Every two years, you elect your State Representative. But what happens after that? Where do they stand on the issues of the day on Beacon Hill? How do they vote on the bills that come before the House of Representatives during the two-year legislative session?

Every year, Progressive Massachusetts puts together a scorecard of Legislators' votes, zeroing in on those roll call votes that often can show the distinction between a progressive legislator, and everyone else.

With the Progressive Mass scorecard, you can see how your State Representative votes, helping the public understand where he or she stands on specific policies, and giving you the information to better advocate for the issues that you care about, and even influence your vote in election years.

SCORECARD KEY: 

• [P] = Member is part of the House Progressive Caucus;
•  +  = Progressive position;
•  -  = Did not vote with the progressive position;
• [NV] = No vote taken (legislator not present)
• [NVP] = Legislator voted "Present" (neither Y or N)

TO SEE IN A LARGER WINDOW, CLICK: SCORECARD - VOTE DESCRIPTIONS - RUNNING BLOG

You vote for your State Rep every even-numbered year in November. But once your Rep is in office, it's a challenge to keep track of what they're up to. Many votes are taken by a voice vote (leaving no official record on your individual rep's vote) and many votes are procedural or not relevant to a progressive platform. 

Progressive Mass puts together our unique scorecard, zeroing in on those roll call votes where an important progressive priority is at stake. You can see how your Rep votes, giving you better tools to advocate for your issues, and to assess your own vote on election years. Read more about our Scorecard process, here: ______________. 

Notes about the peculiarities of the 189th (2015-16) Legislative Session appear after the scorecard data below. 

188th HOUSE SCORECARD (2013-2014) (for more scorecards, click here)

We research and compile this data for progressives to assess legislators' voting records. Read more about our scorecard process, its virtues and limitations, here. We welcome you to use and share this material, with attribution!

To view spreadsheet in a larger window click here. 

Download a printer-friendly version, here.

Don’t know who your State Rep is? Find out here: progma.us/whoismylegislator.

188th SENATE SCORECARD (2013-2014) (for more scorecards, click here)

We research and compile this material for progressives to assess legislators’ voting records. Read more about our scorecard process, its virtues and limitations, here. We welcome you to use and share this material, with attribution! 

TO VIEW SPREADSHEET IN A LARGER WINDOW, click here.

Download a printer-friendly version, here. 

Don’t know who your State Senator is? Find out here: progma.us/whoismylegislator.

1. It's About Transparency

2. Voice Votes vs. Roll Calls

3. What Comes Up for a Vote: The Role of Leadership and Committees

4. More than the Final Bills: Amendments

5. Putting Together a "Scorecard"

6. FAQS --got a question/concern? Check here first!

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It's About Transparency

We believe that Democracy functions best when there’s transparency. And, our Massachusetts Legislature functions best when citizens know what votes our elected officials are taking and when we can compare their actions to their rhetoric. But on Beacon Hill, that’s not such a straightforward proposition.

Citizens can be forgiven if they assume that tracking a State Legislator’s voting record would be easy as we are accustomed to with votes of our US Congressional representatives, which are all public and easily researched. Want to know where your legislator stands on actual votes? “Just google it!” We live in the age of information, after all.

Unfortunately, it’s not so simple. Finding your legislator’s voting record, and understanding it, can be very difficult and time-consuming.

With our “progressive scorecards,” finalized at the end of every 2-year legislative session, we aim to make it easier.

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Voice Votes vs. Roll Calls

It’s important to understand that unlike in Congress, most votes are NOT recorded person by person. Rather, most Beacon Hill legislation is passed on a voice vote. Though you can find out whether a certain bill or amendment passed or not, there is no paper trail telling you how your specific legislator voted when it’s a voice vote.

Some votes, however, are ROLL CALLED, which means there is a record of each legislator’s Yea or Nay (or abstention). Roll Calls are only taken when a legislator requests it -- which can be discouraged by the culture of the chamber -- and that request is supported by other members. Reasons for a roll call include:

1. The vote is close, and it is unclear, by voice, where the majority stands.

2. The chamber’s leadership wants a historical record of an important vote. (the vote is popular)

3. Members want to highlight, with an official record, differences between their positions. (the vote is contentious)

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What Comes Up for a Vote: The Role of Leadership and Committees

It’s also important to know that the bills that make it to the floor for an actual vote are decided by a process well outside the members’ actual votes. And, what makes it to the floor is largely a reflection of the will of Leadership in the respective Chambers (House and Senate). Leadership includes, in the House, the very powerful Speaker of the House and the Chairs of committees. In the Senate, it is the Senate President.

So, it’s quite possible that excellent progressive policy gets stalled in committees -- and never appear for a vote and therefore cannot be measured or scored.

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More Than Final Bills: Amendments

Also important in assessing Beacon Hill members’ records is understanding the distinction between votes on amendments and votes on the final bill. In a context (such as on Beacon Hill) where the outcome of a bill is largely determined well before it reaches the floor (as described above), adding amendments to a bill that does make it to the floor is one way to affect what policy gets passed.

This is why, in a context where (we argue) generally more conservative legislation is favored by the Legislature, it’s important to look for amendments as a way to find places where a bill could be made more progressive -- or less so -- and to take the measure of where legislators stand when they had that chance. The importance of amendments in assessing legislators requires a degree of investment in the minutiae of legislation that is not accessible for even a savvy and plugged in citizen. 

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Putting Together a 'Scorecard'

Ever wonder what actually goes on at the State House –- or how your elected representatives vote on the issues you care about?

Unfortunately, much of what actually goes on is rather opaque. Each legislative session, thousands of bills are filed and assigned to a committee. But, many never have a hearing. And, committee meetings are not open to the public –- nor are committee votes recorded.

And even when a bill is not relegated to “study” –- where bills go to die -– they may never receive an up or down vote.  Leadership plays the key role in determining which legislation actually moves forward — and which dies by running out the clock.

And bills that do come up for a vote?  The vast majority are voice-voted, which means there is no roll call –- no actual record of where your particular elected official stood.

From time to time, a roll call vote is requested an elected official and leadership accedes. But most of the time, legislators say they are under tremendous pressure not to “buck leadership” and their colleagues in making such demands. And  – roll call votes are not organized in a convenient or easily accessible way.

Let’s say you learned that a roll call vote had been taken on an issue of importance to you.  How would you know how your elected official had voted?

Many online news services like Beacon Hill Roll Call report the votes from a given week –- but they don’t archive these so if you miss the vote you’re interested in, you’re out of luck.

Or, suppose someone from a neighboring district is now running for higher office and you want to know how they voted?  Well, the process of finding out is so complicated – involving several different sources in malegislature.gov that your head would spin just hearing about it

Progressive Massachusetts believes that government functions best and residents have the highest possible confidence in their representatives when the work of the legislature is fully transparent -– and easily accessible to the public.

And that is why, today, we are publishing a record of key roll call votes taken in the last legislative session (2011-2012).  And we will be tracking, compiling and publishing future roll call votes this legislative session.

Check out how your representative -– or any other representative, for that matter, actually voted:

• 2011-2012 House Roll Call  
• 2011-2012 Senate Roll Call

Make your own judgment about how progressive you think they are.