Craig Volden – Center for Effective Lawmaking

Continuity During Chaos: Observations on International Affairs Legislative Effectiveness Scores during the 117th Congress

Continuity During Chaos: Observations on International Affairs Legislative Effectiveness Scores during the 117th Congress With the onset of the war in Ukraine in early 2022 and continued tensions between China and Taiwan, the 117th Congress faced significant foreign policy challenges. Relying on our new approach of tracking embedded legislation (legislation that was absorbed into larger proposals), the Center for Effective Lawmaking found significant congressional action to address Russia-Ukraine and China-Taiwan issues, despite high levels of policy gridlock in this issue area more generally. We identify the most effective lawmakers in…

Comments Off

May 30, 2023

Legislative Effectiveness Scores / Policy Scores

Highlights from the New 117th Congress Legislative Effectiveness Scores

Highlights from the New 117th Congress Legislative Effectiveness Scores By Craig Volden and Alan Wiseman, Co-Directors, Center for Effective LawmakingThe Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL) is pleased to announce the release of the Legislative Effectiveness Scores (LES) for the recently completed 117th Congress (2021-23). As in all previous releases, the scores are based on the combination of fifteen metrics regarding the bills that each member of Congress sponsors, how far they move through the lawmaking process, and how substantial their policy proposals are. The scores are normalized to an average…

22 Comments

March 20, 2023

Legislative Effectiveness Scores / Policy Scores

International Affairs Policy Legislative Effectiveness Scores: Highlights from the 116th Congress

International Affairs Policy Legislative Effectiveness Scores: Highlights from the 116th Congress With the U.S pullout from Afghanistan, continued troubled relations with China, and the ongoing global pandemic, international affairs policies are among the most challenging before Congress today. At the Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL), we believe that difficult issues demand the attention of effective lawmakers.In March, we released our Legislative Effectiveness Scores (LES), highlighting the most effective lawmakers in the recently-completed 116th Congress (2019-2021). In addition to such overall scores, the Center also constructs Interest and Legislative Effectiveness Scores…

Comments Off

November 16, 2021

Legislative Effectiveness Scores / Legislative Research / Policy Scores

Health Policy Legislative Effectiveness Scores: Highlights from the 116th Congress

Health Policy Legislative Effectiveness Scores: Highlights from the 116th Congress Which lawmakers are best able to move health policy changes through Congress, and why? In March, the Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL) released our Legislative Effectiveness Scores (LES) for the recently completed 116th Congress (2019-21). We also scored members of the House and Senate based on their interest in and effectiveness at lawmaking within twenty-one different policy areas, ranging from Agriculture to Immigration to Transportation. In addition to a historical consideration of the data (our scores extend back to 1973),…

Comments Off

June 29, 2021

Legislative Effectiveness Scores

Highlights from the New 116th Congress Legislative Effectiveness Scores

Highlights from the New 116th Congress Legislative Effectiveness Scores The Center for Effective Lawmaking (CEL) is pleased to announce the release of the Legislative Effectiveness Scores (LES) for the recently-completed 116th Congress (2019-21). As in all previous releases, the scores are based on the combination of fifteen metrics regarding the bills that each member of Congress sponsors, how far they move through the lawmaking process, and how substantial their policy proposals are. The scores are normalized to an average value of 1.0 in both the House and the Senate. More…

2 Comments

March 10, 2021

Legislative Anaylsis

Divided America, Divided Government: What’s Next?

Divided America, Divided Government: What’s Next? America remains deeply divided. Closely contested races. A slight rightward move in the House. A slight leftward move in the Senate. If current election trends continue, 2021 will feature President Biden overseeing a Democratic House and Republican Senate.In some ways continued divided government is fitting. Politicians should be placed in a position where they need to compromise and take one another’s views into account. But will they? Or will they dig in on their partisan divisions, which will contribute to gridlock, and ultimately provide…

Comments Off

November 5, 2020

Legislative Research

On the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress Recommendations

On the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress Recommendations The vision statement of the Center for Effective Lawmaking points toward a Congress “comprised of effective lawmakers” and featuring a “strong institutional capacity.” It is in this light that we viewed the work of the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress with great anticipation and enthusiasm. We were pleased to meet with members of the Select Committee and committee staff in a variety of forums and to offer our suggestions to the committee as they formulated their recommendations and…

1 Comment

October 26, 2020

Legislative Effectiveness Scores

Highlights from the New 115th Congress Legislative Effectiveness Scores

Highlights from the New 115th Congress Legislative Effectiveness Scores The Center for Effective Lawmaking is pleased to announce the release of the Legislative Effectiveness Scores (LES) for the recently completed 115th Congress (2017-18). As in all previous releases, the scores are based on the combination of fifteen metrics regarding the bills that members of Congress sponsor, how far they move through the lawmaking process, and how important their policy proposals are. The scores are normalized to an average value of 1.0 in each the House and the Senate. More on…

1 Comment

February 27, 2019