Vern Buchanan
Rep. Vern Buchanan's 2017 Report Card
Representative from Florida's 16th District
Serving Jan 3, 2013 – Jan 3, 2021
These year-end statistics cover Buchanan's record during the 2017 legislative year (Jan 3, 2017-Dec 31, 2017) and compare him to other representatives serving at the end of that period. Last updated on Jan 6, 2018.
A higher or lower number below doesn't necessarily make this legislator any better or worse, or more or less effective, than other Members of Congress. We present these statistics for you to understand the quantitative aspects of Buchanan's legislative career and make your own judgements based on what activities you think are important.
Cosponsored the fewest bills compared to Florida Delegation
Buchanan cosponsored 79 bills and resolutions introduced by other Members of Congress. Cosponsorship shows a willingness to work with others to advance policy goals. View Cosponsored Bills »
Compare to all Florida Delegation (0th percentile); Serving 10+ Years (10th percentile); House Republicans (12th percentile); All Representatives (7th percentile).
Joined bipartisan bills the 28th most often compared to House Republicans
In this era of partisanship, it is encouraging to see Members of Congress working across the aisle. Of the 79 bills that Buchanan cosponsored, 24% were introduced by a legislator who was not a Republican. View Cosponsored Bills »
Compare to all Florida Delegation (44th percentile); Serving 10+ Years (54th percentile); House Republicans (88th percentile); All Representatives (62nd percentile).
Ranked 33rd most liberal compared to House Republicans
For more, see our methodology. Note that because on this page only legislative activity in 2017 is considered, the ideology score here may differ from Buchanan's score elsewhere on GovTrack.
Compare to all Florida Delegation (52nd percentile); Serving 10+ Years (68th percentile); House Republicans (13th percentile); All Representatives (52nd percentile).
Was 47th most absent in votes compared to All Representatives
Buchanan missed 7.9% of votes (56 of 710 votes) in 2017. View Buchanan's Profile »
Compare to all Florida Delegation (48th percentile); Serving 10+ Years (86th percentile); All Representatives (89th percentile).
Got the 52nd most cosponsors on their bills compared to House Republicans
Buchanan's bills and resolutions had 281 cosponsors in 2017. Securing cosponsors is an important part of getting support for a bill, although having more cosponsors does not always mean a bill will get a vote. View Bills »
Compare to all Florida Delegation (78th percentile); Serving 10+ Years (68th percentile); House Republicans (78th percentile); All Representatives (76th percentile).
Ranked the 81st top leader compared to All Representatives
For more, see our methodology. Note that because on this page only legislative activity in 2017 is considered, the leadership score here may differ from Buchanan's score elsewhere on GovTrack.
Buchanan introduced 0 bills that became law, including via incorporation into other measures, in 2017. Keep in mind that it takes a law to repeal a law. Very few bills ever become law.
Compare to all Florida Delegation (0th percentile); Serving 10+ Years (0th percentile); House Republicans (0th percentile); All Representatives (0th percentile).
The legislator must be the primary sponsor of the bill or joint resolution that was enacted or the primary sponsor of a bill or joint resolution for which at least about one third of its text was incorporated into another bill or joint resolution that was enacted as law, as determined by an automated analysis. While a legislator may lay claim to authoring other bills that became law, these cases are difficult for us to track quantitatively. We also exclude bills where the sponsor's original intent is not in the final bill.
Buchanan introduced 11 bills and resolutions in 2017. View Bills »
Most bills and resolutions languish in committee without any action. Buchanan introduced 1 bill in 2017 that got past committee and to the floor for consideration.
Those bills were: H.R. 115: Thin Blue Line Act
Compare to all Florida Delegation (15th percentile); Serving 10+ Years (32nd percentile); House Republicans (13th percentile); All Representatives (29th percentile).
3 of Buchanan's bills and resolutions in 2017 had a cosponsor who was a chair or ranking member of a committee that the bill was referred to. Getting support from committee leaders on relevant committees is a crucial step in moving legislation forward.
Those bills were: H.R. 113: Safeguard American Food Exports Act ...; H.R. 115: Thin Blue Line Act; H.R. 854: Retirement Security for American Workers ...
The House and Senate often work on the same issue simultaneously by introducing companion bills in each chamber. 2 of Buchanan's bills and resolutions had a companion bill in the Senate. Working with a sponsor in the other chamber makes a bill more likely to be passed by both the House and Senate.
Those bills were: H.R. 111: Support Our Start-Ups Act; H.R. 116: Main Street Fairness Act
Compare to all Florida Delegation (52nd percentile); Serving 10+ Years (52nd percentile); House Republicans (52nd percentile); All Representatives (54th percentile).
In this era of partisanship, it is important to see Members of Congress working across the aisle. 6 of Buchanan's 11 bills and resolutions had both a Democratic cosponsor and a Republican cosponsor in 2017.
Buchanan held a leadership position on 0 committees and 1 subcommittee, as either a chair (majority party) or ranking member (minority party), at the end of the session. View Buchanan's Profile »
Compare to all Florida Delegation (52nd percentile); Serving 10+ Years (20th percentile); House Republicans (37th percentile); All Representatives (39th percentile).
GovTrack looked at whether Buchanan supported any of 21 government transparency, accountability, and effectiveness bills in the House that we identified in this session. We gave Buchanan 1 point, based on one point for cosponsoring and three points for sponsoring any of these bills.
Buchanan cosponsored H.R. 4494: Congressional Accountability and Hush Fund ...
Compare to all Florida Delegation (30th percentile); Serving 10+ Years (33rd percentile); House Republicans (36th percentile); All Representatives (28th percentile).
Freshmen/Sophomores: Freshmen and sophomores are Members of Congress whose first term (in the same chamber at the end of 2017) was the 115th Congress (freshmen) or 114th (sophomores). Members of Congress who took office within the last few months of a Congress are considered freshmen in the next Congress as well.