Sensenbrenner is the representative for Wisconsin’s 5th congressional district (view map) and is a Republican. He has served since Jan 7, 2003. Sensenbrenner is next up for reelection in 2018.
He was previously the representative for Wisconsin’s 9th congressional district as a Republican from 1979 to 2002.
![Photo of Rep. James Sensenbrenner [R-WI5]](/data/photos/400365-200px.jpeg)
Analysis
Legislative Metrics
Read our 2017 Report Card for Sensenbrenner.
Ideology–Leadership Chart
Sensenbrenner is shown as a purple triangle ▲ in our ideology-leadership chart below. Each dot is a member of the House of Representatives 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 Sensenbrenner has sponsored and cosponsored. See full analysis methodology.
Ratings from Advocacy Organizations
Committee Membership
James Sensenbrenner Jr. sits on the following committees:
-
House Committee on the Judiciary
- Chair, Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations
- Member, Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security
-
House Committee on Foreign Affairs
- Member, Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations
- Member, Subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia, and Emerging Threats
Enacted Legislation
Sensenbrenner was the primary sponsor of 40 bills that were enacted. The most recent include:
- H.R. 510: Rapid DNA Act of 2017
- H.R. 5046 (114th): Comprehensive Opioid Abuse Reduction Act of 2016
- H.R. 1428 (114th): Judicial Redress Act of 2015
- H.R. 2048 (114th): USA FREEDOM Act of 2015
- H.R. 1056 (114th): Nuclear Terrorism Conventions Implementation and Safety of Maritime Navigation Act of 2015
- H.R. 953 (114th): Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2015
- H.R. 4223 (112th): SAFE DOSES Act
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 110th Congress).
Bills Sponsored
Issue Areas
Sensenbrenner sponsors bills primarily in these issue areas:
Crime and Law Enforcement (38%) Taxation (17%) Health (13%) Immigration (8%) Environmental Protection (8%) Government Operations and Politics (6%) International Affairs (6%) Transportation and Public Works (5%)
Recent Bills
Some of Sensenbrenner’s most recently sponsored bills include...
- H.R. 6123: To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide that an alien physician ...
- H.R. 6063: To enact certain existing laws relating to domestic security as title 6, United ...
- H.R. 5335: To make technical amendments to update statutory references to provisions reclassified to title ...
- H.R. 4922: Stopping Overdoses of Fentanyl Analogues Act
- H.R. 4447: CyberTipline Modernization Act of 2017
- H.R. 4364: RFG Modernization Act of 2017
- H.R. 3351: Emergency Nursing Supply Relief Act of 2017
Voting Record
Key Votes
| Sensenbrenner’s Vote | Vote Description |
|---|---|
| Nay |
H.R. 4667: Making further supplemental appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2018, for disaster assistance for Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria, and calendar year 2017 wildfires, ...
Dec 21, 2017. Passed 251/169.
|
| No |
S. 612: A bill to designate the Federal building and United States courthouse located at 1300 Victoria Street in Laredo, Texas, as the “George P. Kazen Federal Building ...
Dec 8, 2016. Passed 360/61.
|
| No |
H.R. 3038: Highway and Transportation Funding Act of 2015, Part II
Jul 15, 2015. Passed 312/119.
|
| Aye |
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.
|
| No |
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.
|
| Yea |
H.R. 1830 (110th): To extend the authorities of the Andean Trade Preference Act until February 29, 2008.
Jun 27, 2007. Passed 365/59.
|
Missed Votes
From Jan 1979 to Jun 2018, Sensenbrenner missed 346 of 23,615 roll call votes, which is 1.5%. This is better than the median of 2.4% 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:
- @unitedstates/congress-legislators, a community project gathering congressional information
- The House and Senate websites, for committee membership and voting records
- United States Congressional Roll Call Voting Records, 1789-1990 by Howard L. Rosenthal and Keith T. Poole.
- Martis’s “The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress”, via Keith Poole’s roll call votes data set, for political party affiliation for Members of Congress from 1789 through about year 2000
- GPO Member Guide for the photo
- GPO.gov/FDSys, for sponsored bills
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