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Representative LaVar Christensen
Utah legislator profile

Years served in the Utah legislature

First session in legislature: 2003
Most recent year of service for which data are available: 2018
Total sessions served in Utah House as of 2018: 12
Total sessions served in Utah Senate as of 2018: 0

How to read the statistical profile

I present a variety of statistics about Rep. LaVar Christensen'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. Christensen's statistical profile

20112012201320142015201620172018
Service summary. Service prior to 2007 (if any) is not shown here. My database goes back only to 2007.
  Chamber HouseHouseHouseHouseHouseHouseHouseHouse
  District H48H48H32H32H32H32H32H32
  Party RRRRRRRR
Leadership NoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNone
Years in chamber 56789101112
Years comparison ====HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher
 
20112012201320142015201620172018
Bills sponsored (learn more) Bills written and promoted by the legislator in his/her own chamber.
Introduced by Christensen 7586111068
Chamber average 6.36.45.86.46.77.06.77.1
Difference +0.7-1.4+2.2-0.4+4.3+3.0-0.7+0.9
Comparison ==LowerHigher==HigherHigherHigher====
 
20112012201320142015201620172018
Bill passage rate (learn more). What percent of Rep. Christensen's sponsored bills pass and are officially "enrolled"? (I ignore whether the governor signed or vetoted the bill.)
Bills introduced 7586111068
Bills passed 35435645
Passage rate 43%100%50%50%45%60%67%63%
Chamber average 55%54%66%52%63%54%61%53%
Difference -12.0+46-15.8-2.2-18.0+6.5+5.6+9.6
Comparison LowerHigherHigherLower==Lower====Higher
 
20112012201320142015201620172018
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 01122102
Chamber average 3.33.13.53.53.83.33.63.4
Difference -3.3-2.1-2.5-1.5-1.8-2.3-3.6-1.4
Comparison LowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLower
 
20112012201320142015201620172018
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 2722244378234332
Total votes held 651651658664699657727734
Absentee rate 4.1%3.4%3.6%6.5%11%3.5%5.9%4.4%
Chamber average 7.1%5.7%5.9%6.2%6.3%6.4%5.2%8.0%
Difference -3.0-2.3-2.3+0.3+4.7-2.9+0.7-3.6
Comparison LowerLowerLower==HigherLower====
 
20112012201320142015201620172018
"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 3838333828222228
Total votes held 651651658664699657727734
"Nay" rate 5.8%5.8%5.0%5.7%4.0%3.3%3.0%3.8%
Chamber average 8.4%7.8%7.3%7.5%8.6%7.3%7.1%6.5%
Difference -2.6-2.0-2.3-1.8-4.6-4.0-4.1-2.7
Comparison LowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLower
 
20112012201320142015201620172018
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 79%75%81%75%81%77%87%83%
Chamber average 69%67%67%67%67%66%67%66%
Difference +10+7.0+14+7.9+14+10+20+16
Comparison HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher
 
20112012201320142015201620172018
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.
 
20112012201320142015201620172018
Party support score (overall) (learn more). How consistently does Rep. Christensen 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) 95%95%96%95%97%97%98%98%
Chamber average 94%94%95%94%94%95%95%94%
Difference +1.5+1.1+1.0+0.4+2.8+1.9+2.9+3.9
Comparison HigherHigherHigher==HigherHigherHigherHigherHigher
 
20112012201320142015201620172018
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) 95%86%81%75%88%91%92%84%
Chamber average 85%83%81%80%82%85%87%83%
Difference +9.8+3.0-0.4-4.7+6.5+5.2+4.7+1.1
Comparison HigherHigher====LowerHigherHigherHigher==

Votes on Rep. Christensen's bills

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

Rep. Christensen's most divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Rep. Christensen 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
2014 Christensen HB0418S03 13 13 0.0% Senate/ failed
2013 Christensen HB0381 38 35 4.1% House/ passed 3rd reading
2016 Christensen HB0220S01 41 33 11% House/ passed 3rd reading
2018 Christensen HB0258S02 39 31 11% House/ passed 3rd reading
2017 Christensen HB0289S03 40 30 14% House/ passed 3rd reading
2011 Christensen HB0176S02 16 12 14% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings
2015 Christensen HB0360S01 15 10 20% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2016 Christensen HB0220S01 44 28 22% House/ concurs with Senate amendment
2014 Christensen HB0318S01 46 27 26% House/ passed 3rd reading
2013 Christensen HB0143S01 27 47 27% House/ failed

Rep. Christensen's least divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Rep. Christensen 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
2018 Christensen HB0439S01 25 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2018 Christensen HB0439S01 70 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2018 Christensen HB0383S02 23 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2018 Christensen HB0366 25 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2018 Christensen HB0366 70 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2018 Christensen HB0258S02 25 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2018 Christensen HB0183 24 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2018 Christensen HB0183 68 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2017 Christensen HB0248S01 28 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2017 Christensen HB0068 26 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading