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Representative Sheryl L. Allen
Utah legislator profile

Years served in the Utah legislature

First session in legislature: 1995
Most recent year of service for which data are available: 2010
Total sessions served in Utah House as of 2010: 16
Total sessions served in Utah Senate as of 2010: 0

How to read the statistical profile

I present a variety of statistics about Rep. Sheryl L. Allen'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. Allen's statistical profile

2007200820092010
Service summary. Service prior to 2007 (if any) is not shown here. My database goes back only to 2007.
  Chamber HouseHouseHouseHouse
  District H19H19H19H19
  Party RRRR
Leadership NoneNoneNoneNone
Years in chamber 13141516
Years comparison HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher
 
2007200820092010
Bills sponsored (learn more) Bills written and promoted by the legislator in his/her own chamber.
Introduced by Allen 6874
Chamber average 6.16.15.96.1
Difference -0.1+1.9+1.1-2.1
Comparison ==Higher==Lower
 
2007200820092010
Bill passage rate (learn more). What percent of Rep. Allen's sponsored bills pass and are officially "enrolled"? (I ignore whether the governor signed or vetoted the bill.)
Bills introduced 6874
Bills passed 2343
Passage rate 33%38%57%75%
Chamber average 51%53%60%61%
Difference -17.6-14.8-2.9+14
Comparison LowerLower==Higher
 
2007200820092010
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 3210
Chamber average 3.13.22.82.8
Difference -0.1-1.2-1.8-2.8
Comparison ====LowerLower
 
2007200820092010
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 21583926
Total votes held 602616600614
Absentee rate 3.5%9.4%6.5%4.2%
Chamber average 8.3%8.3%6.0%6.8%
Difference -4.8+1.1+0.5-2.6
Comparison Lower====Lower
 
2007200820092010
"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 44284031
Total votes held 602616600614
"Nay" rate 7.3%4.5%6.7%5.0%
Chamber average 7.2%6.0%8.1%7.4%
Difference +0.1-1.5-1.4-2.4
Comparison ==LowerLowerLower
 
2007200820092010
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 65%77%72%79%
Chamber average 67%69%66%69%
Difference -1.2+7.9+5.2+10
Comparison ==HigherHigherHigher
 
2007200820092010
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.
 
2007200820092010
Party support score (overall) (learn more). How consistently does Rep. Allen 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) 92%94%93%93%
Chamber average 95%95%94%95%
Difference -2.8-1.1-1.6-1.5
Comparison LowerLowerLowerLowerLower
 
2007200820092010
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) 48%56%60%58%
Chamber average 79%82%81%84%
Difference -31.3-25.3-21.7-26.3
Comparison LowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLower

Votes on Rep. Allen's bills

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

Rep. Allen's most divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Rep. Allen 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
2008 Allen HB0295 33 37 5.7% House/ failed
2007 Allen HB0214 44 28 22% House/ passed 3rd reading
2009 Allen HB0236S01 49 24 34% House/ passed 3rd reading
2009 Allen HB0042 50 21 41% House/ passed 3rd reading
2010 Allen HB0074 54 18 50% House/ passed 3rd reading
2009 Allen HB0312 55 15 57% House/ passed 3rd reading
2009 Allen HJR001S01 23 3 77% Senate/ pass 2nd & 3rd (Suspension)
2008 Allen HB0135S01 62 8 77% House/ passed 3rd reading
2009 Allen HB0236S01 64 7 80% House/ concurs with Senate amendment
2008 Allen HB0470S01 61 6 82% House/ passed 3rd reading

Rep. Allen's least divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Rep. Allen 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
2010 Allen HCR001 27 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2010 Allen HCR001 24 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2010 Allen HB0081S01 66 0 100% House/ concurs with Senate amendment
2010 Allen HB0081S01 28 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2010 Allen HB0081S01 22 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2010 Allen HB0081S01 65 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2010 Allen HB0074 25 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2009 Allen HJR001S01 75 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2009 Allen HB0236S01 24 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2009 Allen HB0236S01 24 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd reading