Garrett was the representative for Virginia’s 5th congressional district and was a Republican. He served from 2017 to 2018.
Alleged misconduct & resolution
In May 2018, Garrett announced he is an alcoholic and that he would not run for re-election at the same time that allegations that he had been using Congressional staff to perform unofficial work and personal errands emerged. In September 2018, the Office of Congressional Ethics referred the allegations to the House Committee on Ethics. In December 2018, the House Committee on Ethics announced it was extending its investigation The investigation ceased with the end of the 115th Congress as Garrett is no longer in Congress.
| May. 28, 2018 | Garrett announced he is an alcoholic and would not run for re-election. |
| Sep. 5, 2018 | Office of Congressional Ethics referred the allegations to the House Committee on Ethics for further investigation. |
| Dec. 4, 2018 | House Committee on Ethics published the Office of Congressional Ethics Report and Findings and the member's response. |
| Jan. 2, 2019 | House Committee on Ethics ceased investigating because jurisdiction ended with the 115th Congress. |
![Photo of Rep. Thomas Garrett [R-VA5, 2017-2018]](/static/legislator-photos/412729-200px.jpeg)
Analysis
Legislative Metrics
Read our 2018 Report Card for Garrett.
Ideology–Leadership Chart
Garrett is shown as a purple triangle ▲ in our ideology-leadership chart below. Each dot was a member of the House of Representatives in 2018 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 Garrett sponsored and cosponsored from Jan 3, 2013 to Dec 21, 2018. See full analysis methodology.
Ratings from Advocacy Organizations
Enacted Legislation
Garrett was the primary sponsor of 3 bills that were enacted:
- H.R. 3184 (115th): To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 180 McCormick Road in Charlottesville, Virginia, as the “Captain Humayun Khan Post Office”.
- H.R. 3183 (115th): To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 13683 James Madison Highway in Palmyra, Virginia, as the “U.S. Navy Seaman Dakota Kyle Rigsby ...
- H.J.Res. 117: Condemning the violence and domestic terrorist attack that took place during events between August 11 and August 12, 2017, in Charlottesville, Virginia, recognizing the first responders who lost ...
Does 3 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
Garrett sponsored bills primarily in these issue areas:
Government Operations and Politics (43%) Crime and Law Enforcement (21%) Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues (21%) International Affairs (14%)
Recent Bills
Some of Garrett’s most recently sponsored bills include...
- H.Res. 1123: Recognizing the systematic abductions of Japanese citizens by North Korea.
- H.R. 6556 (115th): To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at ...
- H.R. 6407 (115th): COVS Act
- H.Res. 992: Condemning the actions taken by the Lao People’s Democratic Republic against the Hmong ...
- H.R. 5890 (115th): Assisting States’ Implementation of Plans of Safe Care Act
- H.Res. 862: READ IT Resolution
- H.R. 5561: Barbara Johns Congressional Gold Medal Act
Voting Record
Key Votes
Missed Votes
From Jan 2017 to Dec 2018, Garrett missed 131 of 1,210 roll call votes, which is 10.8%. This is much worse than the median of 2.5% among the lifetime records of representatives serving in Dec 2018. The chart below reports missed votes over time.
We don’t track why legislators miss votes, but it’s often due to medical absenses and major life events.
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
- Office of Thomas Garrett for the photo
- GovInfo.gov, for sponsored bills
