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We are professors of political science sharing academic research relevant to Utah. Posts are not peer reviewed and may discuss work in progress that is subject to future revision. Learn more. Each post reflects only its author’s views.
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Category Archives: Everything
Who sponsored the most bills in the 2014 Utah Legislature?
Legislators vary widely in how many bills they introduce. Presiding officers (Speaker and Senate President) seldom sponsor bills, and that was the case again this year. Neither Speaker Lockhart nor President Niederhauser introduced any legislation. (Lockhart’s education technology initiative was … Continue reading
Posted in Everything
Tagged legislature, rankings, sponsorship
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Who sponsored the most bills in the 2014 Utah Legislature?
The closest votes in the 2014 Utah Legislature
Close votes are rare in the Utah Legislature. Instead, the typical bill passes with over 90% of legislators voting the same way. There are exceptions to every rule, of course. Here, I’ve listed the 20 closest votes in each chamber … Continue reading
Posted in Everything
Tagged consensus, legislature, measurement, partisanship, roll call votes, vetting
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The closest votes in the 2014 Utah Legislature
Once again, consensus voting reigns in the Utah Legislature
Legislators don’t like to vote “no,” even for bills sponsored by the opposing party. Utah legislators really don’t like to vote “no.” If a bill comes to a vote, you can be all but certain that it will succeed. The … Continue reading
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Tagged consensus, legislature, measurement, rankings, roll call votes
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Once again, consensus voting reigns in the Utah Legislature
The 2014 Legislature: Slow out of the gate, frantic in the stretch
Clearly, something caused the Legislature to fall behind in its bill processing this year. Utah legislators introduced 786 bills and resolutions in the 2014 session—fewer than the 800 we saw in 2009, but still higher than usual. However, a procedural … Continue reading
Posted in Everything
Tagged legislative life, legislature, vetting
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The 2014 Legislature: Slow out of the gate, frantic in the stretch
Did changing the calendar create a major crunch day in the Legislature?
Legislators can either rush bills through the process with minimal debate in order to clear the backlog, or they can take a more methodical pace even if it means some good bills don’t get to come to a vote before … Continue reading
Posted in Everything
Tagged legislature, vetting
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Did changing the calendar create a major crunch day in the Legislature?
How busy has the Legislature been so far?
Today the Tribune quotes Sen. John Valentine reporting that the Legislature has introduced a record high number of bills so far, but that it has passed a record low number. I thought I’d give some additional numbers for perspective. Sen. … Continue reading
Posted in Everything
Tagged legislative life, legislature
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How busy has the Legislature been so far?
Who is a Better Filter, Caucus Attendees or Primary Voters?
Every system requires trade-offs between competing values. But we ought not to pretend that one set of filters has virtues that are simply not present. In a previous post, I examined the relationship between attitudes in the public and support … Continue reading
On Count My Vote, Who is Toeing the Party Line?
Why does the Republican Party in Utah oppose the reform when only one segment of the party seems to oppose it? Only those who are the most conservative and support the Tea Party seem to prefer the status quo. Utahns … Continue reading
Does it matter that the Utah Senate votes twice on each bill?
There’s an odd thing about the Utah Legislature. The Utah House holds only one debate and vote on each bill, but the Utah Senate holds two debates and two votes on each bill. Let’s ask three questions about the Senate’s … Continue reading
Posted in Everything
Tagged absenteeism, legislature, measurement, roll call votes
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Does it matter that the Utah Senate votes twice on each bill?
It may be the case that the 20% “shift” in support was really a reflection of different question wordings and sample frames. A year and a half ago, my colleagues posted these polling results showing that 28% of Utah voters … Continue reading →