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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug. 27, 2012 | CA | SB 1476 | Authorizes Courts to Designate More than 2 Individuals as Parents of a Child | Bill Passed - House (52 - 27) |
| Aug. 24, 2012 | CA | AB 1081 | Prohibits Excessive Detention of Undocumented Immigrants | Concurrence Vote Passed - House (48 - 26) |
| Aug. 23, 2012 | CA | AB 1436 | Authorizes Same-Day Voter Registration | Bill Passed - Senate (23 - 13) |
| Aug. 22, 2012 | CA | SB 1221 | Prohibits the Use of Dogs to Hunt Bears or Bobcats | Bill Passed - House (46 - 30) |
| Aug. 22, 2012 | CA | AB 2348 | Authorizes Registered Nurses to Dispense Contraceptives | Bill Passed - Senate (23 - 15) |
| Aug. 22, 2012 | CA | AB 472 | Authorizes Immunity for Reporting Drug Overdoses | Bill Passed - Senate (21 - 16) |
| Aug. 22, 2012 | CA | AB 1640 | Expands Cash Assistance Programs for Pregnant Teenagers | Bill Passed - Senate (25 - 12) |
| Aug. 22, 2012 | CA | AB 2109 | Requires Parents to Obtain a Waiver for Unvaccinated Children | Bill Passed - Senate (22 - 14) |
| Aug. 22, 2012 | CA | AB 2327 | Increases Penalties for the Misuse of Funds by Charitable Organizations | Bill Passed - Senate (23 - 12) |
| Aug. 22, 2012 | CA | ACR 161 | Establishes September as "Food Literacy Awareness Month" | Resolution Passed - House (53 - 21) |
| Aug. 21, 2012 | CA | HB 2676 | Increases Penalties For Agriculture Health And Safety Violations | Bill Passed - Senate (24 - 12) |
| Aug. 20, 2012 | CA | SB 9 | Sentence Reconsideration for Juvenile Offenders | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (21 - 17) |
| Aug. 20, 2012 | CA | AB 1313 | Requires Overtime Wages for Agricultural Workers | Bill Passed - Senate (22 - 15) |
| Aug. 16, 2012 | CA | SB 9 | Sentence Reconsideration for Juvenile Offenders | Bill Passed - House (41 - 34) |
| Aug. 13, 2012 | CA | AB 1500 | Corporate Tax Rates and Middle Class Scholarship Fund | Bill Passed - House (54 - 25) |
| July 6, 2012 | CA | SB 1029 | Authorizes the Sale of State Bonds for a High-Speed Rail | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (21 - 16) |
| July 5, 2012 | CA | SB 1029 | Authorizes the Sale of State Bonds for a High-Speed Rail | Bill Passed - House (52 - 28) |
| July 5, 2012 | CA | AB 1081 | Prohibits Excessive Detention of Undocumented Immigrants | Bill Passed - Senate (21 - 13) |
| July 2, 2012 | CA | SB 900 | Establishes Regulations for Home Loans | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (25 - 13) |
| July 2, 2012 | CA | AB 278 | Establishes Regulations for Foreclosure Procedures on Home Loans | Conference Report Adopted - Senate (25 - 13) |
| June 27, 2012 | CA | AB 1499 | Ballot Order for Statewide Measures | Concurrence Vote Passed - House (50 - 24) |
| June 27, 2012 | CA | AB 1499 | Ballot Order for Statewide Measures | Bill Passed - Senate (24 - 15) |
| June 15, 2012 | CA | AB 1464 | 2012-2013 Budget | Concurrence Vote Passed - House (50 - 28) |
| June 15, 2012 | CA | AB 1464 | 2012-2013 Budget | Bill Passed - Senate (23 - 16) |
| June 14, 2012 | CA | AB 2127 | Authorizes Work Release for Certain Offenders | Bill Passed - Senate (21 - 14) |