Vote Smart provides easy access to congressional and state voting records and maintains a collection of key votes grouped by issue. Vote Smart uses the following criteria to select key votes:
Vote Smart provides a summary of the version of the bill text associated with each selected key vote. Our summaries are written by Vote Smart's staff and interns, who adhere to our strict policies and procedures in order to guarantee absolute impartiality and accuracy. They do not necessarily reflect the content of the final version of the bill, but rather the version voted on in that stage. While many procedural votes take place before a full chamber vote, our voting stages reflect the final reading of each chamber vote. Each key vote selection is reviewed by the project's community of advisors, who are political scientists and journalists from all fifty states.
For more information about the legislative process, see here.
| Date | State | Bill No. | Title | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb. 12, 2020 | AZ | SB 1160 | Increases Cancer Coverage for Firefighters | Bill Passed - Senate (25 - 4) |
| Feb. 12, 2020 | OH | HB 308 | Establishes Workers' Compensation for First Responders with PTSD | Bill Passed - House (74 - 22) |
| Feb. 11, 2020 | CO | HB 20-1048 | Establishes the CROWN Act | Bill Passed - House (42 - 21) |
| Feb. 11, 2020 | VA | SB 481 | Requires Sick Leave | Bill Passed - Senate (23 - 17) |
| Feb. 6, 2020 | National | HR 2474 | Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2019 | Bill Passed - House (224 - 194) |
| Feb. 6, 2020 | VA | HB 827 | Prohibits Discrimination on the Basis of Pregnancy | Bill Passed - House (66 - 31) |
| Feb. 6, 2020 | VA | HB 582 | Amends State Collective Bargaining Laws Relating to Right to Work Protections | Bill Passed - House (54 - 45) |
| Feb. 5, 2020 | RI | S 2147 | Increases the State Minimum Wage | Bill Passed - Senate (30 - 6) |
| Feb. 4, 2020 | IN | SB 342 | Establishes Reasonable Accommodations for Pregnant Workers | Bill Passed - Senate (41 - 8) |
| Feb. 3, 2020 | IN | HB 1414 | Requires Notification from Utility Companies Prior to Closure of Energy Plant | Bill Passed - House (52 - 41) |
| Feb. 3, 2020 | IN | SB 438 | Establishes Regulations for Pesticides | Bill Passed - Senate (38 - 9) |
| Jan. 31, 2020 | KY | HB 168 | Requires Legislative Ethics Commission to Review Sexual Harassment Complaints | Bill Passed - House (85 - 0) |
| Jan. 29, 2020 | FL | HB 1189 | Prohibits Genetic Information Usage by Insurance Companies | Bill Passed - House (117 - 1) |
| Jan. 27, 2020 | CA | AB 979 | Requires Corporations to Have Directors From Under-Represented Groups | Bill Passed - House (73 - 0) |
| Jan. 24, 2020 | WA | SB 6037 | Requires Public Companies to have a Gender-Diverse Board of Directors | Bill Passed - Senate (32 - 14) |
| Jan. 23, 2020 | CA | AB 323 | Establishes the Save Local Journalism Act | Bill Passed - House (77 - 0) |
| Jan. 17, 2020 | WA | SB 5165 | Prohibits Discrimination Based on Citizenship or Immigration Status | Bill Passed - Senate (26 - 20) |
| Jan. 16, 2020 | GA | HB 276 | Establishes an Online Sales Tax | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (40 - 9) |
| Jan. 16, 2020 | GA | HB 276 | Establishes an Online Sales Tax | Conference Report Adopted - House (111 - 54) |
| Jan. 15, 2020 | National | HR 1230 | Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act | Bill Passed - House (261 - 155) |
| Jan. 14, 2020 | TN | HB 836 | Authorizes Adoption Agencies to Deny Potential Parents Based on Religious Exemption | Bill Passed - Senate (20 - 6) |
| Jan. 9, 2020 | NH | HB 102 | Authorizes Municipalities to Regulate Single-Use Bags | "Ought to Pass" Report Adopted - House (215 - 151) |
| Jan. 8, 2020 | NH | SB 248 | Increases the Age for Sales of Tobacco Products | "Ought to Pass" Report Adopted - Senate (16 - 8) |
| Jan. 8, 2020 | NH | HB 506 | Authorizes Employees Time to Vote | Bill Passed - House (186 - 173) |
| Dec. 18, 2019 | PA | HB 1477 | Authorizes Professional Licenses for Ex-Convicts | Bill Passed - House (193 - 4) |
| Dec. 16, 2019 | NJ | A 4260 | Prohibits the Sale of Certain Toy Guns or Imitation Firearms | Bill Passed - House (54 - 19) |
| Dec. 11, 2019 | National | HR 5038 | Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2019 | Bill Passed - House (260 - 165) |
| Dec. 11, 2019 | OH | HB 242 | Prohibits Local Government from Enacting Fees on Plastic Bags in Stores | Bill Passed - House (58 - 35) |
| Nov. 25, 2019 | NJ | S 761 | Establishes Inmate Re-Entry Plans | Bill Passed - House (55 - 16) |
| Nov. 21, 2019 | PA | SB 473 | Increases Age for Legal Tobacco Sales to 21 | Bill Passed - House (135 - 49) |
| Nov. 21, 2019 | National | HR 1309 | Workplace Violence Prevention for Health Care and Social Service Workers Act | Bill Passed - House (251 - 158) |
| Nov. 19, 2019 | National | HR 5084 | Improving Corporate Governance Through Diversity Act of 2019 | Bill Passed - House (281 - 135) |
| Nov. 13, 2019 | MA | H 4183 | Prohibits Flavored Tobacco and Vaping Products, Including Menthol Cigarettes | Bill Passed - House (127 - 31) |
| Oct. 31, 2019 | NC | SB 578 | Reduces the Corporate Tax Rate and Establishes the Film and Entertainment Grant Fund | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (29 - 19) |
| Oct. 29, 2019 | IL | SB 1864 | Prohibits Use of Vaping Devices in Public Areas | Bill Passed - Senate (41 - 11) |
| Oct. 22, 2019 | National | HR 2513 | Corporate Transparency Act of 2019 | Bill Passed - House (249 - 173) |
| Oct. 18, 2019 | National | HR 3624 | Outsourcing Accountability Act of 2019 | Bill Passed - House (226 - 184) |
| Oct. 18, 2019 | National | HR 3624 | Outsourcing Accountability Act of 2019 | Bill Passed - House (226 - 184) |
| Sept. 26, 2019 | National | PN 1099 | Nomination of Eugene Scalia as the Secretary of Labor | (53 - 44) |
| Sept. 25, 2019 | National | PN 1099 | Nomination of Eugene Scalia as the Secretary of Labor | Cloture Invoked - Senate (52 - 42) |
| Sept. 25, 2019 | PA | SB 473 | Increases Age for Legal Tobacco Sales to 21 | Bill Passed - Senate (43 - 6) |
| Sept. 25, 2019 | National | HR 1595 | Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act of 2019 | Bill Passed - House (321 - 103) |
| Sept. 20, 2019 | National | HR 1423 | Forced Arbitration Injustice Repeal Act (FAIR Act) | Bill Passed - House (225 - 186) |
| Sept. 13, 2019 | CA | AB 378 | Authorizes Collective Bargaining for Childcare Workers | Concurrence Vote Passed - House (63 - 16) |
| Sept. 11, 2019 | CA | AB 5 | Establishes Criteria For Determining Who Is An Employee | Bill Passed - Senate (29 - 11) |
| Sept. 11, 2019 | CA | AB 5 | Establishes Criteria For Determining Who Is An Employee | Bill Passed - Senate (29 - 11) |
| Sept. 10, 2019 | CA | SB 142 | Requires Additional Lactation Accommodations for Employees | Bill Passed - House (57 - 13) |
| Sept. 10, 2019 | CA | AB 44 | Prohibits the Sale and Manufacturing of Fur Products | Bill Passed - Senate (27 - 8) |
| Sept. 9, 2019 | CA | AB 35 | Requires Reporting on Employee Blood Level Testing for Lead | Bill Passed - Senate (27 - 12) |
| Sept. 5, 2019 | CA | AB 378 | Authorizes Collective Bargaining for Childcare Workers | Bill Passed - Senate (29 - 10) |