, to honor environmentalist supporters. ²³

The NCLCV group has used the war in Ukraine to defend its environmental agenda, claiming that higher oil prices and Russian destruction of nuclear energy plants demonstrated proof that other forms of energy should be pursued. The group wrote that “solar and wind power can’t be disrupted by bloodthirsty dictators half the world away” and condemned the idea of domestic oil production, although it would also prevent reliance on Russian oil. ²⁴

In 2022, the group promoted President Joe Biden’s climate package, claiming that energy consumption changes such as increased electric car reliance would remove Russian oil dependance by 2027. ²⁵ In 2024, the group also backed new EPA pollution standards, which imposed environmental standards on specific vehicles made after 2027. ^{26 27} In addition, the group promoted the Biden administration-backed Bipartisan Infrastructure Act, which provided funds for hybrid-electric and electric buses. ²⁸

In 2023, the NCLCV Legislative Scorecard rated North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper (D) highly as he asked for increased funds for the Department of Environmental Quality, joined the Special Initiative on Offshore Wind, and issued the Deep Decarbonization Pathways Analysis. ²⁹ The Analysis explored what needed to be done in North Carolina to reach greenhouse gas (GHG) emission goals and have net-zero emissions by 2050. The study claims that electrified cars, commercializing decarbonized fuel, and carbon sequestration are opportunities for lowering emissions. ^{30 31}

In 2024, NCLCV backed state Attorney General Josh Stein (D) for governor due in part to his desire to reduce carbon emissions and his previous lawsuit as state Attorney General against Duke Energy for coal ash water pollution. ³² In his campaign priorities, Josh Stein claimed he will help North Carolina to be carbon neutral by 2050. ³³

In 2024, after condemning Dominion Energy in February for announcing a new gas pipeline, NCLCV praised Dominion in July for creating an offshore wind farm in Virginia. ^{34 35}

Redistricting

North Carolina League of Conservation Voters made news in 2022 when it helped to challenge a redistricting measure by Republicans in the North Carolina legislature. Plaintiffs claimed that the maps had been made with a partisan bias and were “meant to discriminate against the political interests of Democrats and Black North Carolinians.” ³⁶

The judges upheld the Republicans side, claiming that the court couldn’t interfere in this matter. ³⁷ After an appeal to the North Carolina Supreme Court in which the court decided the map was in violation, the legislators appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court under justification of the independent state legislature theory. ³⁸ This theory stipulate that legislatures’ power over federal elections comes from the U.S. Constitution rather than State Constitutions. ³⁹

The justices ruled in Moore v. Harper that state courts could have some form of judicial review over federal elections, contrary to the independent state legislature theory. ⁴⁰ Justice Brett Kavanaugh, in his concurring opinion, wrote that “the Court today correctly concludes that state laws governing federal elections are subject to ordinary state court review” and “a state court’s interpretation of state law in a case implicating the Elections Clause is in turn subject to federal court review.” ⁴¹

In a July 2024 article, NCLCV claimed that after the 2022 elections and another North Carolina state court decision, the “new pro-polluter majority” redrew maps to create Republican districts. ⁴² The Washington Post reported on the map redrawing and noted that Republicans claimed the redrawn maps were partisan but not based on race, which, according to a 2019 Supreme Court Case, protected the maps from federal court review. ⁴³

Financials

In 2022, North Carolina League of Conservation Voters had a total revenue of $2,327,604 with $1,758,478 in contributions and grants. The organization had total expenses of $2,300,034 and total assets of $1,477,759. The organization paid $661,617 in salaries, other compensation, and employee benefits. ⁴⁴

Leadership

Carrie Clark is North Carolina League of Conservation Voters ’s executive director and has been with the group since 1999. ⁴⁵ In 2022, Clark made $60,000 in reportable compensation from NCLCV. ⁴⁶

Clark has worked with the League of Conservation Voters Education Fund, the Conservation Futures Discussion Group/Environmental Federation of North Carolina, and the Friends of the Earth. She is a board member of Blueprint NC, the Federation of State Conservation Voter Leagues, and the League of Conservation Voters. ⁴⁷

NCLCV’s board is comprised of ten members: Doug Rader, Angella Dunston, Elizabeth Redenbaugh, John Wallace, Lucy Allen, Mary Baggett Martin, Kevin Primus, Marion S. Sullivan, Nina Szlosberg-Landis, Walker Rayburn, and Doris Wallace. Doug Rader is the president of NCLCV’s board as of July 2024. Since 1988, he has been a senior scientist with Environmental Defense Fund, and was previously interim director for the North Carolina chapter of EDF. He also worked with the Divisions of Coastal Management and Environmental Management at the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources where he was the first director of the Albermarle-Pamlico National Estuary Program. ⁴⁸

Angella Dunston is the vice president of NCLCV’s board. ⁴⁹ She works for the Roanoke Cooperative as Public Relations and Community Engagement Director and is the PAC Chair at Lillians List. ^{50 51} Her past positions include the director of Government Relations for the North Carolina Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, legislative liaison for the North Carolina Secretary of State, and director of Education and Law Project at the North Carolina Justice Center. ⁵² She worked for former North Carolina Governor Beverly Perdue (D) as the director of Community and Faith-Based Outreach, where she, according to NCLCV’s website, “was responsible for building a network of statewide advocates that included black, indigenous, and people of color.” ⁵³

Elizabeth Redenbaugh is a board member of the Child Development Center and was on the board of directors of the North Carolina Foundation for Public School Children. ^{54 55} She was formerly the Chair of the New Hanover County Democratic Party and was also elected to the New Hanover Board of Education. ⁵⁶

John Wallace, who is the legal counsel on NCLCV’s board, works in commercial litigation and election law. Wallace previously was an antitrust coordinator at the National Association of Attorneys General. Afterwards, he worked within the Anti-Trust Division of the North Carolina Department of Justice, serving as an Assistant Attorney General. ⁵⁷

Lucy Allen previously served as a Democratic member of the North Carolina House of Representatives for four terms, and, for two terms, served as the chairman of the Environment Committee. In 2010, she was appointed by then-Gov. Perdue to the North Carolina Utilities Commission. ⁵⁸

Mary Baggett Martin co-owns Blockade Runner Beach Resort and has been on NCLCV’s board since 2016. ⁵⁹

Kevin Primus is the chief business officer at Be All in Research and Development LLC. ⁶⁰ He is also on the board of the Ellerbe Creek Watershed Association. ⁶¹

Marion S. Sullivan is the director of Governmental Relations at Wellpoint. She was a senior advisor to former Governor Perdue and sat on UNC Charlotte’s board of trustees. ⁶²

Nina Szlosberg-Landis is a member of the White House Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations. She is on the board of directors for the Raleigh Durham Airport Authority and was previously on the North Carolina Board of Transportation, where she established and chaired the Environment Planning and Policy Committee. ^{63 64}

Walker Rayburn was previously an Environmental Health Specialist but is now retired. He formerly worked with Martin Community College, teaching courses in Natural Resource Management. ⁶⁵

Doris Wallace previously worked with the County of Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services. Her previous leadership positions include political liaison with Johnston County NAACP, president and founder at Johnston County African American Caucus, and Johnston County Juvenile Crime Prevention board member. ⁶⁶

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60.  Kevin Primus – Director of corporate intelligence – the virtual reality … Accessed July 16, 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-primus-7522191b.
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63. Nina Szlosberg-Landis – director – north carolina railroad … Accessed July 16, 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/in/nina-szlosberg-landis-90b56124.
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