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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec. 5, 2018 | MI | SB 1197 | Establishes Mackinac Straits Corridor Authority | Bill Passed - Senate (25 - 13) |
| Oct. 29, 2018 | NJ | S 678 | Prohibits Disposal of Fracking Waste | Bill Passed - Senate (31 - 5) |
| Oct. 17, 2018 | PA | HB 1822 | Establishes Certification Process for Schools to Become Certified Suicide Prevention Institutions of Higher Education | Bill Passed - Senate (49 - None) |
| Oct. 17, 2018 | PA | HB 2138 | Establishes Medicaid Work Requirements | Bill Passed - Senate (30 - 19) |
| Sept. 17, 2018 | National | HR 6 | Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018 | Bill Passed - Senate (99 - 1) |
| Sept. 17, 2018 | National | HR 6 | Opioid Crisis Response Act of 2018 | Bill Passed - Senate (99 - 1) |
| Sept. 17, 2018 | National | S 2554 | Patient Right to Know Drug Prices Act | Bill Passed - Senate (98 - 2) |
| Aug. 23, 2018 | National | S Amdt 3967 | Senator Rand Paul's Amendment to H.R. 6157 | Amendment Rejected - Senate (45 - 48) |
| Aug. 23, 2018 | National | S Amdt 3967 | Senator Rand Paul's Amendment to H.R. 6157 | Amendment Rejected - Senate (45 - 48) |
| Aug. 21, 2018 | CA | SB 1192 | Requires Beverages Included in Kids' Meals to be Milk or Water | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (29 - 9) |
| Aug. 21, 2018 | CA | SB 1192 | Requires Beverages Included in Kids' Meals to be Milk or Water | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (29 - 9) |
| Aug. 1, 2018 | National | HR 6147 | Interior, Environment, Financial Services, and General Government Appropriations Act, 2019 | Bill Passed - Senate (92 - 6) |
| July 31, 2018 | MA | H 4857 | Increases State Clean Energy Requirements | Bill Passed - Senate (36 - 0) |
| July 30, 2018 | MA | H 4835 | Authorizes Funds for Climate Change Adaptation and Environmental Protection | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (36 - 0) |
| July 12, 2018 | MA | S 2595 | Establishes Commission to Study Lead in Drinking Water at Schools | Bill Passed - Senate (38 - 0) |
| July 1, 2018 | NJ | S 1612 | Requires Minimum Nurse Aide-to-Resident Ratio | Bill Passed - Senate (22 - 15) |
| June 28, 2018 | CA | AB 1838 | Prohibits Local Grocery Taxes | Bill Passed - Senate (21 - 7) |
| June 28, 2018 | MA | H 4479 | Increases Minimum Purchase Age for Tobacco Products | Bill Passed - Senate (33 - 3) |
| June 28, 2018 | DE | HB 425 | Prohibits Pharmaceutical "Gag Clauses" | Bill Passed - Senate (20 - 0) |
| June 27, 2018 | DE | HB 165 | Authorizes Shipment of Wine from Out-of-State Sellers | Bill Passed - Senate (11 - 10) |
| June 25, 2018 | NJ | A 4249 | Increases the Use of Hospital Admission Fees | Bill Passed - Senate (23 - 15) |
| June 25, 2018 | NJ | A 542 | Requires Schools Maintain a Supply of Opioid Antidotes | Bill Passed - Senate (39 - 0) |
| June 21, 2018 | RI | H 7715 | Classifies Delivery a Controlled Substance Resulting in Death as a Crime | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (25 - 10) |
| June 12, 2018 | MI | SB 542 | Establishes Pesticide Notification Registry | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (24 - 12) |
| June 12, 2018 | MI | SB 542 | Establishes Pesticide Notification Registry | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (24 - 12) |