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 | PA | HB 934 | Amends Voter Identification Laws | Bill Passed - Senate (26 - 23) |
| March 7, 2012 | GA | SB 469 | Prohibits Picketing in Certain Circumstances | Bill Passed - Senate (34 - 18) |
| March 7, 2012 | NH | HB 1546 | Authorizes Employers to Not Provide Contraception Coverage in Health Insurance Plans | Bill Passed - House (196 - 150) |
| March 7, 2012 | NH | HB 1546 | Authorizes Employers to Not Provide Contraception Coverage in Health Insurance Plans | Bill Passed - House (196 - 150) |
| March 7, 2012 | NH | SB 289 | Requires Photo Identification to Vote | Bill Passed - Senate (18 - 5) |
| March 7, 2012 | GA | SB 460 | Exempts Religious Employers from Insurance Requirements for Coverage of Contraception | Bill Passed - Senate (38 - 15) |
| March 7, 2012 | GA | SB 460 | Exempts Religious Employers from Insurance Requirements for Coverage of Contraception | Bill Passed - Senate (38 - 15) |
| March 7, 2012 | GA | SB 469 | Prohibits Picketing in Certain Circumstances | Bill Passed - Senate (34 - 18) |
| March 7, 2012 | GA | HB 861 | Requires Drug Testing for Certain Welfare Recipients | Bill Passed - House (114 - 59) |
| March 7, 2012 | GA | SB 292 | Requires Drug Tests for Certain Welfare Recipients | Bill Passed - Senate (35 - 18) |
| March 7, 2012 | GA | SB 292 | Requires Drug Tests for Certain Welfare Recipients | Bill Passed - Senate (35 - 18) |
| March 7, 2012 | GA | HB 1114 | Prohibits Assisted Suicide | Bill Passed - House (124 - 45) |
| March 6, 2012 | UT | HB 363 | Requires Abstinence-Only Sexual Education in Public Schools | Bill Passed - Senate (19 - 10) |
| 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 6, 2012 | AZ | SB 1359 | Prohibits Wrongful Birth Lawsuits | Bill Passed - Senate (20 - 9) |
| March 5, 2012 | WY | HB 82 | Requires Drug Testing of Certain Welfare Recipients | Bill Failed - Senate (13 - 17) |
| March 5, 2012 | AZ | HB 2125 | Prohibits Texting While Driving | Bill Passed - House (45 - 15) |
| 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 717 | Penalties for Owners of Dogs Involved in a Second Assault | Bill Failed - House (82 - 73) |
| March 5, 2012 | IA | SF 2304 | Requires DNA Samples from all Individuals Convicted of Certain Misdemeanors | Bill Passed - Senate (33 - 16) |
| March 5, 2012 | AZ | SB 1495 | Requires Drug Test for Unemployment Benefits | Bill Passed - Senate (18 - 10) |
| March 5, 2012 | GA | SB 458 | Repeals Certain Public Benefits for Undocumented Immigrants | Bill Passed - Senate (34 - 19) |
| March 5, 2012 | GA | HB 972 | Regulation of Pain Management Clinics | Bill Passed - House (124 - 38) |
| March 2, 2012 | OR | HB 4045 | Prohibits Disclosure of the Names of Licensed Concealed Handgun Carriers | Concurrence Vote Passed - House (54 - 6) |
| 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 | 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 | 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 | OR | HB 4045 | Prohibits Disclosure of the Names of Licensed Concealed Handgun Carriers | Bill Passed - Senate (24 - 5) |
| March 1, 2012 | FL | SB 98 | Authorizes Student-Led Prayer in School | Bill Passed - House (88 - 27) |
| March 1, 2012 | National | S Amdt 1520 | Authorizes Moral and Religious Objections to Certain Health Care Items and Services | Amendment Tabled - Senate (51 - 48) |
| March 1, 2012 | AZ | HB 2625 | Authorizes Employers to Refuse to Provide Coverage for Contraception | Bill Passed - House (39 - 18) |
| March 1, 2012 | AZ | HB 2625 | Authorizes Employers to Refuse to Provide Coverage for Contraception | Bill Passed - House (39 - 18) |
| March 1, 2012 | OR | SB 1594 | Prohibits weapons on school grounds | Bill Failed - Senate (14 - 15) |
| March 1, 2012 | UT | HB 155 | Requires Drug Testing of Certain Welfare Recipients | Bill Passed - House (62 - 10) |
| 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 | IA | HF 2215 | Authorizes the Use of Deadly Force in Self-Defense | Bill Passed - House (60 - 38) |
| Feb. 29, 2012 | CO | SB 93 | Requires Hospitals to Disclose Religious Objections | Bill Passed - Senate (20 - 14) |
| Feb. 29, 2012 | National | HR 1837 | Water Resources in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley | Bill Passed - House (246 - 175) |
| Feb. 29, 2012 | IA | HJR 2009 | Prohibiting Mandatory Licensing and Registration of Guns | Amendment Adopted - House (61 - 37) |
| 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 | HB 1248 | Authorizes the Concealed Carry of a Handgun Without a Permit | Bill Passed - Senate (22 - 11) |
| Feb. 28, 2012 | SD | H Amdt 141 | Defining Domestic Abuse as Abuse Witihin an Opposite-Sex Relationship | Amendment Adopted - House (35 - 33) |
| Feb. 28, 2012 | SD | H Amdt 141 | Defining Domestic Abuse as Abuse Witihin an Opposite-Sex Relationship | Amendment Adopted - House (35 - 33) |
| Feb. 28, 2012 | SD | H Amdt 141 | Defining Domestic Abuse as Abuse Witihin an Opposite-Sex Relationship | Amendment Adopted - House (35 - 33) |
| Feb. 28, 2012 | SD | SB 141 | Amends the Definition of Domestic Abuse | Bill Passed - House (46 - 22) |