![Photo of Rep. Joaquin Castro [D-TX20]](/data/photos/412576-200px.jpeg)
Analysis
Legislative Metrics
Read our 2016 Report Card for Castro.
Sponsorship Analysis
Our unique analysis of the bills Castro 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). Castro is shown as a purple triangle. (analysis methodology)
Committee Membership
Joaquin Castro sits on the following committees:
-
House Committee on Foreign Affairs
- Member, Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations
- Member, Subcommittee on The Western Hemisphere
-
House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
- Member, Subcommittee on Central Intelligence Agency
- Member, Subcommittee on Department of Defense Intelligence and Overhead Architecture
Bills Sponsored
Issue Areas
Castro sponsors bills primarily in these issue areas:
Education (26%) International Affairs (22%) Armed Forces and National Security (15%) Taxation (11%) Immigration (11%) Crime and Law Enforcement (7%) Science, Technology, Communications (7%)
Recent Bills
Some of Castro’s most recently sponsored bills include...
- H.R. 2676: PRIDE Act
- H.Res. 311: Recognizing that for 50 years the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) ...
- H.R. 2198: Veterans Crisis Line Improvement Act
- H.R. 2003: Pre-K for USA Act
- H.R. 1465: National Cybersecurity Preparedness Consortium Act of 2017
- H.R. 1013: Pre-K Teacher Parity Act
- H.Res. 102: Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the appointment of an ...
Voting Record
Key Votes
| Castro’s Vote | Vote Description |
|---|---|
| Nay |
H.R. 2825: DHS Authorization Act of 2017
Jul 20, 2017. Passed 386/41.
H.R. 2825 authorizes the activities of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and provides necessary oversight and guidance to the Department to ensure that it is effectively carrying out the mission of securing the homeland. A full section-by-section of the legislation can be found here ... |
| 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. ... |
| Not Voting |
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 ... |
| Yea |
H.R. 622: State and Local Sales Tax Deduction Fairness Act of 2015
Apr 16, 2015. Passed 272/152.
|
| 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 ... |
| Aye |
H.J.Res. 124 (113th): Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2015
Sep 17, 2014. Passed 319/108.
|
| Nay |
H.R. 5405 (113th): Promoting Job Creation and Reducing Small Business Burdens Act
Sep 16, 2014. Passed 320/102.
|
| Nay |
H.R. 4660 (113th): Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2015
May 30, 2014. Passed 321/87.
|
| Nay |
H.Res. 23 (113th): Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 152) making supplemental appropriations for the fiscal year ending September ...
Jan 15, 2013. Passed 367/52.
|
Missed Votes
From Jan 2013 to Jul 2017, Castro missed 135 of 2,935 roll call votes, which is 4.6%. This is much worse than the median of 2.2% among the lifetime records of representatives currently serving. ProPublica has tracked 11 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