Menu Adam R Brown

Return to the Guide to the Utah Legislature.

Senator Kevin T. Van Tassell
Utah legislator profile

Years served in the Utah legislature

First session in legislature: 2007
Most recent year of service for which data are available: 2018
Total sessions served in Utah House as of 2018: 0
Total sessions served in Utah Senate as of 2018: 12

How to read the statistical profile

I present a variety of statistics about Sen. Kevin T. Van Tassell'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. Van Tassell's statistical profile

200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018
Service summary. Service prior to 2007 (if any) is not shown here. My database goes back only to 2007.
  Chamber SenateSenateSenateSenateSenateSenateSenateSenateSenateSenateSenateSenate
  District S26S26S26S26S26S26S26S26S26S26S26S26
  Party RRRRRRRRRRRR
Leadership NoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNone
Years in chamber 123456789101112
Years comparison LowerLowerLower==============HigherHigher
 
200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018
Bills sponsored (learn more) Bills written and promoted by the legislator in his/her own chamber.
Introduced by Van Tassell 21058109127131396
Chamber average 9.69.89.08.9119.811111110119.6
Difference -7.6+0.2-4.0-0.9-0.6-0.8+1.2-3.6+1.6+2.9-1.6-3.6
Comparison LowerLower==Lower========Lower==Higher==Lower
 
200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018
Bill passage rate (learn more). What percent of Sen. Van Tassell's sponsored bills pass and are officially "enrolled"? (I ignore whether the governor signed or vetoted the bill.)
Bills introduced 21058109127131396
Bills passed 083789114101286
Passage rate 0.0%80%60%88%80%100%92%57%77%92%89%100%
Chamber average 63%68%63%69%70%72%65%70%68%68%74%83%
Difference -62.5+12-2.8+19+9.8+28+27-12.7+8.8+24+15+17
Comparison LowerLowerLowerHigher==HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherLowerHigherHigherHigherHigher
 
200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018
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 101012141578910141110
Chamber average 121111111112111112131314
Difference -1.6-1.5+0.9+3.0+3.6-4.8-3.1-2.5-2.3+1.2-2.4-4.2
Comparison ======HigherHigherLowerLower========Lower
 
200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018
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 389410174601357468895811281
Total votes held 820806807786940890940840951860913926
Absentee rate 4.6%12%13%9.4%6.4%15%7.9%8.1%9.4%6.7%12%8.7%
Chamber average 8.9%9.6%11%12%14%9.9%11%12%12%14%10%13%
Difference -4.3+2.4+1.9-2.5-8.0+5.1-3.2-3.4-2.3-7.3+1.6-4.4
Comparison LowerHigher====LowerHigherLowerLower==Lower==Lower
 
200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018
"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 281615221323243638221523
Total votes held 820806807786940890940840951860913926
"Nay" rate 3.4%2.0%1.9%2.8%1.4%2.6%2.6%4.3%4.0%2.6%1.6%2.5%
Chamber average 4.1%4.1%4.1%4.6%3.4%4.8%3.7%3.6%4.8%3.7%2.8%3.2%
Difference -0.7-2.1-2.2-1.8-2.0-2.2-1.1+0.7-0.8-1.1-1.2-0.7
Comparison ==LowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerHigher==LowerLower==
 
200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018
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 78%84%81%85%83%78%71%62%70%68%70%73%
Chamber average 70%69%70%70%72%70%69%67%68%67%68%68%
Difference +8.2+15+11+14+11+7.4+2.3-5.8+1.0+1.0+1.8+5.0
Comparison HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher==Lower======Higher
 
200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018
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.
 
200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018
Party support score (overall) (learn more). How consistently does Sen. Van Tassell 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) 97%98%97%97%98%97%98%96%97%98%98%98%
Chamber average 97%97%97%97%98%96%97%97%96%97%98%97%
Difference +0.6+0.4+0.1-0.3+0.6+0.9+0.6-1.1+0.6+0.5+0.5+0.2
Comparison ========HigherHigher==Lower====Higher==
 
200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018
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) 81%73%75%75%83%75%78%68%80%79%80%78%
Chamber average 83%85%89%89%91%88%85%84%83%87%86%85%
Difference -2.4-12.1-14.5-13.5-8.4-13.5-7.0-16.6-2.5-7.9-6.0-7.6
Comparison ==LowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLower==LowerLowerLower

Votes on Sen. Van Tassell's bills

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

Sen. Van Tassell's most divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Sen. Van Tassell 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
2010 Van Tassell SB0047S01 12 17 17% Senate/ failed
2010 Van Tassell SJR010 47 26 29% House/ passed 3rd reading
2011 Van Tassell SB0239S01 8 19 41% Senate/ failed
2010 Van Tassell SB0047S01 53 19 47% House/ passed 3rd reading
2011 Van Tassell SB0024 53 18 49% House/ passed 3rd reading
2010 Van Tassell SB0047S01 21 7 50% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2015 Van Tassell SB0160S02 19 6 52% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2017 Van Tassell SB0276S01 58 15 59% House/ passed 3rd reading
2015 Van Tassell SB0160S02 20 5 60% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2008 Van Tassell SB0125 55 12 64% House/ passed 3rd reading

Sen. Van Tassell's least divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Sen. Van Tassell 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 Van Tassell SCR004S01 25 0 100% Senate/ concurs with House amendment
2018 Van Tassell SCR004S01 67 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2018 Van Tassell SCR004S01 24 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2018 Van Tassell SCR004S01 22 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2018 Van Tassell SB0226 65 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2018 Van Tassell SB0226 26 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2018 Van Tassell SB0226 24 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2018 Van Tassell SB0191 27 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2018 Van Tassell SB0191 23 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2018 Van Tassell SB0098 21 0 100% Senate/ concurs with House amendment