![Photo of Rep. Brian Higgins [D-NY26]](/data/photos/400641-200px.jpeg)
Analysis
Legislative Metrics
Read our 2016 Report Card for Higgins.
Sponsorship Analysis
Our unique analysis of the bills Higgins 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). Higgins is shown as a purple triangle. (analysis methodology)
Committee Membership
Brian Higgins sits on the following committees:
Enacted Legislation
Higgins was the primary sponsor of 4 bills that were enacted:
- H.R. 3556 (112th): To designate the new United States courthouse in Buffalo, New York, as the “Robert H. Jackson United States Courthouse”.
- H.R. 918 (111th): To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 300 East 3rd Street in Jamestown, New York, as the “Stan Lundine Post Office Building”.
- H.R. 6318 (110th): To designate a portion of United States Route 20A, located in Orchard Park, New York, as the “Timothy J. Russert Highway”.
- H.R. 3339 (109th): To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 2061 South Park Avenue in Buffalo, New York, as the “James T. Molloy Post Office ...
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
Higgins sponsors bills primarily in these issue areas:
Armed Forces and National Security (25%) Health (17%) Transportation and Public Works (13%) International Affairs (13%) Environmental Protection (8%) Government Operations and Politics (8%) Law (8%) Social Welfare (8%)
Recent Bills
Some of Higgins’s most recently sponsored bills include...
- H.R. 2692: Veterans Education Flexibility Act
- H.R. 2329: Nation Building Here at Home Act of 2017
- H.Res. 148: Expressing support for the designation of “National Multiple Myeloma Awareness Month”.
- H.R. 5066 (114th): United States-Israel Maritime Security Partnership Act of 2016
- H.R. 4304 (114th): Nuclear Worker Residual Contaminations Compensation Act
- H.R. 4159 (114th): Access to Military Service Records Act of 2015
- H.R. 3852 (114th): To direct the Secretary of Energy to conduct a study on the ...
Voting Record
Key Votes
| Higgins’s Vote | Vote Description |
|---|---|
| Nay |
H.R. 2842: Accelerating Individuals into the Workforce Act
Jun 23, 2017. Passed 377/34.
H.R. 2842 connects low-income Americans looking for work with employers looking to fill job openings, including through apprenticeships and other forms of on-the-job training. Specifically, the legislation provides funding for states to subsidize employment for a limited time for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) ... |
| Yea |
H.R. 1039: Probation Officer Protection Act of 2017
May 19, 2017. Passed 229/177.
H.R. 1039 amends the federal criminal code to authorize a probation officer to arrest a person, without warrant, if there is probable cause to believe that person forcibly assaulted or obstructed a probation officer while performing their official duties. The bill also would direct the ... |
| Aye |
H.Res. 937: Providing for consideration of the conference report to accompany the bill (S. 2943) to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2017 for military activities of the Department ...
Dec 1, 2016. Passed 277/139.
|
| 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 ... |
| Aye |
H.J.Res. 124 (113th): Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2015
Sep 17, 2014. Passed 319/108.
|
| Aye |
H.R. 4628 (112th): Interest Rate Reduction Act
Apr 27, 2012. Passed 215/195.
|
| Aye |
H.R. 3521 (112th): Expedited Legislative Line-Item Veto and Rescissions Act of 2012
Feb 8, 2012. Passed 254/173.
|
| 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 ... |
| No |
H.R. 1908 (110th): Patent Reform Act of 2007
Sep 7, 2007. Passed 220/175.
|
Missed Votes
From Jan 2005 to Jun 2017, Higgins missed 409 of 9,197 roll call votes, which is 4.4%. This is much worse than the median of 2.2% among the lifetime records of representatives currently serving. ProPublica has tracked 130 explanations for these missed votes. 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