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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 17, 2018 | IL | SB 2892 | Requires Increase in Teacher Salaries | Bill Passed - Senate (37 - 16) |
| May 16, 2018 | OH | SB 246 | Limits Out-of-School Suspensions and Expulsions For Students in Kindergarten to Third Grade | (32 - 0) |
| May 9, 2018 | CT | HB 5170 | Authorizes Schools to Search Student Cell Phones | Bill Passed - Senate (36 - 0) |
| May 7, 2018 | CO | SB 18-272 | Establishes School Grants for Suicide-Prevention Training | Bill Passed - Senate (27 - 8) |
| May 2, 2018 | IL | SB 3249 | Requires LGBT History in Public Schools | Bill Passed - Senate (34 - 18) |
| May 2, 2018 | RI | S 2350 | Prohibits Advertising Unhealthy Food in Schools | Bill Passed - Senate (32 - 1) |
| April 25, 2018 | RI | S 2353 | Requires Educators to Report Sexual Abuse | Bill Passed - Senate (34 - 0) |
| April 17, 2018 | CO | SB 18-083 | Establishes Educational Tax Credit System | Bill Passed - Senate (18 - 17) |
| April 14, 2018 | AK | HB 287 | Appropriates Funds for Education | Bill Passed - Senate (15 - 4) |
| April 11, 2018 | OH | SB 82 | Requires Schools to Contact Parents for Unexcused Absences | Bill Passed - Senate (33 - 0) |
| April 5, 2018 | KS | SB 423 | Appropriates Funds for Department of Education and Board of Regents | Bill Passed - Senate (21 - 18) |
| April 3, 2018 | IA | HF 2467 | Establishes Guidelines for Handling Students' Lunch Debt | Bill Passed - Senate (48 - 0) |
| March 29, 2018 | DE | SB 85 | Requires Report on School Suspensions | Bill Passed - Senate (14 - 5) |
| March 28, 2018 | OK | HB 1010 | Increases Taxes to Provide More Funding for Education | Bill Passed - Senate (36 - 10) |
| March 22, 2018 | MI | SB 727 | Amends Certain Education Teaching Requirements | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (24 - 10) |
| March 21, 2018 | IA | SF 2117 | Amends Appropriations for Fiscal Year 2018 | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (28 - 21) |
| March 16, 2018 | ID | H 665 | Increases Penalties for Threats Against Schools | Bill Passed - Senate (32 - 1) |
| Feb. 26, 2018 | NJ | S 414 | Requires Employment Background Checks for Teachers | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (38 - 0) |
| Feb. 9, 2018 | NC | HB 90 | Limits Public School Class Sizes | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (37 - 5) |
| Feb. 8, 2018 | IA | SF 2117 | Amends Appropriations for Fiscal Year 2018 | Bill Passed - Senate (29 - 21) |
| Feb. 6, 2018 | IN | SB 387 | Authorizes Teachers without Licenses in Certain Circumstances | Bill Passed - Senate (35 - 12) |
| Feb. 2, 2018 | WV | SB 267 | Increases State Public Worker Salaries | Bill Passed - Senate (33 - 0) |
| Jan. 19, 2018 | WA | SB 5766 | Requires School Districts to Adopt Transgender Student Policies and Procedures | Bill Passed - Senate (30 - 18) |
| Oct. 18, 2017 | MI | SB 574 | Authorizes Charter Schools to Collect Revenues From Enhancement Millages | Bill Passed - Senate (23 - 14) |
| Aug. 13, 2017 | IL | SB 1 | Specifies School Funding Reallocation | Veto Override Passed - Senate (38 - 19) |