ELECTION 2000

RATE YOUR REPRESENTATIVES

U.S. SENATE - 106th CONGRESS

By Anthony J. Obadal,
AED Washington Counsel,
and
Christian A. Klein,
AED Associate Washington Counsel

 
SENATE VOTES
  1. The Mack Amendment to TEA-21
  2. The TEA-21 Conference Report, Final Passage
  3. The AIR-21 Conference Report, Final Passage
  4. Protecting the Gas Tax—The Byrd Amendment
  5. Partial Gas Tax Moratorium—The Lott Proposal
  6. The Voinovich Transit Amendment
  7. The Democratic Estate Tax Proposal
  8. Full Gas Tax Moratorium—The Abraham Amendment
  9. Estate Tax Repeal
+
=
 Voted in favor of AED position
-
=
 Voted against AED position
*
=
 Not in office at time of vote
NV
=
 Did not vote

 

 

Click on a state name below to see individual state Senate Votes
ALABAMA
ALASKA
ARIZONA
ARKANSAS
CALIFORNIA
COLORADO
CONNECTICUT
DELAWARE
FLORIDA
GEORGIA
HAWAII
IDAHO
ILLINOIS
INDIANA
IOWA
KANSAS
KENTUCKY
LOUISIANA
MAINE
MARYLAND
MASSACHUSETTS
MICHIGAN
MINNESOTA
MISSISSIPPI
MISSOURI
MONTANA
NEBRASKA
NEVADA
NEW HAMPSHIRE
NEW JERSEY
NEW MEXICO
NEW YORK
NORTH CAROLINA
NORTH DAKOTA
OHIO
OKLAHOMA
OREGON
PENNSYLVANIA
RHODE ISLAND
SOUTH CAROLINA
SOUTH DAKOTA
TENNESSEE
TEXAS
UTAH
VERMONT
VIRGINIA
WASHINGTON
WEST VIRGINIA
WISCONSIN
WYOMING

 

U.S. Senate – 106th Congress
    
SENATE VOTES
ALABAMA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
    
Jeff Sessions (R)
NV
+
-
-
-
+
+
-
+
50 %
  
1. THE MACK AMENDMENT TO TEA-21
Richard Shelby (R)
NV
+
+
-
-
+
+
-
+
63%
  
ALASKA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  

Sen. Connie Mack (R-Fla.) and Rep. John Kasich (R-Ohio) don’t like the federal highway program. In 1998, as each chamber of Congress geared up to consider its own version of the highway bill that would ultimately become known as TEA-21, Mack and Kasich proposed legislation that would have repealed a portion of the gas tax used to pay for roads. Mack wanted to repeal 4.3 cents that originally had been set aside for deficit reduction but was redirected to highway programs in 1997. Kasich wanted to cut deeper and turn the highway program back to the states.
AED recognizes that the national highway system is one of the federal government’s most successful programs and that a federal role is necessary to ensure a coordinated, unified national road network. AED urged a “no” vote on both the Mack and Kasich amendments. The Mack amendment failed by a vote of 80 to 18; the Kasich amendment failed 318 to 98. These votes are an important indicator of where senators and representatives stand on the federal road and bridge program. (Senate Roll Call Vote 105-2-26, March 11, 1998; House Roll Call Vote 105-2-97, April 1, 1998)

Frank Murkowski (R)
+
NV
+
-
-
-
+
-
+
50%
  
Ted Stevens (R)
+
+
+
+
-
+
+
-
+
78%
  
ARIZONA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Jon Kyl (R)
-
-
-
-
-
+
+
-
+
33%
  
John McCain (R)
-
NV
NV
-
-
+
+
-
+
38%
  
ARKANSAS
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Tim Hutchinson (R)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
NV
100%
  
Blanche Lincoln (D)
+
NV
+
+
+
+
-
+
+
88%
  
CALIFORNIA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Barbara Boxer (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
  
Dianne Feinstein (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
+
78%
  
COLORADO
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Wayne Allard (R)
+
+
+
+
-
+
+
-
+
78%
  
Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R)
+
+
+
-
-
+
+
-
+
67%
  
CONNECTICUT
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Joseph Lieberman (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
    
Christopher Dodd (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
NV
NV
-
71%
  
2. THE TEA-21 CONFERENCE REPORT,
FINAL PASSAGE
DELAWARE
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Joseph Biden (D)
+
+
+
-
+
-
-
+
-
56%
   In the spring of 1998, after weeks of negotiation, House and Senate conferees reached agreement on the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21). The historic legislation authorized $218 billion for road, bridge and transit programs through 2003, a funding increase of more than 40 percent. AED urged a “yes” vote on TEA-21, which passed the Senate by a vote of 88 to 5 and the House by a vote of 297 to 86 . (Senate Roll Call Vote 105-2-147, May 22, 1998; House Roll Call Vote 105-2-192, May 22, 1998)
William Roth (D)
+
-
+
-
-
-
44%
  
FLORIDA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Connie Mack (R)
-
+
+
-
-
+
+
-
+
56%
  
Bob Graham (D)
-
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
56%
  
GEORGIA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Max Cleland (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
+
78%
  
Paul Coverdell (R)
-
+
+
-
-
-
+
-
+
44%
    
HAWAII
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
3. THE AIR-21 CONFERENCE REPORT,
FINAL PASSAGE
Daniel Akaka (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
  
Daniel Inouye (D)
+
NV
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
63%
  
After months of wrangling, in March lawmakers came to an agreement on the final details of the Aviation Investment and Reform Act for the 21st Century (AIR-21). The bill provides $40 billion for aviation programs for fiscal years 2001 through 2003 and authorizes more than $10 billion over three years for airport construction programs. Those funding levels are guaranteed by "points of order" designed to ensure that Airport and Airway Trust Fund revenues would be used only for aviation programs.
AED urged a "yes" vote on AIR-21, which passed the Senate by a vote of 82 to 17 and the House by a vote of 319 to 101. (Senate Roll Call Vote 106-2-35, March 10, 2000; House Roll Call Vote 106-2-48, March 17, 2000)
IDAHO
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Mike Crapo (R)
*
*
-
-
-
+
+
-
+
43%
  
Larry Craig (R)
+
+
-
-
-
+
+
-
+
63%
  
ILLINOIS
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Richard Durbin (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
  
Peter G. Fitzgerald (R)
*
*
-
-
-
+
+
-
+
43%
  
INDIANA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Richard G. Lugar (R)
-
+
+
-
-
-
+
-
+
44%
  
Evan Bayh (D)
*
*
-
+
+
-
-
+
-
43%
  
IOWA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
    
Charles Grassley (R)
+
+
+
+
-
+
+
-
+
78%
  
4. PROTECTING THE GAS TAX—
THE BYRD AMENDMENT
Tom Harkin (D)
+
+
+
+
+
+
-
+
-
78%
  
KANSAS
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
   As you well know, gas prices went through the roof earlier this year. Seeking to cash in on the issue with voters in a tough election year, the Republican leadership in the Senate started floating proposals to temporarily suspend all or part of the 18.4-cent-per-gallon federal gas tax. The only problem is that the tax is the sole source of funding for the federal highway program. As the Senate began considering the FY2001 budget resolution, Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W.V.), a long-time highway advocate, took to the Senate floor and offered an amendment expressing the "sense of the Senate" that the budget resolution did not assume repeal of any part of the gas tax.
AED urged senators to vote "yes" on the Byrd amendment. Its passage by a vote of 65 to 35 was an early and important show of support for the federal highway program and the concept of the gas tax highway user fee in general. (Senate Vote 106-2-57, April 10, 2000)

 

Sam Brownback (R)
-
+
+
-
-
+
+
-
+
56%
  
Pat Roberts (R)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
100%
  
KENTUCKY
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Mitch McConnel (R)
+
+
+
-
-
+
+
-
+
67%
  
Jim Bunning (R)
*
*
+
-
-
+
+
-
+
57%
  
LOUISIANA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
John Breaux (D)
+
+
+
+
+
+
-
+
+
89%
  
Mary Landrieu (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
+
78%
  
MAINE
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Olympia Snowe (R)
+
+
+
-
-
-
+
-
+
56%
  
Susan Collins (R)
+
+
+
-
-
+
+
+
+
78%
  
MARYLAND
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
    
Paul Sarbanes (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
  
5. PARTIAL GAS TAX MORATORIUM
—THE LOTT PROPOSAL
Barbara Mikulski (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
  
MASSACHUSETTS
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Despite the strong show of support for the federal highway program a few days earlier with the vote on the Byrd amendment, gas tax opponents persisted in their efforts. Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.) brought legislation to the floor that would have suspended 4.3 cents of the tax through the end of 2000. The Lott proposal would have cost the Highway Trust Fund and estimated $6 billion. Senate highway advocates immediately launched a filibuster, which Lott sought to end by calling for a cloture vote.

AED urged senators to vote "no" on the cloture motion. The Senate voted 56 to 43 against invoking cloture, effectively killing the Lott bill. (Senate Roll Call Vote 106-2-80, April 12, 2000)
Edward Kennedy (D)
+
NV
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
63%
  
John Kerry (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
  
MICHIGAN
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Carl Levin (D)
-
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
56%
  
Spencer Abraham (R)
-
+
+
-
-
+
+
-
+
56%
  
MINNESOTA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Paul Wellstone (D)
+
-
+
+
+
-
+
+
-
67%
  
Rod Grams (R)
+
+
-
-
-
+
+
-
+
56%
  
MISSISSIPPI
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Thad Cochran (R)
+
+
+
-
-
+
+
+
+
78%
    
Trent Lott (R)
+
+
+
-
-
+
+
-
+
67%
  
6. THE VOINOVICH TRANSIT AMENDMENT
MISSOURI
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Christopher Bond (R)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
100%
   You can’t lie to the voters. If you tell them you’re taking their money for something specific, you shouldn’t be able to use it for something else. Too bad not everybody agrees. In June, Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio) proposed legislation that would have allowed states to use federal highway money to fund mass transit projects. Transit may be of great local benefit for some communities, but it doesn’t serve the national interest the way roads do. The Voinovich proposal would have undermined the fundamental purpose of the federal highway program: to create a well-integrated, national road system.
AED urged senators to vote “no” on the Voinovich amendment, which was defeated by a vote of 52 to 46. (Senate Roll Call Vote 106-2-130, June 16, 2000)
John Ashcroft (R)
-
+
+
+
+
+
+
-
+
78%
  
MONTANA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Max Baucus (D)
+
+
+
+
+
+
-
+
-
78%
  
Conrad Burns (R)
+
+
-
+
-
+
+
+
+
78%
  
NEBRASKA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
J. Robert Kerrey (D)
+
+
+
+
+
+
-
+
-
78%
  
Chuck Hagel (R)
+
+
+
+
-
+
+
+
+
89%
  
NEVADA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Harry Reid (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
  
Richard Bryan (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
    
NEW HAMPSHIRE
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
7. THE DEMOCRATIC ESTATE TAX PROPOSAL
Robert C. Smith (R)
-
+
+
-
-
+
+
-
+
56%
  
Judd Gregg (R)
-
+
-
-
-
+
+
-
+
44%
   For more than a decade, AED has been at the forefront of groups advocating estate tax repeal. We’ve come a long way, baby! Republicans, and an increasing number of Democrats, are jumping on the bandwagon. They realize the enormous impact that the tax has on family businesses and wealth. Repeal opponents have now been driven into a reform posture, advocating reducing the tax but not getting rid of it entirely. This summer, as Congress took up estate tax repeal, Democrats offered their own watered-down alternative. Their plan, which would have increased the value of assets not subject to the tax and decreased tax rates, was too little too late and would have killed real reform.
AED urged members of Congress to vote “no” and reject the Democratic estate tax reform alternative, which they did by a vote of 53 to 46 in the Senate and 222 to 196 in the House. (Senate Roll Call Vote 106-2-180, July 15; House Roll Call Vote 106-2-252, June 9, 2000)
NEW JERSEY
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Frank Lautenberg (D)
+
+
-
+
+
-
-
+
-
56%
  
Robert Torricelli (D)
+
NV
+
+
+
-
-
+
+
75%
  
NEW MEXICO
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Pete Domenici (R)
+
+
+
+
-
NV
+
+
+
88%
  
Jeff Bingaman (D)
+
+
+
+
+
+
-
+
-
78%
  
NEW YORK
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D)
+
+
-
+
+
-
-
+
-
56%
  
Charles Schumer (D)
*
*
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
57%
  
NORTH CAROLINA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Jesse Helms (R)
+
+
+
+
-
+
+
-
+
78%
  
John Edwards (D)
*
*
-
+
+
-
-
+
-
33%
  
NORTH DAKOTA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
    
Kent Conrad (D)
+
+
+
+
+
+
-
+
-
78%
  
8. FULL GAS TAX MORATORIUM—
THE ABRAHAM AMENDMENT
Byron Dorgan (D)
+
+
+
+
+
+
-
+
-
78%
  
OHIO
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
   Gas tax repeal advocates made a third run at the federal road program’s sole funding source earlier this summer. Sens. Spencer Abraham (R-Mich.), Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas), Rod Grams (R-Minn.) and Peter Fitzgerald (R-Ill.) introduced legislation to suspend the entire 18.4-cent-per-gallon gas tax for 150 days. Although its authors claimed that the Highway Trust Fund would be reimbursed for lost gas tax revenue out of the general fund, this could not be guaranteed. The legislation would therefore likely have cost the federal highway program more than $18 billion and would have resulted in a massive voter backlash against the user fee when the tax went back into effect next year.
AED urged senators to vote “no” on the Abraham gas tax repeal bill, which was offered as an amendment during the Senate debate over estate tax repeal. The Abraham amendment failed by a vote of 59 to 40. (Senate Roll Call Vote 106-2-183, July 15, 2000)
Mike DeWine (R)
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
+
+
78%
  
George Voinovich (R)
*
*
-
+
+
-
+
+
-
57%
  
OKLAHOMA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Don Nickles (R)
-
+
-
-
-
-
+
-
+
33%
  
James Inhofe (R)
-
+
+
-
-
+
+
-
+
56%
  
OREGON
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Ron Wyden (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
+
78%
  
Gordon Smith (R)
+
+
+
-
-
+
+
-
+
67%
  
PENNSYLVANIA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Arlen Specter (R)
+
-
+
-
-
-
-
-
-
22%
  
Rick Santorum (R)
+
+
+
-
-
-
+
-
+
56%
  
RHODE ISLAND
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
    
Lincoln Chaffee (R)
*
*
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
57%
  
9. ESTATE TAX REPEAL
Jack Reed (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
  
SOUTH CAROLINA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
   Reps. Jennifer Dunn (R-Wash.) and John Tanner (D-Tenn.) co-authored bipartisan legislation designed to eliminate the estate tax over 10 years by gradually drawing down rates. Both the House and Senate took up the Dunn-Tanner legislation this summer.
AED urged a “yes” vote on the estate tax repeal bill, which passed the Senate by a vote of 59 to 39 and the House by a vote of 279 to 136. (Senate Roll Call Vote 106-2-197, July 15, 2000. House Roll Call Vote 106-2-254, June 9, 2000)
Strom Thurmond (R)
-
+
+
-
-
+
+
-
+
56%
  
Ernest Hollings (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
  
SOUTH DAKOTA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Thomas Daschle (D)
+
+
+
+
+
+
-
+
NV
88%
  
Tim Johnson (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
  
TENNESSEE
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
  
Fred Thompson (R)
-
+
+
+
-
+
+
-
+
67%
  
Bill Frist (R)
+
+
-
+
+
+
+
-
+
88%
    
TEXAS
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
    
Phil Gramm (R)
+
+
-
-
-
+
+
-
+
56%
    
Kay Bailey Hutchison (R)
-
+
+
-
-
-
+
-
+
44%
    
UTAH
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
    
Orrin Hatch (R)
+
+
+
-
-
+
+
-
+
67%
    
Robert Bennett (R)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
-
+
89%
    
VERMONT
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
    
Patrick Leahy (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
    
Jim Jeffords (R)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
    
VIRGINIA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
    
John Warner (R)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
100%
    
Chuck Robb (D)
+
+
-
+
+
-
-
+
+
67%
    
WASHINGTON
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
    
Slade Gorton (R)
+
-
+
-
-
+
+
-
+
56%
    
Patty Murray (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
+
78%
    
WEST VIRGINIA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
    
Robert Byrd (D)
+
+
+
+
+
+
-
+
-
78%
    
John D. Rockefeller IV (D)
+
+
+
+
NV
NV
-
+
-
71%
    
WISCONSIN
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
    
Herbert Kohl (D)
+
+
+
+
+
-
-
+
-
67%
  
Russ Feingold (D)
+
+
+
+
+
+
-
+
-
78%
  
WYOMING
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Total
    
Craig Thomas (R)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
100%
  
Michael Enzi (R)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
100%
    

 
 
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