Steve Daines

U.S. Senator · Montana · Republican

From public records: votes from Voteview, bills from congress.gov, money from FEC filings · votes updated Nov 10, 2026 · How we measure

Effectiveness, 119th Congress so far

How it’s measured

1.89· expected 1.04

Above expectations

Rank 12 of 100 in the Senate · expected = average of 32 majority-party members without a committee lead

How far Daines’s own bills got, weighted by substance. The average member scores 1.00.

51 bills and joint resolutions sponsored: 1 significant (got a roll call vote), 50 substantive, 0 commemorative. Compare the Senate

Became law (2)

1 Crow Nation-specific · 1 national policy

S. 240 Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Amendments Act of 2025Amends the Crow Tribe water rights settlement agreement. AI-readBecame law Oct 15, 2026 · Native AmericansLocal or single-entity · Crow Nation
S. 1020 A bill to require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to extend the time period during which licensees are required to commence construction of certain hydropower projects.Extends hydropower project construction deadlines by up to six additional years. AI-readBecame law May 11, 2026 · EnergyNational policy

Scope tags come from an AI reading of each bill where available, otherwise from its title and policy area. They don’t change the score. How scope is tagged

Became law inside another bill (1)

S.J.Res. 61 A joint resolution providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Bureau of Land Management relating to "Miles City Field Office Record of Decision and Approved Resource Management Plan Amendment".Identical bill became law as H.J.Res. 104 · Dec 11, 2025Via H.J.Res. 104

Daines’s own bill stalled, but the Congressional Research Service lists an identical bill, or one with similar text, that became law. Shown for context; not counted in the score, which follows the Center for Effective Lawmaking. How this works

How Daines’s ratings compare with every senator

Ratings, 119th Congress

Scores run 0–100 and always sit next to a median. Each tick is one senator; the ringed marker is Daines.

Daines in plain answers: party votes, bipartisanship, who votes alike

Attendance

How it’s measured

97/ 100

Chamber median 98 · 26 missed of 915

Voted on 889 of 915 roll calls; missed 26. Lower than 62% of senators.

85%100%

Party loyalty

How it’s measured

100/ 100

Senate R median 100 · Rank 13 of 53

Sided with the Republican majority on 815 votes that split the parties. Higher than 86% of senators.

75%100%

Bipartisan

How it’s measured

8/ 100

Chamber median 9 · −1

Average agreement with members of the other party on contested votes. Lower than 55% of senators.

0%30%

Position

How it’s measured

+0.59

Republican middle 80%: 0.38 to 0.78

Left–right position from roll-call similarity (DW-NOMINATE, Voteview), from −1 to +1. Members who vote alike sit near each other.

LiberalConservative

Daines’s bills that made it out of committee or further

All bills

11 bills and joint resolutions sponsored in the 119th Congress, furthest along first. These are the bills counted in Daines’s effectiveness score.

S. 240 Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Amendments Act of 2025Amends the Crow Tribe water rights settlement agreement. AI-readNative Americans · Became law Oct 15, 2026Substantive937 words Local or single-entity · Crow Nation
S. 1020 A bill to require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to extend the time period during which licensees are required to commence construction of certain hydropower projects.Extends hydropower project construction deadlines by up to six additional years. AI-readEnergy · Became law May 11, 2026Substantive401 words National policy
S. 239 Crow Revenue ActUnknown; bill summary not yet available from Congressional Research Service. AI-readNative Americans · Out of committee Sep 28, 2026Substantive2.1k words Out of committee
S. 4041 Cooperative Watershed Management Program Reauthorization Act of 2026Reauthorizes the Cooperative Watershed Management Program. AI-readWater Resources Development · Out of committee Sep 17, 2026Substantive936 words Out of committee
S. 3635 Fort Peck Water System Reauthorization ActUnknown; bill summary not yet available. AI-readWater Resources Development · Out of committee Jul 29, 2026Substantive61 words Out of committee
S. 1175 Small County PILT Parity ActUnknown; bill summary not yet available. AI-readPublic Lands and Natural Resources · Out of committee Jul 23, 2026Substantive366 words Out of committee
S. 1547 America the Beautiful ActEstablishes or modifies protections for American public lands and natural resources. AI-readPublic Lands and Natural Resources · Out of committee Jun 17, 2026Substantive5.7k words Out of committee
S. 3527 Montana Sportsmen Conservation ActAuthorizes conservation and sportsmen programs in Montana. AI-readPublic Lands and Natural Resources · Out of committee Mar 4, 2026Substantive929 words Out of committee
S. 362 A bill to allow certain Federal minerals to be mined consistent with the Bull Mountains Mining Plan Modification, and for other purposes.Permits federal mineral mining under Bull Mountains Mining Plan Modification. AI-readEnergy · Out of committee Feb 11, 2026Substantive228 words Out of committee
S.J.Res. 61 A joint resolution providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Bureau of Land Management relating to "Miles City Field Office Record of Decision and Approved Resource Management Plan Amendment".Disapproves Bureau of Land Management rule for Miles City Field Office resource plan. AI-readPublic Lands and Natural Resources · Out of committee Oct 7, 2025Substantive95 words Out of committee
S. 241 Northern Montana Water Security Act of 2025Establishes water security measures for Northern Montana tribes. AI-readNative Americans · Out of committee Mar 5, 2025Substantive17k words Out of committee

Stage comes from each bill’s latest action on congress.gov; the full history is on each bill page.