Chism and Howell Earn A 100 From NFIB

Similar to the grades from BIPEC, the National Federation of Independent Business has issued its report on legislators covering the previous four year term. Not a ton of surprises. Like with BIPEC, Senate Democrats graded much higher than Democrats in the House. I would say there were more House Democrats receiving high marks from NFIB than with BIPEC though. Most Republicans did very well across the board.

The votes they graded that passed both the House and Senate usually did so with large majorities (100 plus votes in the House; 40 plus votes in the Senate) so they weren’t exactly controversial and helped drive up grades. They then broke down specific House and Senate legislation. In most cases, NFIB’s position in the House was a ‘no vote,’ while there position with Senate bills was a ‘yes vote’ more often than not.

Just a couple House members who served the full four-year term received a 100 from NFIB. This includes Gary Chism and Bobby Howell only. Mark DuVall had, I believe, the highest rating among Democrats at 84. The following Democrats, running in competitive districts, were all at or under 60: Dirk Dedeaux, Bob Evans (believe he had the lowest grade in the entire legislature), Brandon Jones, Bennett Malone, John Mayo, Diane Peranich, and Jimmy Puckett. During his time in the Senate, David Baria, now running in the House, received a 58.

Among Democratic candidates for Speaker of the House, Cecil Brown received a 43, Tyrone Ellis was also at 43, and Bobby Moak received a 44. Outgoing Speaker Billy McCoy earned a 40.

On the Senate side, Democrat Nickey Browning received a 100, as did Videt Carmichael, Tommy Gollot, Billy Hudson, Gary Jackson, Tom King, and Perry Lee. In addition to Browning’s 100, these Democrats also received an 80 or higher: David Blount, Tommy Dickerson, Hillman Frazier, Jack Gordon, Sampson Jackson, and Eric Powell. Bill Stone came close at 79.

On the flip side, Baria had the lowest mark, tied with Vincent Davis, who only served about half his term. Interestingly, the Democrat that replaced him- Albert Butler- voted with NFIB every time when he was there. Joining them in the under 60 club was Deborah Dawkins (59).

Viewing the entire voting record, and a summary of the legislation graded, here.