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. 22, 2009 | National | S Amdt 3276 | Senate Health Care Bill Amendments | Amendment Adopted - Senate (60 - 39) |
| Dec. 3, 2009 | National | S Amdt 2791 | Preventive Services Coverage Requirements | Amendment Adopted - Senate (61 - 39) |
| Dec. 3, 2009 | National | S Amdt 2791 | Preventive Services Coverage Requirements | Amendment Adopted - Senate (61 - 39) |
| Oct. 6, 2009 | National | S Amdt 2588 | Prohibiting Federal Funding of Mandatory Arbitration Contracts | Amendment Adopted - Senate (68 - 30) |
| Jan. 29, 2009 | National | HR 2 | Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization and Expansion | Bill Passed - Senate (66 - 32) |
| Jan. 22, 2009 | National | S 181 | Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 | Bill Passed - Senate (61 - 36) |
| July 16, 2008 | National | HR 5501 | Funding to Combat AIDS, Malaria, and Tuberculosis | Bill Passed - Senate (80 - 16) |
| April 23, 2008 | National | HR 2831 | Equal Pay Bill | Cloture Not Invoked - Senate (56 - 42) |
| March 14, 2008 | National | S Amdt 4233 | Codifying the Definition of a Child Eligible for SCHIP | Amendment Rejected - Senate (46 - 52) |
| Dec. 18, 2007 | National | HR 2764 | Inclusion of Iraq and Afghanistan Military Operations Funding with the Consolidated Appropriations | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (76 - 17) |
| Nov. 1, 2007 | National | HR 3963 | Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007 (CHIP) | Bill Passed - Senate (64 - 30) |
| Nov. 1, 2007 | National | HR 3963 | Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007 (CHIP) | Bill Passed - Senate (64 - 30) |
| Sept. 27, 2007 | National | HR 976 | State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Reauthorization | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (67 - 29) |
| Sept. 6, 2007 | National | S Amdt 2707 | Prohibiting U.S. Assistance for Groups that Support Coercive Abortion | Amendment Adopted - Senate (48 - 45) |
| Aug. 2, 2007 | National | HR 976 | State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Reauthorization | Bill Passed - Senate (68 - 31) |
| July 25, 2006 | National | S Amdt 4689 | Teen Pregnancy Education Amendment | Amendment Rejected - Senate (48 - 51) |
| March 17, 2005 | National | S Amdt 244 | Unintended Pregnancy Amendment | Amendment Rejected - Senate (47 - 53) |
| March 25, 2004 | National | HR 1997 | Unborn Victims of Violence Act 2004 | Bill Passed - Senate (61 - 38) |
| July 14, 1999 | National | S Amdt 1241 | Women's Health and Cancer Rights Amendment | Amendment Adopted - Senate (55 - 45) |
| April 30, 1996 | National | S Amdt 3820 | Legal Immigrants Assistance Eligibility Amendment | Amendment Rejected - Senate (46 - 53) |
| Feb. 8, 1994 | National | S Amdt 1390 | Contraceptives Distribution Amendment | Amendment Rejected - Senate (34 - 59) |
| April 2, 1992 | National | S Amdt 1757 | Prohibiting Federal Funding of Human Sexual Behavior Surveys | Amendment Adopted - Senate (51 - 46) |
| Date | No. | Title | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12/22 | S Amdt 3276 | Senate Health Care Bill Amendments | Amendment Adopted - Senate (60 - 39) |
| 12/03 | S Amdt 2791 | Preventive Services Coverage Requirements | Amendment Adopted - Senate (61 - 39) |
| 12/03 | S Amdt 2791 | Preventive Services Coverage Requirements | Amendment Adopted - Senate (61 - 39) |
| 10/06 | S Amdt 2588 | Prohibiting Federal Funding of Mandatory Arbitration Contracts | Amendment Adopted - Senate (68 - 30) |
| 1/29 | HR 2 | Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization and Expansion | Bill Passed - Senate (66 - 32) |
| 1/22 | S 181 | Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 | Bill Passed - Senate (61 - 36) |
| 7/16 | HR 5501 | Funding to Combat AIDS, Malaria, and Tuberculosis | Bill Passed - Senate (80 - 16) |
| 4/23 | HR 2831 | Equal Pay Bill | Cloture Not Invoked - Senate (56 - 42) |
| 3/14 | S Amdt 4233 | Codifying the Definition of a Child Eligible for SCHIP | Amendment Rejected - Senate (46 - 52) |
| 12/18 | HR 2764 | Inclusion of Iraq and Afghanistan Military Operations Funding with the Consolidated Appropriations | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (76 - 17) |
| 11/01 | HR 3963 | Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007 (CHIP) | Bill Passed - Senate (64 - 30) |
| 11/01 | HR 3963 | Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007 (CHIP) | Bill Passed - Senate (64 - 30) |
| 9/27 | HR 976 | State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Reauthorization | Concurrence Vote Passed - Senate (67 - 29) |
| 9/06 | S Amdt 2707 | Prohibiting U.S. Assistance for Groups that Support Coercive Abortion | Amendment Adopted - Senate (48 - 45) |
| 8/02 | HR 976 | State Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Reauthorization | Bill Passed - Senate (68 - 31) |
| 7/25 | S Amdt 4689 | Teen Pregnancy Education Amendment | Amendment Rejected - Senate (48 - 51) |
| 3/17 | S Amdt 244 | Unintended Pregnancy Amendment | Amendment Rejected - Senate (47 - 53) |
| 3/25 | HR 1997 | Unborn Victims of Violence Act 2004 | Bill Passed - Senate (61 - 38) |
| 7/14 | S Amdt 1241 | Women's Health and Cancer Rights Amendment | Amendment Adopted - Senate (55 - 45) |
| 4/30 | S Amdt 3820 | Legal Immigrants Assistance Eligibility Amendment | Amendment Rejected - Senate (46 - 53) |
| 2/08 | S Amdt 1390 | Contraceptives Distribution Amendment | Amendment Rejected - Senate (34 - 59) |
| 4/02 | S Amdt 1757 | Prohibiting Federal Funding of Human Sexual Behavior Surveys | Amendment Adopted - Senate (51 - 46) |