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Senator Scott K. Jenkins
Utah legislator profile

Years served in the Utah legislature

First session in legislature: 2001
Most recent year of service for which data are available: 2016
Total sessions served in Utah House as of 2016: 0
Total sessions served in Utah Senate as of 2016: 16

How to read the statistical profile

I present a variety of statistics about Sen. Scott K. Jenkins'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.

Sen. Jenkins's statistical profile

2007200820092010201120122013201420152016
Service summary. Service prior to 2007 (if any) is not shown here. My database goes back only to 2007.
  Chamber SenateSenateSenateSenateSenateSenateSenateSenateSenateSenate
  District S20S20S20S20S20S20S20S20S20S20
  Party RRRRRRRRRR
Leadership NoneNoneWhipMajLdrMajLdrMajLdrNoneNoneNoneNone
Years in chamber 78910111213141516
Years comparison ==HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher
 
2007200820092010201120122013201420152016
Bills sponsored (learn more) Bills written and promoted by the legislator in his/her own chamber.
Introduced by Jenkins 781310811816155
Chamber average 9.69.89.08.9119.811111110
Difference -2.6-1.8+4.0+1.1-2.6+1.2-2.8+5.4+3.6-5.1
Comparison LowerLowerHigher==Lower==LowerHigherHigherLower
 
2007200820092010201120122013201420152016
Bill passage rate (learn more). What percent of Sen. Jenkins's sponsored bills pass and are officially "enrolled"? (I ignore whether the governor signed or vetoted the bill.)
Bills introduced 781310811816155
Bills passed 561168871194
Passage rate 71%75%85%60%100%73%88%69%60%80%
Chamber average 63%68%63%69%70%72%65%70%68%68%
Difference +8.5+7.0+22-8.6+30+1.3+23-0.7-8.2+12
Comparison Higher==HigherLowerHigherHigher==Higher==LowerHigher
 
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 5179101289978
Chamber average 12111111111211111213
Difference -6.6+5.5-2.1-1.0+0.6-3.8-2.1-2.5-5.3-4.8
Comparison LowerHigher======Lower====LowerLower
 
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 4941575514910985789042
Total votes held 820806807786940890940840951860
Absentee rate 6.0%5.1%7.1%7.0%16%12%9.0%9.3%9.5%4.9%
Chamber average 8.9%9.6%11%12%14%9.9%11%12%12%14%
Difference -2.9-4.5-4.0-4.9+1.6+2.1-2.1-2.2-2.2-9.1
Comparison LowerLowerLowerLower======Lower==Lower
 
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 63373136325444438060
Total votes held 820806807786940890940840951860
"Nay" rate 7.7%4.6%3.8%4.6%3.4%6.1%4.7%5.1%8.4%7.0%
Chamber average 4.1%4.1%4.1%4.6%3.4%4.8%3.7%3.6%4.8%3.7%
Difference +3.6+0.5-0.30.0+0.0+1.3+1.0+1.5+3.6+3.3
Comparison HigherHigher========HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher
 
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 64%62%72%73%87%65%57%47%54%60%
Chamber average 70%69%70%70%72%70%69%67%68%67%
Difference -6.3-7.4+2.6+2.3+16-5.2-11.2-20.2-14.5-6.5
Comparison LowerLower====Higher==LowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLower
 
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 Sen. Jenkins 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%96%97%98%97%94%96%95%91%93%
Chamber average 97%97%97%97%98%96%97%97%96%97%
Difference -3.8-0.9-0.7+0.4-1.0-2.2-1.1-2.0-4.9-3.7
Comparison LowerLowerLowerLowerLower==LowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLower
 
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) 87%88%93%98%100%90%96%100%79%92%
Chamber average 83%85%89%89%91%88%85%84%83%87%
Difference +3.3+2.7+3.2+9.7+8.8+2.3+11+16-4.0+4.7
Comparison HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher==HigherHigherHigherHigherLowerHigher

Votes on Sen. Jenkins's bills

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

Sen. Jenkins's most divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Sen. Jenkins 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
2009 Jenkins SB0272S02 38 37 1.3% House/ passed 3rd reading
2015 Jenkins SJR002 14 15 3.4% Senate/ failed
2014 Jenkins SB0023 33 36 4.3% House/ failed
2014 Jenkins SJR015S01 13 15 7.1% Senate/ failed
2010 Jenkins SB0109S01 15 13 7.1% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2015 Jenkins SB0150 39 32 9.9% House/ passed 3rd reading
2014 Jenkins sb0179s02 39 29 15% House/ floor amendment
2014 Jenkins SB0179S03 39 29 15% House/ floor amendment
2015 Jenkins SB0242 15 11 15% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2010 Jenkins SB0217S02 15 11 15% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings

Sen. Jenkins's least divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Sen. Jenkins 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 Jenkins SCR001 28 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2016 Jenkins SCR001 27 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2016 Jenkins SB0184S03 61 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2016 Jenkins SB0184S03 22 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2016 Jenkins SB0184S03 20 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2016 Jenkins SB0028 27 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2016 Jenkins SB0013 73 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2016 Jenkins SB0013 27 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2016 Jenkins SB0013 26 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2015 Jenkins SB0249 26 0 100% Senate/ concurs with House amendment