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Representative Merlynn T. Newbold
Utah legislator profile

Years served in the Utah legislature

First session in legislature: 2001
Most recent year of service for which data are available: 2012
Total sessions served in Utah House as of 2012: 11
Total sessions served in Utah Senate as of 2012: 0

How to read the statistical profile

I present a variety of statistics about Rep. Merlynn T. Newbold'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. Newbold's statistical profile

200720082009201020112012
Service summary. Service prior to 2007 (if any) is not shown here. My database goes back only to 2007.
  Chamber HouseHouseHouseHouseHouseHouse
  District H50H50H50H50H50H50
  Party RRRRRR
Leadership NoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNone
Years in chamber 67891011
Years comparison ==HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher
 
200720082009201020112012
Bills sponsored (learn more) Bills written and promoted by the legislator in his/her own chamber.
Introduced by Newbold 6889117
Chamber average 6.16.15.96.16.36.4
Difference -0.1+1.9+2.1+2.9+4.7+0.6
Comparison ==HigherHigherHigherHigherHigher==
 
200720082009201020112012
Bill passage rate (learn more). What percent of Rep. Newbold's sponsored bills pass and are officially "enrolled"? (I ignore whether the governor signed or vetoted the bill.)
Bills introduced 6889117
Bills passed 557896
Passage rate 83%63%88%89%82%86%
Chamber average 51%53%60%61%55%54%
Difference +32+10+28+28+27+32
Comparison HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher
 
200720082009201020112012
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 522367
Chamber average 3.13.22.82.83.33.1
Difference +1.9-1.2-0.8+0.2+2.7+3.9
Comparison Higher======HigherHigherHigher
 
200720082009201020112012
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 405632547840
Total votes held 602616600614651651
Absentee rate 6.6%9.1%5.3%8.8%12%6.1%
Chamber average 8.3%8.3%6.0%6.8%7.1%5.7%
Difference -1.7+0.8-0.7+2.0+4.9+0.4
Comparison ======HigherHigher==
 
200720082009201020112012
"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 524352564954
Total votes held 602616600614651651
"Nay" rate 8.6%7.0%8.7%9.1%7.5%8.3%
Chamber average 7.2%6.0%8.1%7.4%8.4%7.8%
Difference +1.4+1.0+0.6+1.7-0.9+0.5
Comparison HigherHigher==Higher====
 
200720082009201020112012
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 68%64%62%61%71%64%
Chamber average 67%69%66%69%69%67%
Difference +1.1-4.9-4.5-8.0+2.0-3.6
Comparison ==LowerLowerLower====
 
200720082009201020112012
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.
 
200720082009201020112012
Party support score (overall) (learn more). How consistently does Rep. Newbold 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) 93%93%93%93%93%93%
Chamber average 95%95%94%95%94%94%
Difference -1.3-2.4-1.2-2.0-0.9-1.2
Comparison LowerLowerLowerLowerLower==Lower
 
200720082009201020112012
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) 89%92%92%97%93%91%
Chamber average 79%82%81%84%85%83%
Difference +9.7+10+10+13+8.3+8.1
Comparison HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher

Votes on Rep. Newbold's bills

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

Rep. Newbold's most divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Rep. Newbold 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
2011 Newbold HB0301 39 31 11% House/ passed 3rd reading
2009 Newbold HB0066S09 33 42 12% House/ failed
2011 Newbold HB0302S01 29 41 17% House/ failed
2011 Newbold HB0302S01 46 28 24% House/ passed 3rd reading
2009 Newbold HB0002S01 15 9 25% Senate/ pass 2nd & 3rd (Suspension)
2009 Newbold HB0002S01 47 27 27% House/ concurs with Senate amendments
2007 Newbold HB0038S01 19 10 31% Senate/ pass 2nd (Suspension
2011 Newbold HB0087 50 25 33% House/ passed 3rd reading
2007 Newbold HB0038S01 48 24 33% House/ concurs with Senate amendments
2009 Newbold HB0002S01 52 22 41% House/ passed 3rd reading

Rep. Newbold's least divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Rep. Newbold 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
2012 Newbold HB0515 71 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2012 Newbold HB0389 19 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2012 Newbold HB0389 73 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2012 Newbold HB0156 28 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2012 Newbold HB0105 26 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2012 Newbold HB0105 72 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2011 Newbold HB0427 26 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2011 Newbold HB0427 73 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2011 Newbold HB0302S01 25 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2011 Newbold HB0250 26 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading