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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 7, 2012 | GA | SB 469 | Prohibits Picketing in Certain Circumstances | Bill Passed - Senate (34 - 18) |
| March 6, 2012 | AZ | HB 2729 | Authorizes Guns in Certain Public Buildings | Bill Passed - House (37 - 21) |
| March 6, 2012 | AZ | HB 2729 | Authorizes Guns in Certain Public Buildings | Bill Passed - House (37 - 21) |
| March 5, 2012 | OR | HB 4164 | Implementing the Oregon Health Insurance Exchange | Bill Passed - Senate (26 - 4) |
| March 5, 2012 | AZ | HB 2125 | Prohibits Texting While Driving | Bill Passed - House (45 - 15) |
| March 5, 2012 | OR | SB 1552 | Requirements for Lenders Seeking Foreclosure | Bill Passed - House (59 - 1) |
| March 5, 2012 | IA | SF 2304 | Requires DNA Samples from all Individuals Convicted of Certain Misdemeanors | Bill Passed - Senate (33 - 16) |
| March 5, 2012 | GA | SB 458 | Repeals Certain Public Benefits for Undocumented Immigrants | Bill Passed - Senate (34 - 19) |
| March 5, 2012 | GA | HB 717 | Penalties for Owners of Dogs Involved in a Second Assault | Bill Failed - House (82 - 73) |
| March 5, 2012 | GA | HB 972 | Regulation of Pain Management Clinics | Bill Passed - House (124 - 38) |
| March 2, 2012 | OR | HB 4164 | Implementing the Oregon Health Insurance Exchange | Bill Passed - House (55 - 5) |
| March 2, 2012 | FL | HB 1205 | Authorizes Random Drug Tests of State Employees | Bill Passed - House (79 - 37) |
| March 1, 2012 | FL | HB 1209 | Prohibits Courts from Basing Decisions on Foreign Laws | Bill Passed - House (92 - 24) |
| March 1, 2012 | SD | SB 141 | Amends the Definition of Domestic Abuse | Motion Agreed - House (39 - 25) |
| March 1, 2012 | IN | SB 1 | Authorizes the Use of Force Against Law Enforcement Officers in Certain Situations | Bill Passed - House (74 - 24) |
| March 1, 2012 | VT | S 199 | Repeals Philosophical Exemption to Immunization | Motion Agreed - Senate (25 - 4) |
| March 1, 2012 | AZ | SB 1507 | Prohibits Implementation of the United Nations Rio Declaration | Bill Passed - Senate (21 - 9) |
| Feb. 29, 2012 | MN | HF 1467 | Expands the Use of Deadly Force in Self-Defense | Concurrence Vote Passed - House (85 - 47) |
| Feb. 29, 2012 | MN | HF 1467 | Expands the Use of Deadly Force in Self-Defense | Concurrence Vote Passed - House (85 - 47) |
| Feb. 29, 2012 | IN | HB 1149 | Prohibits Smoking in Public Places | Bill Passed - Senate (29 - 21) |
| Feb. 29, 2012 | FL | HB 213 | Amends Mortgage Foreclosure Process | Bill Passed - House (94 - 17) |
| Feb. 29, 2012 | CO | SB 93 | Requires Hospitals to Disclose Religious Objections | Bill Passed - Senate (20 - 14) |
| Feb. 29, 2012 | IA | HF 2215 | Authorizes the Use of Deadly Force in Self-Defense | Bill Passed - House (60 - 38) |
| Feb. 28, 2012 | IA | HF 589 | Prohibits Obtaining Employment at Agriculture Facilities Under False Pretenses | Concurrence Vote Passed - House (69 - 28) |
| Feb. 28, 2012 | SD | H Amdt 141 | Defining Domestic Abuse as Abuse Witihin an Opposite-Sex Relationship | Amendment Adopted - House (35 - 33) |