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Representative Kera Birkeland
Utah legislator profile

Years served in the Utah legislature

First session in legislature: 2021
Most recent year of service for which data are available: 2024
Total sessions served in Utah House as of 2024: 4
Total sessions served in Utah Senate as of 2024: 0

How to read the statistical profile

I present a variety of statistics about Rep. Kera Birkeland'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. Birkeland's statistical profile

2021202220232024
Service summary. Service prior to 2007 (if any) is not shown here. My database goes back only to 2007.
  Chamber HouseHouseHouseHouse
  District H53H53H4H4
  Party RRRR
Leadership NoneNoneNoneNone
Years in chamber 1234
Years comparison LowerLowerLowerLower
 
2021202220232024
Bills sponsored (learn more) Bills written and promoted by the legislator in his/her own chamber.
Introduced by Birkeland 892018
Chamber average 6.67.18.18.5
Difference +1.4+1.9+12+9.5
Comparison HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher
 
2021202220232024
Bill passage rate (learn more). What percent of Rep. Birkeland's sponsored bills pass and are officially "enrolled"? (I ignore whether the governor signed or vetoted the bill.)
Bills introduced 892018
Bills passed 24410
Passage rate 25%44%20%56%
Chamber average 60%58%56%56%
Difference -34.8-14.2-36.3-0.3
Comparison LowerLowerLowerLowerLower==
 
2021202220232024
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 1133
Chamber average 3.13.03.53.3
Difference -2.1-2.0-0.5-0.3
Comparison LowerLower====
 
2021202220232024
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 465484188
Total votes held 666711803845
Absentee rate 6.9%7.6%10%22%
Chamber average 6.1%5.7%6.4%6.8%
Difference +0.8+1.9+3.6+15
Comparison ====HigherHigherHigherHigher
 
2021202220232024
"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 58556841
Total votes held 666711803845
"Nay" rate 8.7%7.7%8.5%4.9%
Chamber average 7.7%6.5%7.1%5.7%
Difference +1.0+1.2+1.4-0.8
Comparison ==HigherHigher==
 
2021202220232024
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 72%65%69%72%
Chamber average 66%67%69%68%
Difference +5.8-1.8-0.4+4.7
Comparison Higher======
 
2021202220232024
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.
 
2021202220232024
Party support score (overall) (learn more). How consistently does Rep. Birkeland 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%96%
Chamber average 94%95%96%96%
Difference -0.3-2.1-3.1-0.5
Comparison ==LowerLowerLowerLower==
 
2021202220232024
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) 92%87%89%96%
Chamber average 85%84%88%87%
Difference +7.0+2.8+1.1+8.1
Comparison Higher====Higher

Votes on Rep. Birkeland's bills

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

Rep. Birkeland's most divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Rep. Birkeland 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
2023 Birkeland HB0195S02 13 14 3.7% Senate/ failed
2021 Birkeland HB0154S03 13 15 7.1% Senate/ failed
2022 Birkeland HB0011S04 16 13 10% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2023 Birkeland HB0195S02 42 30 17% House/ passed 3rd reading
2024 Birkeland HB0198S02 17 12 17% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2022 Birkeland HB0011S04 46 29 23% House/ concurs with Senate amendment
2024 Birkeland HB0289S02 44 27 24% House/ concurs with Senate amendment
2024 Birkeland HB0510 43 24 28% House/ passed 3rd reading
2023 Birkeland HB0195S02 9 17 31% Senate/ failed
2024 Birkeland HB0351S01 46 24 31% House/ passed 3rd reading

Rep. Birkeland's least divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Rep. Birkeland 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
2024 Birkeland HB0477S01 72 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2024 Birkeland HB0399S01 27 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2024 Birkeland HB0399S01 69 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2024 Birkeland HB0390S01 71 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2024 Birkeland HB0289S02 28 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2024 Birkeland HB0154 69 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2024 Birkeland HB0105S02 68 0 100% House/ concurs with Senate amendment
2024 Birkeland HB0105S02 28 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2024 Birkeland HB0105S02 74 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2024 Birkeland HB0099 26 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading