Otter was the representative for Idaho’s 1st congressional district and was a Republican. He served from 2001 to 2006.
![Photo of Rep. “Butch” Otter [R-ID1, 2001-2006]](/static/legislator-photos/400305-200px.jpeg)
Analysis
Ideology–Leadership Chart
Otter is shown as a purple triangle ▲ in our ideology-leadership chart below. Each dot was a member of the House of Representatives in 2006 positioned according to our ideology score (left to right) and our leadership score (leaders are toward the top).
The chart is based on the bills Otter sponsored and cosponsored from Jan 3, 2001 to Dec 8, 2006. See full analysis methodology.
Enacted Legislation
Otter was the primary sponsor of 6 bills that were enacted:
- H.R. 4377 (109th): To extend the time required for construction of a hydroelectric project, and for other purposes.
- H.R. 2718 (109th): Idaho Land Enhancement Act
- H.R. 3124 (108th): To designate the facility of the United States Geological Survey and the United States Bureau of Reclamation located at 230 Collins Road, Boise, Idaho, as the “F.H. …
- H.R. 4874 (107th): To direct the Secretary of the Interior to disclaim any Federal interest in lands adjacent to Spirit Lake and Twin Lakes in the State of Idaho resulting …
- H.R. 4971 (107th): Support of American Eagle Silver Bullion Program Act
- H.R. 2972 (107th): To designate the Federal building and United States courthouse located at 550 West Fort Street in Boise, Idaho, as the ``James A. McClure Federal Building and United …
Does 6 not sound like a lot? Very few bills are ever enacted — most legislators sponsor only a handful that are signed into law. But there are other legislative activities that we don’t track that are also important, including offering amendments, committee work and oversight of the other branches, and constituent services.
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
Otter sponsored bills primarily in these issue areas:
Government Operations and Politics (20%) Law (18%) Public Lands and Natural Resources (18%) Transportation and Public Works (9%) Water Resources Development (9%) Environmental Protection (9%) Economics and Public Finance (9%) Agriculture and Food (8%)
Recently Introduced Bills
Otter recently introduced the following legislation:
- H.R. 4970 (109th): Backcountry Landing Strip Access Act
- H.R. 4377 (109th): To extend the time required for construction of a hydroelectric project, and …
- H.R. 4001 (109th): To temporarily waive the restriction on highway use in applying the tax …
- H.R. 2718 (109th): Idaho Land Enhancement Act
- H.R. 2563 (109th): To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct feasibility studies to …
- H.R. 2003 (109th): To amend the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States to remove …
- H.R. 1852 (109th): To direct the Secretary of the Interior to extend certain water contracts …
View All » | View Cosponsors »
Most legislation has no activity after being introduced.
Voting Record
Missed Votes
From Jan 2001 to Dec 2006, Otter missed 58 of 3,431 roll call votes, which is 1.7%. This is better than the median of 2.9% among the lifetime records of representatives serving in Dec 2006. The chart below reports missed votes over time.
We don’t track why legislators miss votes, but it’s often due to medical absenses, major life events, and running for higher office.
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
- Congressional Pictorial Directory for the photo
- GovInfo.gov, for sponsored bills
