Cook was the representative for California’s 8th congressional district and was a Republican. He served from 2013 to 2020.
![Photo of Rep. Paul Cook [R-CA8, 2013-2020]](/static/legislator-photos/412513-200px.jpeg)
Analysis
Legislative Metrics
Read our 2019 Report Card for Cook.
Ideology–Leadership Chart
Cook is shown as a purple triangle ▲ in our ideology-leadership chart below. Each dot was a member of the House of Representatives in 2020 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 Cook sponsored and cosponsored from Jan 6, 2015 to Dec 28, 2020. See full analysis methodology.
Enacted Legislation
Cook was the primary sponsor of 5 bills that were enacted:
- H.R. 376 (116th): California Desert Protection and Recreation Act of 2019
- H.R. 6940 (115th): Veterans Small Business Enhancement Act of 2018
- H.R. 5817 (115th): To extend the deadline for commencement of construction of a hydroelectric project.
- H.R. 244: Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017
- H.R. 5331 (113th): To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 73839 Gorgonio Drive in Twentynine Palms, California, as the “Colonel M.J. ‘Mac’ Dube, USMC Post …
Does 5 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
Cook sponsored bills primarily in these issue areas:
Public Lands and Natural Resources (52%) Crime and Law Enforcement (12%)
Recently Introduced Bills
Cook recently introduced the following legislation:
- H.R. 8848 (116th): Twentynine Palms Outdoor Recreational Enhancement Act
- H.R. 8850 (116th): Apple Valley Off-Highway Vehicle Recreation Area Establishment Act
- H.R. 8849 (116th): California Desert Conservation Enhancement Act
- H.R. 8798 (116th): Historic Routes Preservation Act
- H.R. 8739 (116th): To withdraw certain Federal land in the San Bernardino National Forest in …
- H.R. 8738 (116th): To withdraw certain Federal land in the San Bernardino National Forest in …
- H.R. 8728 (116th): Soda Ash Funding for Education Act of 2020
View All » | View Cosponsors »
Most legislation has no activity after being introduced.
Voting Record
Key Votes
Missed Votes
From Jan 2013 to Dec 2020, Cook missed 82 of 4,675 roll call votes, which is 1.8%. This is on par with the median of 2.3% among the lifetime records of representatives serving in Dec 2020. 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
- GPO Member Guide for the photo
- GovInfo.gov, for sponsored bills