![Photo of Rep. Bennie Thompson [D-MS2]](/data/photos/400402-200px.jpeg)
Analysis
Legislative Metrics
Read our 2016 Report Card for Thompson.
Sponsorship Analysis
Our unique analysis of the bills Thompson has sponsored and cosponsored provides insight into his position in the House of Representatives.
Each dot in the chart below is a member of the House of Representatives. The dots are positioned horizontally according to our progressive—conservative ideology score and vertically according to our leadership score (leaders toward the top). Thompson is shown as a purple triangle. (analysis methodology)
Committee Membership
Bennie Thompson sits on the following committees:
-
Ranking Member,
House Committee on Homeland Security
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Border and Maritime Security
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Communications
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Oversight and Management Efficiency
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Transportation and Protective Security
Enacted Legislation
Thompson was the primary sponsor of 11 bills that were enacted. The most recent include:
- H.R. 1204 (113th): Aviation Security Stakeholder Participation Act of 2014
- H.R. 2898 (113th): Division Realignment Act of 2013
- H.R. 5512 (112th): Divisional Realignment Act of 2012
- H.R. 3772 (112th): To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 150 South Union Street in Canton, Mississippi, as the “First Sergeant Landres Cheeks Post Office ...
- H.R. 1072 (112th): To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 95 Dogwood Street in Cary, Mississippi, as the “Spencer Byrd Powers, Jr. Post Office”.
- H.R. 3562 (111th): An act to designate the federally occupied building located at 1220 Echelon Parkway in Jackson, Mississippi, as the ‘James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, Michael Schwerner, and Roy K. ...
- H.R. 5346 (111th): To enhance homeland security in the ports and waterways of the United States, and for other purposes.
We consider a bill enacted if one of the following is true: a) it is enacted itself, b) it has a companion bill in the other chamber (as identified by Congress) which was enacted, or c) if about one third or more of its provisions were incorporated into bills that were enacted (as determined by an automated text analysis, applicable beginning with bills in the 110th Congress).
Bills Sponsored
Issue Areas
Thompson sponsors bills primarily in these issue areas:
Transportation and Public Works (29%) Government Operations and Politics (26%) Emergency Management (23%) Public Lands and Natural Resources (11%) Law (6%) Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues (6%)
Recent Bills
Some of Thompson’s most recently sponsored bills include...
- H.R. 2309: Rights for Transportation Security Officers Act of 2017
- H.R. 2283: Department of Homeland Security Morale, Recognition, Learning and Engagement Act of 2017
- H.R. 2082: For the relief of Daniela Vargas.
- H.Res. 235: Directing the Secretary of Homeland Security to transmit certain documents to the House ...
- H.R. 1715: Medgar Evers House Study Act
- H.R. 1486: Securing American Non-Profit Organizations Against Terrorism Act of 2017
- H.R. 1327: American Red Cross Transparency Act of 2017
Voting Record
Key Votes
| Thompson’s Vote | Vote Description |
|---|---|
| Nay |
H.R. 1695: Register of Copyrights Selection and Accountability Act of 2017
Apr 26, 2017. Passed 378/48.
This bill would change the appointment process for the head of the U.S. Copyright Office, known as the Register of Copyrights. Currently the Register of Copyrights is hired by the Librarian of Congress (who is the head of the Library of Congress). This bill would ... |
| Yea |
H.R. 2017: Common Sense Nutrition Disclosure Act of 2015
Feb 12, 2016. Passed 266/144.
Legislation scheduled for a House vote this week seeks to change the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) labeling requirements for nutrition information displayed by restaurants, convenience stores, grocery stores, and pizzerias. The Common Sense Nutrition Disclosure Act of 2015 (H.R. 2017) would direct the Secretary ... |
| No |
H.Res. 546: Providing for consideration of the conference report to accompany the bill (H.R. 22) to authorize funds for Federal-aid ...
Dec 3, 2015. Passed 384/40.
|
| No |
H.R. 2146: Defending Public Safety Employees’ Retirement Act
Jun 18, 2015. Passed 218/208.
This vote made H.R. 2146 the vehicle for passage of Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal currently being negotiated. H.R. 2146 was originally introduced as a bill to address issues with retirement funds of federal law enforcement officers and firefighters. ... |
| Yea |
H.R. 2048: Uniting and Strengthening America by Fulfilling Rights and Ensuring Effective Discipline Over Monitoring Act of 2015
May 13, 2015. Passed 338/88.
The USA Freedom Act (H.R. 2048, Pub.L. 114–23) is a U.S. law enacted on June 2, 2015 that restored in modified form several provisions of the Patriot Act, which had expired the day before. The act imposes some new limits on the bulk collection of ... |
| Nay |
H.R. 83 (113th): Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015
Dec 11, 2014. Passed 219/206.
This bill became the vehicle for passage of the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015 [pdf], which was approved by the House on December 11, 2014 and by the Senate on December 13, 2014. The bill was originally introduced on January 3, 2013 by ... |
| No |
H.J.Res. 124 (113th): Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2015
Sep 17, 2014. Passed 319/108.
|
| Aye |
H.R. 6233 (112th): Agricultural Disaster Assistance Act of 2012
Aug 2, 2012. Passed 223/197.
|
| Aye |
H.R. 1249 (112th): Leahy-Smith America Invents Act
Jun 23, 2011. Passed 304/117.
The Leahy–Smith America Invents Act (AIA) is a United States federal statute that was passed by Congress and was signed into law by President Barack Obama on September 16, 2011. The law represents the most significant change to the U.S. patent system since 1952, and ... |
| Nay |
S. 3729 (111th): National Aeronautics and Space Administration Authorization Act of 2010
Sep 29, 2010. Passed 304/118.
|
Missed Votes
From Apr 1993 to Jun 2017, Thompson missed 599 of 16,146 roll call votes, which is 3.7%. This is worse than the median of 2.2% among the lifetime records of representatives currently serving. The chart below reports missed votes over time.
Primary Sources
The information on this page is originally sourced from a variety of materials, including:
- Congress-Legislators, a community project collecting election information
- The House and Senate websites, for committee membership and voting records
- GPO Member Guide for the photo
- GPO.gov/FDSys, for sponsored bills