Conservation group calls for Youngkin to find ‘suitable’ pick for natural resources post

The House of Delegates voted 96-0 Wednesday to confirm Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s Cabinet nominees, passing a resolution that excluded Andrew Wheeler, Youngkin’s choice for Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources.

Wheeler, a former coal lobbyist and head of the Environmental Protection Agency under former President Trump, was an immediate lightening rod, drawing intense criticism, opposition, and pushback. This is the first time since the Kaine administration that the legislature has declined to approve a governor’s full cabinet.

“It was clear from the start that Andrew Wheeler was not a pragmatic pick to lead Virginia’s environmental agencies,” said Michael Town, executive director of the Virginia League of Conservation Voters. “His record of working for corporate polluters and undermining environmental laws time after time made him unfit for this post, and we are glad the legislature, too, came to this conclusion. With this nomination fight behind us, we look to Gov. Youngkin to find a suitable replacement – someone who will listen to science, prioritize environmental protection, help us meet our Bay cleanup goals, and leave the air, water and open spaces of the Commonwealth cleaner than how they found them.”