We started tracking how legislators voted on civil liberties after the 2011-12 session, as an internal tool, and now we have decided to publicly release this scorecard for the 2015-16 session. We believe that it is important that our members know how their state legislators have voted on critical issues that come before them, and we have picked a series of bills that illustrate the depth of our work, including criminal justice, immigration, privacy, and reproductive rights.

As you read this scorecard, keep in mind its limitations. This information is merely a snapshot of House and Senate floor activity. Obviously, by definition, it matters how legislators vote when these issues come before them. However, the scorecard does not capture the many other ways in which legislators aid the cause of civil liberties, including advocating to their leaders to stop or move bills we care about, filing amendments and other procedural maneuvers to make a point in our favor, strategizing with us on priority issues, and sharing information about what is happening behind the scenes at the capitol. We also do not score committee votes, for better or for worse, because not all members of a legislative chamber participate in that vote.

We hope that you find this information useful. And we encourage you to use it as a starting point to build relationships with your state senator and your state representative to further the cause of civil liberties.

DOWNLOAD: ACLU-PA Legislative Scorecard 2015-16

For more information about the many civil liberties issue that came before the General Assembly in the 2015-16 session, please visit our legislative webpage at www.aclupa.org/our-work/legislation/.

Scorecard By Region

House of Representatives:

  • Allegheny County
  • Central PA (Clearfield, Cameron, Centre, Mifflin, Huntingdon, and Clinton counties)
  • Central Susquehanna(Union, Snyder, Montour, Northumberland, and Columbia counties)
  • Keystone (Bedford, Blair, Cambria, and Somerset counties)
  • Lehigh Valley (Schuylkill, Berks, Lehigh and Northampton counties)
  • Northeast PA (Susquehanna, Wyoming, Luzerne, Lackawanna, Wayne, Pike, Monroe and Carbon counties)
  • Northwest PA (Clarion, Crawford, Elk, Erie, Forest, Jefferson, McKean, Mercer, Venango, and Warren counties)
  • Philadelphia 
  • Southwest PA (Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Washington, and Westmoreland counties)
  • South Central PA (Dauphin, Cumberland, Perry, York, Adams, Franklin, Fulton, Juniata, Lancaster, and Lebanon counties)
  • Southeast PA (Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery counties)
  • Williamsport (Lycoming, Bradford, Tioga, Potter, and Sullivan counties)

Senate:

Stay informed

Documents