How do I search for a bill by its
number or by a keyword?
Underneath "Search Legislation"
enter a bill number, or a keyword that may appear in its Rhode Island Votes descriptions.
For bill numbers, it is not necessary to include the prefix “HB” (for House
Bill) or “SB” (for Senate Bill) – just enter the number. House or Senate
Resolutions, Concurrent Resolutions, or Joint Resolutions (proposals to amend
the Constitution) do require a prefix, however: HR, SR, HCR, SCR, HJR OR SJR,
followed by the number or letter(s). (House and Senate Joint Resolutions have
letters rather than numbers – “SJR D” or “HJR BB” for example.)
Note: Do not enter BOTH a bill number AND a keyword at the same time - use
separate searches for each.
For more on keyword searches see
How can I use exact-phrase and multiple word keyword searches...
How do I find out how a particular
legislator voted on a bill?
Underneath "Search Legislator’s
Voting Record," select a legislator from the drop down menu, and either click
“search” (or press “enter”), or narrow the search by entering a bill number or
keywords in the “Enter keywords or bill number” field.
Tip: To view more than “10” votes per page, and for
additional search options, use the “Advanced Searches” page. The “Search
Senate voting record” and “Search House voting record” options toward the bottom
of that page let you create a “custom voting record guide” on a particular
legislator, showing all his or her bill sponsorships and votes on bills and
amendments in a particular issue category, or with certain keywords, or during a
certain date range, or a combination of these.
For more on keyword searches see
How can I use exact-phrase and multiple word keyword searches...
How can I use exact-phrase and
multiple word keyword searches, and what database do keyword searches actually
look in?
Multiple-word keyword searches find
bills in which ALL of the words appear in the bill description, or an amendment
description. If the keyword or words don’t appear in the bill description shown
on the results page, this means they are in an amendment. Scroll down the
amendments if displayed, or select "History, Amendments & Comments" to display
them (if there are any).
To search for an exact phrase, place quotes around the phrase. The search engine
ignores punctuation, and just looks for that particular sequence of words.
To search for all bills in which ANY ONE of the words appear, place OR between
each word.
If your keyword search does not turn up a bill you are looking for, or turns up
too many bills, try another keyword or words. Be creative: Try adding or
removing words, or choose different words. Also try placing quotes around your
selection of words, even if they are not an exact phrase. Remember, this feature
only searches for keywords that appear in the plain-language Rhode Island Votes
descriptions – not necessarily in the text of the bill or amendment itself.
The search engine is confused by extremely common words such as "a," "the,"
"and," etc. It can also be confused by prepositions such as "of," "to," etc.
Many of these words are automatically removed from your search. However, if you
get an error message, remove these types of words and try again.
How can I get the entire
legislative voting history for a bill?
In a keyword or legislative
category search that produces more than one bill in the search results, only the
introduction and final passage actions for each bill are displayed. Select the
[History, Amendments & Comments] tab, found below the bill number and tagline,
to display all actions on a bill. This includes all amendments, substitutes,
votes on passage, concurrence, conference committee action, the governor's
approval or veto, and so on.
Why are certain words removed from
my keyword searches?
In order to speed searches,
extremely common words (such as "a," "the," "and," prepositions, etc.) are
automatically removed from your search. If you wish to search for a phrase
containing these words, put quotation marks around the entire phrase.
How do I find contact information
for a legislator?
Use the “Contact your legislator” link toward the bottom of
the menu on the left side of each Rhode Island Votes page. This will open a drop down
menu with legislators’ names. Selecting a legislator will open a “Contact” page
with the individual’s mailing address, phone number, homepage link and e-mail
address.
Alternatively, select a legislator
under “Search Legislator’s Voting Record” on the homepage, and click “search”
(or press “enter”). On the right of the search results page, below the
legislator's photo, there is a “Contact Rep./Senator” link, which goes to the
lawmaker’s contact page.
You can also contact legislators
from the [Vote
Details and Comments] page which can be selected anytime you are viewing a
roll call vote on a bill. All legislators names are shown (blue and underlined)
in the "supported," "opposed," or "did not vote"
sections. Clicking a legislator's name will open his or her “Contact” page.
Why would I create an account and
how do I create one?
Once you create an account, if you
log in your username will automatically appear with any comments you register on
the site. Creating an account also allows you to subscribe to automatic e-mail
notification of action on particular topics. It also permits you to "cast your
vote" on legislative actions from the [Vote
Details and Comments] page.
To create an account, go to
"Account" from the menu bar at the top of each page. Select "Create an account"
and provide the requested information. You will only have to enter this
information once.
Make sure you remember your username and password.
In subsequent visits to the site, "Log On" to make use of your account. Note
that you can choose whether or not to have your e-mail address appear with your
username.
How do I comment on a bill or a
particular vote and read comments from others?
On each bill’s page, Comments begin
after the “History” section in which all the actions are described. Selecting
“New Comment” will open a window in which you can enter your comment. When you
select "save" your comment will be posted immediately. (Note: If your comment
contains the address of another website it will not be posted until approved by
a moderator. This is a spam protection measure.)
Please be aware of the
terms of use which define your responsibilities in posting comments. If have
not created an account and logged on, your comment will be listed under the
username "Anonymous Citizen." If do not want to appear as an anonymous citizen,
create an account and/or log on to the site before you enter your comments. You
may choose whether or not your e-mail address appears with your comments
To comment on a particular vote, go
to the [Vote
Details and Comments] page for the legislative action (vote on amendment,
substitute, or passage). Then select the [New
Comments] link at the bottom of the page and follow the procedure above.
These comments are cross-posted on the main “History” page for the bill also.
How can I receive automatic e-mail
notices when action is taken on particular bills or on the types of bills I'm
interested in?
When you have registered and logged
on the site, an “Update watch list” option will appear in the gray menu bar on
the left of every Rhode Island Votes page. This page will allow you to specify the types
of bills you'd like to be notified about. Check the categories you wish to
receive notices in, and be sure to click “save” at the bottom of the list when
you are done.
You can also request action notices
on particular bills. On each bill’s page, below the bill number and tagline,
there is a “Add to Watch List” link.
One or two notices will be sent to
your e-mail address after on any day in which actions take place on bills or
categories you selected.
To change your topics, re-enter the
[Bill
watch list] page. The topics chosen previously will be checked. Make any
changes you want, then click "Save." Or, to cease all notifications to your
e-mail address, remove all check-marks and click "Save."
You may choose to receive notices
of ALL legislative actions, instead of just actions in certain categories. This
will override any other category choices. Following legislative session days you
will receive one or two notices with descriptions of every action taken in the
state House or Senate. For those who want to receive notices from several
categories, this option eliminates duplications, at the price of also receiving
descriptions of actions which may not be of interest. Each bill is included in
several categories, so if, for example, you choose to receive notices on
TAXATION and EDUCATION, you get duplicate e-mails every time an education tax
bill is introduced or acted upon. ALL tells the site to ignore the categories,
and just send each and every description once.
DEFINITIONS
DEFINITIONS
Terms used on
this site
Amendment
A proposed change, addition, or
deletion to a bill.
HB
House Bill
HRC
House Roll Call. This is a recorded
vote number for a bill or an amendment.
SB
Senate Bill
Session
The two-year "work period" for the
legislature.
SRC
Senate Roll Call. This is a recorded
vote number for a bill or an amendment.
Substitute
Another version of a bill.
Tie-bar
When one bill is tie-barred to another,
it cannot become law unless the other bill is also enacted into law.
Voice Vote
This is an oral vote that is not
tallied or recorded.
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