Debbie Stabenow, Senator for Michigan

Stabenow is the senior senator from Michigan and is a Democrat. She has served since Jan 3, 2001. Stabenow is next up for reelection in 2024.

She is also Senate Democratic Policy & Communications Committee Chair, a party leadership role. Party leaders focus more on setting their party’s legislative priorties than on introducing legislation.

She was previously the representative for Michigan’s 8^th congressional district as a Democrat from 1997 to 2000.

Analysis

Legislative Metrics

Read our 2018 Report Card for Stabenow.

Ideology–Leadership Chart

Stabenow is shown as a purple triangle ▲ in our ideology-leadership chart below. Each dot is a member of the Senate positioned according to our liberal–conservative ideology score (left to right) and our leadership score (leaders are toward the top).

The chart is based on the bills Stabenow has sponsored and cosponsored from Jan 6, 2015 to Apr 11, 2019. See full analysis methodology.

Ratings from Advocacy Organizations

Human Rights Campaign: 100% Planned Parenthood Action Fund: 100% American Civil Liberties Union: 88% League of Conservation Voters: 88% United States Chamber of Commerce: 37% NumbersUSA: 35% NIAC Action: D The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws: D The Club for Growth: 8% Americans for Prosperity: 5% FreedomWorks: 0%

Committee Membership

Debbie Stabenow sits on the following committees:

Ranking Member, Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Commodities, Risk Management, and Trade
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Conservation, Forestry, and Natural Resources
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Livestock, Marketing, and Agriculture Security
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Nutrition, Agricultural Research, and Specialty Crops
- Ex Officio, Subcommittee on Rural Development and Energy
Senate Committee on Finance
- Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Health Care
- Member, Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness
Joint Committee on Taxation
Senate Committee on the Budget
Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
- Member, Subcommittee on Energy
- Member, Subcommittee on National Parks
- Member, Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining

Enacted Legislation

Stabenow was the primary sponsor of 12 bills that were enacted. The most recent include:

View All »

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 at least about half of its provisions were incorporated into bills that were enacted (as determined by an automated text analysis, applicable beginning with bills in the 110^th Congress).

Bills Sponsored

Issue Areas

Stabenow sponsors bills primarily in these issue areas:

Health (40%) Taxation (24%) Environmental Protection (9%) Armed Forces and National Security (8%) Social Welfare (6%)

Recent Bills

Some of Stabenow’s most recently sponsored bills include...

View All » | View Cosponsors »

As Senate Democratic Policy & Communications Committee Chair, Stabenow may be focused on her responsibilities other than introducing legislation, such as setting the chamber’s agenda, uniting her party, and brokering deals.

Voting Record

Key Votes

Stabenow’s Vote	Vote Description
Yea	H.J.Res. 31: Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019 Feb 14, 2019. Conference Report Agreed to 83/16. This bill, in its final form, funded the parts of the federal government whose funding was to lapse on February 15, 2019. On December 22, 2018 the 115th Congress was unable to reach a deal to fund some federal agencies through fiscal year 2019 after ...
Nay	On the Nomination PN755: Tilman Eugene Self III, of Georgia, to be United States District Judge for the Middle District of Georgia Mar 5, 2018. Nomination Confirmed 85/11.
Yea	H.R. 1892: Further Extension of Continuing Appropriations Act, 2018; Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2018, the SUSTAIN Care Act of 2018; Family First Prevention Services Act.; Honoring Hometown ... Feb 9, 2018. Motion Agreed to 71/28. This bill became the vehicle for passage of funding for the federal government through March 23, 2018, to avert a government shutdown that would have occurred on February 9, 2018 had this bill not been enacted. The bill was introduced as the Honoring Hometown Heroes ...
Nay	On the Nomination PN117: William Francis Hagerty IV, of Tennessee, to be Ambassador to Japan Jul 13, 2017. Nomination Confirmed 86/12.
Nay	On the Nomination PN52: Terry Branstad, of Iowa, to be Ambassador to the People's Republic of China May 22, 2017. Nomination Confirmed 82/13.
Nay	H.J.Res. 43: Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the final rule submitted by Secretary of Health and Human Services relating ... Mar 30, 2017. Joint Resolution Passed 51/50. Joe Biden never got the opportunity to break a single 50-50 Senate tie in eight years as vice president. Mike Pence has already broken two. One from last month has since become law: a measure allowing states to withhold federal Planned Parenthood funding. (The other ...
Nay	H.R. 5325: Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 2017 Sep 28, 2016. Bill Passed 72/26. The Continuing Appropriations and Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2017, and Zika Response and Preparedness Act (H.R. 5325) is an appropriations bill which extended funding at the previous year's levels up to December 9, 2016 (10 weeks). After this, a continuing ...
Yea	H.J.Res. 124 (113th): Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2015 Sep 18, 2014. Joint Resolution Passed 78/22.
Yea	H.R. 4853 (111th): Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 Dec 15, 2010. Motion Agreed to 81/19. The Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 (Pub.L. 111–312, H.R. 4853, 124 Stat. 3296, enacted December 17, 2010), also known as the 2010 Tax Relief Act, was passed by the United States Congress on December 16, 2010, and signed into ...
Nay	H.R. 1424 (110th): Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2007 Oct 1, 2008. Bill Passed 74/25. This bill became the vehicle for passage of economic stimulus relief during the 2008 financial crisis as well as other unrelated provisions. It was the Senate's October 2008 plan, and it became law. The bill contains sections for: * Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 ...
Nay	H.R. 6 (110th): Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 Dec 13, 2007. Motion Agreed to 86/8. The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (Pub.L. 110-140 originally named the Clean Energy Act of 2007) is an Act of Congress concerning the energy policy of the United States. As part of the Democratic Party's 100-Hour Plan during the 110th Congress, it was ...

Missed Votes

From Jan 2001 to Apr 2019, Stabenow missed 58 of 5,627 roll call votes, which is 1.0%. This is on par with the median of 1.4% among the lifetime records of senators currently serving. The chart below reports missed votes over time.

Show the numbers...

Time Period	Votes Eligible	Missed Votes	Percent	Percentile
2001 Jan-Mar	63	0	0.0%	0^th
2001 Apr-Jun	157	0	0.0%	0^th
2001 Jul-Sep	68	1	1.5%	44^th
2001 Oct-Dec	92	0	0.0%	0^th
2002 Jan-Mar	59	0	0.0%	0^th
2002 Apr-Jun	107	0	0.0%	0^th
2002 Jul-Sep	61	0	0.0%	0^th
2002 Oct-Nov	26	0	0.0%	0^th
2003 Jan-Mar	112	0	0.0%	0^th
2003 Apr-Jun	150	0	0.0%	0^th
2003 Jul-Sep	108	1	0.9%	45^th
2003 Oct-Nov	89	0	0.0%	0^th
2004 Jan-Mar	64	0	0.0%	0^th
2004 Apr-Jun	88	1	1.1%	50^th
2004 Jul-Sep	42	0	0.0%	0^th
2004 Oct-Dec	22	0	0.0%	0^th
2005 Jan-Mar	81	0	0.0%	0^th
2005 Apr-Jun	89	0	0.0%	0^th
2005 Jul-Sep	76	1	1.3%	56^th
2005 Oct-Dec	120	4	3.3%	72^nd
2006 Jan-Mar	83	2	2.4%	81^st
2006 Apr-Jun	107	1	0.9%	31^st
2006 Jul-Sep	73	0	0.0%	0^th
2006 Nov-Dec	16	0	0.0%	0^th
2007 Jan-Mar	126	1	0.8%	39^th
2007 Apr-Jun	112	1	0.9%	41^st
2007 Jul-Sep	119	1	0.8%	24^th
2007 Oct-Dec	85	0	0.0%	0^th
2008 Jan-Mar	85	2	2.4%	74^th
2008 Apr-Jun	77	1	1.3%	31^st
2008 Jul-Sep	47	2	4.3%	63^rd
2008 Oct-Dec	6	0	0.0%	0^th
2009 Jan-Mar	118	1	0.8%	62^nd
2009 Apr-Jun	96	1	1.0%	48^th
2009 Jul-Sep	89	1	1.1%	55^th
2009 Oct-Dec	94	0	0.0%	0^th
2010 Jan-Mar	108	0	0.0%	0^th
2010 Apr-Jun	96	2	2.1%	62^nd
2010 Jul-Sep	44	0	0.0%	0^th
2010 Nov-Dec	51	1	2.0%	45^th
2011 Jan-Mar	46	0	0.0%	0^th
2011 Apr-Jun	58	1	1.7%	29^th
2011 Jul-Sep	49	2	4.1%	78^th
2011 Oct-Dec	82	2	2.4%	64^th
2012 Jan-Mar	63	1	1.6%	67^th
2012 Apr-Jun	109	1	0.9%	47^th
2012 Jul-Sep	28	0	0.0%	0^th
2012 Nov-Dec	50	0	0.0%	0^th
2013 Jan-Jan	1	0	0.0%	0^th
2013 Jan-Mar	92	0	0.0%	0^th
2013 Apr-Jun	76	0	0.0%	0^th
2013 Jul-Sep	43	0	0.0%	0^th
2013 Oct-Dec	80	0	0.0%	0^th
2014 Jan-Mar	93	1	1.1%	51^st
2014 Apr-Jun	123	2	1.6%	41^st
2014 Jul-Sep	54	0	0.0%	0^th
2014 Nov-Dec	96	8	8.3%	91^st
2015 Jan-Mar	135	0	0.0%	0^th
2015 Apr-Jun	85	0	0.0%	0^th
2015 Jul-Sep	52	3	5.8%	80^th
2015 Oct-Dec	67	2	3.0%	75^th
2016 Jan-Mar	38	2	5.3%	72^nd
2016 Apr-Jun	79	0	0.0%	0^th
2016 Jul-Sep	34	0	0.0%	0^th
2016 Nov-Dec	12	0	0.0%	0^th
2017 Jan-Mar	101	0	0.0%	0^th
2017 Apr-Jun	54	1	1.9%	61^st
2017 Jul-Sep	53	2	3.8%	82^nd
2017 Oct-Dec	117	1	0.9%	57^th
2018 Jan-Mar	63	0	0.0%	0^th
2018 Apr-Jun	80	0	0.0%	0^th
2018 Jul-Sep	75	1	1.3%	45^th
2018 Oct-Dec	56	0	0.0%	0^th
2019 Jan-Mar	54	3	5.6%	82^nd
2019 Apr-Apr	23	0	0.0%	0^th

Primary Sources

The information on this page is originally sourced from a variety of materials, including:

unitedstates/congress-legislators, a community project gathering congressional information
The House and Senate websites, for committee membership and voting records
GPO Member Guide for the photo
GovInfo.gov, for sponsored bills

Sen. Debbie Stabenow

Links

Follow GovTrack on social media for more updates:

On GovTrack Insider:

I have an opinion I want to share.

I need help, have a question, or want to schedule a tour.