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Representative Melvin R. Brown
Utah legislator profile

Years served in the Utah legislature

First session in legislature: 1987
Most recent year of service for which data are available: 2016
Total sessions served in Utah House as of 2016: 24
Total sessions served in Utah Senate as of 2016: 0

How to read the statistical profile

I present a variety of statistics about Rep. Melvin R. Brown's service in the Utah legislature. I highlight differences from chamber averages using little green and red arrows. The number of arrows is statistically determined. More arrows indicate a larger difference compared to the chamber average, in relation to how much diversity there is among legislators on this metric. If all legislators introduce exactly 5 bills, then a legislator who introduces 10 is very different; if legislators vary wildly in how many bills they introduce (but the average is still 5), then a legislator who introduces 10 bills may be less different from average. The standard deviation measures this diversity.

Rep. Brown's statistical profile

2007200820092010201120122013201420152016
Service summary. Service prior to 2007 (if any) is not shown here. My database goes back only to 2007.
  Chamber HouseHouseHouseHouseHouseHouseHouseHouseHouseHouse
  District H53H53H53H53H53H53H53H53H53H53
  Party RRRRRRRRRR
Leadership NoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNone
Years in chamber 15161718192021222324
Years comparison HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher
 
2007200820092010201120122013201420152016
Bills sponsored (learn more) Bills written and promoted by the legislator in his/her own chamber.
Introduced by Brown 24658791242
Chamber average 6.16.15.96.16.36.45.86.46.77.0
Difference -4.1-2.1+0.1-1.1+1.7+0.6+3.2+5.6-2.7-5.0
Comparison LowerLower====Higher==HigherHigherHigherLowerLowerLower
 
2007200820092010201120122013201420152016
Bill passage rate (learn more). What percent of Rep. Brown's sponsored bills pass and are officially "enrolled"? (I ignore whether the governor signed or vetoted the bill.)
Bills introduced 24658791242
Bills passed 23447571231
Passage rate 100%75%67%80%88%71%78%100%75%50%
Chamber average 51%53%60%61%55%54%66%52%63%54%
Difference +49+22+7.1+19+33+17+12+48+12-3.5
Comparison HigherHigherHigher==HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher==
 
2007200820092010201120122013201420152016
Bills floor sponsored. A "floor sponsor" is like a secondary sponsor of a bill. After a bill passes the sponsor's chamber, its sponsor needs to find a "floor sponsor" in the other chamber to usher it through the other chamber.
Total floor sponsored 452381251422
Chamber average 3.13.22.82.83.33.13.53.53.83.3
Difference +0.9+1.8-0.8+0.2+4.7+8.9+1.5+11-1.8-1.3
Comparison ==Higher====HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherLowerLower
 
2007200820092010201120122013201420152016
Missed votes (learn more). Usually missed votes occur because of competing obligations within the legislature, not because the legislator has left the capitol.
Missed votes 558641562211631751575230
Total votes held 602616600614651651658664699657
Absentee rate 9.1%14%6.8%9.1%34%25%27%24%7.4%4.6%
Chamber average 8.3%8.3%6.0%6.8%7.1%5.7%5.9%6.2%6.3%6.4%
Difference +0.8+5.7+0.8+2.3+27+19+21+18+1.1-1.8
Comparison ==Higher==HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher====
 
2007200820092010201120122013201420152016
"Nay" votes (learn more). Most floor votes pass by overwhelming majorities, since unpopular bills get weeded out long before they reach the floor. As a result, "nay" votes are rare.
"Nay" votes 28222415191823275957
Total votes held 602616600614651651658664699657
"Nay" rate 4.7%3.6%4.0%2.4%2.9%2.8%3.5%4.1%8.4%8.7%
Chamber average 7.2%6.0%8.1%7.4%8.4%7.8%7.3%7.5%8.6%7.3%
Difference -2.5-2.4-4.1-5.0-5.5-5.0-3.8-3.4-0.2+1.4
Comparison LowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLower==Higher
 
2007200820092010201120122013201420152016
Winning side rate (learn more). What percentage of the time (excluding near-unanimous votes) is the legislator on the winning side of a floor vote?
Winning side rate 81%85%79%94%83%89%81%85%64%64%
Chamber average 67%69%66%69%69%67%67%67%67%66%
Difference +14+16+13+25+14+21+14+17-3.3-2.4
Comparison HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherLower==
 
2007200820092010201120122013201420152016
Ideology score (NOMINATE method) (learn more). Using W-NOMINATE algorithm developed by Congressional scholars, I calculate each legislator's relative ideology after each General Session. I describe the method here. Scores have no intrinsic meaning. They are only relative: A legislator with a higher score is to the right ideologically of a legislator with a lower scale. Scores may be compared only within a single chamber and a single year. In most years, a conservative Republican will have a score above 0; a score close to 100 is extreme.
Contact me for scores. They get misinterpreted often enough that I now provide them only to political scientists.
 
2007200820092010201120122013201420152016
Party support score (overall) (learn more). How consistently does Rep. Brown support his/her party? That is, what percentage of the time does the legislator vote with the majority of the other members of his/her party? Scores are usually easily above 90%.
Score (overall) 94%96%94%98%96%96%96%96%94%93%
Chamber average 95%95%94%95%94%94%95%94%94%95%
Difference -0.2+0.3-0.2+2.8+2.1+1.4+1.4+2.3-0.3-1.2
Comparison ======HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher==Lower
 
2007200820092010201120122013201420152016
Party support score (party-line only) (learn more). This is the same as the "raw" party support score, but we look only at party-line votes when calculating this. A "party-line" vote occurs when the majority of Democrats votes against the majority of Republicans. Although party-line votes are rare, looking at the legislator's party support score in this setting can be revealing.
Score (party-line only) 65%62%66%83%82%78%77%79%79%89%
Chamber average 79%82%81%84%85%83%81%80%82%85%
Difference -14.5-20.2-15.7-1.7-2.9-5.2-4.2-0.9-2.6+3.4
Comparison LowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLower====LowerLower====Higher

Votes on Rep. Brown's bills

Many votes have been held on bills sponsored by Rep. Brown. In the interest of space, I display only the most and least divisive votes held on Rep. Brown's bills.

Rep. Brown's most divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Rep. Brown that had the closest vote margin (as a percent of the total votes cast). When there are ties, I list the most recent bills first.

Year Sponsor Bill Ayes Nays Margin
(as % of total votes)
Type of vote
2013 Brown HB0088S02 40 32 11% House/ passed 3rd reading
2012 Brown HB0502S06 48 25 32% House/ passed 3rd reading
2007 Brown HB0352S04 45 20 38% House/ passed 3rd reading
2013 Brown HB0088S02 50 21 41% House/ concurs with Senate amendment
2012 Brown HB0087S02 55 16 55% House/ passed 3rd reading
2011 Brown HB0009 57 14 61% House/ passed 3rd reading
2013 Brown HB0236S01 21 5 62% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2007 Brown HB0352S04 23 5 64% Senate/ pass 2nd & 3rd (Suspension)
2012 Brown HB0502S06 60 13 64% House/ concurs with Senate amendment
2013 Brown HB0236S01 58 11 68% House/ concurs with Senate amendment

Rep. Brown's least divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Rep. Brown that had the widest vote margin (as a percent of the total votes cast). When there are ties, I display the most recent bills first.

Year Sponsor Bill Ayes Nays Margin
(as % of total votes)
Type of vote
2016 Brown HB0360S02 69 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2016 Brown HB0248 22 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2016 Brown HB0248 71 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2015 Brown HB0349 25 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2015 Brown HB0349 72 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2015 Brown HB0245 26 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2015 Brown HB0237S01 22 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2015 Brown HB0237S01 26 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2015 Brown HB0237S01 73 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2014 Brown HR0003 74 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading