Democratic running mate Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) is one of the busier senators when it comes to introducing congressional legislation. Her 54 bills introduced in 2019 tied for 19th-most among all 100 senators, while her 52 bills introduced in 2017–18 put her in the top third among senators.

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The Senate has been controlled by Republicans for all of Harris’s tenure, limiting her legislation’s odds of passage significantly. Still, four of her 131 bills were enacted into law — that’s good for a first-term Democratic senator. We selected a handful of the bills she introduced to see what her legislation looks like, especially given our ranking her as the most left-leaning senator in 2019 based on cosponsorship. But looking at the legislation she’s introduced tells a different story — judge for yourself.

After the category 5 Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico in September 2017, the death count was originally listed as 64. Yet a George Washington University study from September 2018, by researchers at the school’s Milken Institute School of Public Health, estimated the actual death count as 2,975.

The significantly higher number was determined in part by including deaths determined to be indirectly caused by the hurricane but occurring up to five months later. The Puerto Rican government requested the study and officially accepted its revised death count, but the federal government did not.

Introduced in 2018, Sen. Harris’s Counting Our Unexpected Natural Tragedies’ Victims Act requested that the federal government conduct a study of how best to fully count the total number of victims from natural disasters. The provision attracted eight Democratic cosponsors and was ultimately incorporated into the larger 462-page FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018, which was signed into law. However, the study doesn’t guarantee the federal government actually will adopt the new counting method. . . .

After 2017 wildfires and floods in Harris’s home state of California, some individuals had to pay to replace governmental identification documents, including $110 for a passport book or $455 for a green card for permanent residents.

Introduced in June 2018, Sen. Harris’s Disaster Victims Passport and ID Relief Act provides a waiver from replacement fees for six types of identification: a U.S. Passport, visa, green card, Declaration of Intention form, naturalization or citizenship form, and employment authorization form.

Despite attracting no cosponsors, the bill was ultimately incorporated into the larger 462-page FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018, which was signed into law.

“Victims of natural disasters are forced to reconstruct their lives, and too often face high levels of financial stress,” Sen. Harris said in a press release. “We must do what we can to ease that burden including waiving fees associated with the replacement of critical documents, and ensuring child care facilities have the funding they need so families can get back on their feet.”

Lynching is considered one of the most gruesome ways to kill somebody, primarily associated with racially-motivating killings by white people against Black people in the antebellum and Jim Crow-era South.

Even though the last documented lynching in America occurred in 1981 — or perhaps because of it — the act was never officially made a federal crime. Introduced in June 2018, Sen. Harris’s Justice for Victims of Lynching Act would have done just that.

The bill attracted 39 cosponsors — 28 Democrats, nine Republicans, and two independents — and passed the Senate in mid-December 2018 on a voice vote, a procedure used for relatively noncontroversial legislation without significant opposition. However, the bill never received a House vote, possibly due to there being less than two weeks in the session of Congress.

Sen. Harris reintroduced it in February 2019, where it attracted 47 cosponsors — 29 Democrats, 16 Republicans, and two independents — and again passed on a voice vote. The identical House version was introduced by Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE2) and has attracted 14 cosponsors, 12 Democrats and two Republicans.

In February 2020, the House instead voted on the similar — but not identical — Emmett Till Antilynching Act, introduced by Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL1). The vote was 410–4, with Democrats unanimously supporting 222–0 and Republicans mostly supporting 188–3. Now to become law, either the Senate will have to vote on the House-passed version or vice versa.

That’s hardly guaranteed. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) has blocked a potential Senate vote on the House version, arguing that the existing language is too broad. “The bill as written would allow altercations resulting in a cut, abrasion, bruise, or any other injury no matter how temporary to be subject to a 10-year penalty,” Sen. Paul said. “My amendment would simply apply a serious bodily injury standard, which would ensure crimes resulting in substantial risk of death and extreme physical pain be prosecuted as a lynching.” . . .

Marijuana is currently classified on a federal level as a Schedule 1 drug, the strictest classification alongside other drugs such as heroin and meth, and higher than Schedule 2 drugs including cocaine.

Introduced in July 2019, Sen. Harris’s Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act would legalize the drug federally, expunge certain past marijuana-related offenses from people’s criminal records, and introduce a 5 percent federal tax on marijuana.

The bill has attracted five Democratic cosponsors, but has not yet received a vote in the Senate Finance Committee. A House version introduced by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY10) has attracted 81 cosponsors, 80 Democrats plus Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL1). It was approved by the House Judiciary Committee in November 2019, and awaits a potential full vote in the chamber.

“Times have changed — marijuana should not be a crime,” Sen. Harris said in a press release. “We need to start regulating marijuana, and expunge marijuana convictions from the records of millions of Americans so they can get on with their lives. As marijuana becomes legal across the country, we must make sure everyone — especially communities of color that have been disproportionately impacted by the War on Drugs — has a real opportunity to participate in this growing industry. . . .

Renters currently comprise the highest percentage of households at any time in the past 50 years. This occurs as wages have remained largely stagnant, making rent harder to afford. More than 11 million Americans pay more than half their income to rent.

Introduced in July 2018, Sen. Harris’s Rent Relief Act would give a tax credit to anybody who spends more than 30 percent of their income on rent plus utilities, so long as they make less than $125,000.

The bill attracted five Democratic cosponsors, but never received a vote in the Senate Finance Committee. In April 2019, Sen. Harris reintroduced the bill, where it has attracted three Democratic cosponsors but again not yet received a vote in the Senate Finance Committee. Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) signed onto the previous version, but not yet the current version. . . .

The Ending Nonconsensual Online User Graphic Harassment (ENOUGH) Act would federally ban on “revenge porn,” or posting explicit pictures of somebody else — often an ex — without their consent. Almost every state banned the practice during the 2010s, but there is no federal ban.

Sen. Harris introduced the bill In November 2017, with one Republican and one Democratic cosponsor, Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) and future presidential campaign rival Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN). It never received a vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“Perpetrators of exploitation who seek to humiliate and shame their victims must be held accountable,” Sen. Harris said in a press release. “It is long past time for the federal government to take action to give law enforcement the tools they need to crack down on these crimes.”

Harris introduced it again in the current Congress, in July 2019, as the renamed Stopping Harmful Image Exploitation and Limiting Distribution (SHIELD) Act. It’s again attracted one Republican and one Democratic cosponsor, still Sens. Burr and Klobuchar, but has not yet received a vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

A House version introduced by Harris’s fellow Californian Rep. Jackie Speier (D-CA14) has attracted 87 Democratic and four Republican cosponsors, and awaits a potential vote in the House Judiciary Committee. . . .

In February 2018, Sen. Harris introduced a bill to include a statue of Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman elected to Congress and the first Black woman to run for president in 1972, in the Capitol Building. It attracted 16 cosponsors, 15 Democrats and one independent, but never received a vote in the Senate Rules and Administration Committee.

“Shirley Chisholm created a path for me and the 40 Black women members of Congress who have served after her,” Sen. Harris said in a press release. “While there is still work to be done for equal representation, we must also stand back and celebrate our triumphs along the way. Shirley’s legacy is one that encourages us to keep up the fight for our most voiceless and vulnerable, and deserves to be cemented in the United States Capitol.”

Sen. Harris reintroduced it again in the current Congress, in March 2019. It’s attracted 17 cosponsors, 16 Democrats and one independent, but again has not yet received a vote in the Senate Rules and Administration Committee.

A House version introduced by Rep. Yvette Clark (D-NY9) has attracted 70 Democratic cosponsors, and awaits a potential vote in the House Administration Committee.

Gallup estimates that 4.5 percent of the U.S. population identified as LGBT — lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender — in 2017, a number rising every single year since they started the survey in 2012, because the stigma keeps lessening. But what is America’s LGBT population exactly?

Introduced in July 2018, Sen. Harris’s Census Equality Act would include a question on the decennial Census asking respondents about their sexual orientation and gender identity, starting in 2030. The idea is that America could get a precise count of that group’s population.

The bill attracted 21 Democratic cosponsors, but never received a vote in the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. In June 2019, the similar LGBTQ Data Inclusion Act was introduced by Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), with Sen. Harris signing on as one of the 18 Democratic cosponsors, though it has again not yet received a vote in the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. . . .

Some schools get out as early as 2 P.M., even though the standard workday goes until 5 P.M. or 6 P.M., putting pressure on many working parents, particularly parents of elementary school-aged children.

Introduced in November 2019, Sen. Harris’s Family Friendly Schools Act would establish a grant program to keep 500 elementary schools open until at least 6 P.M. on weekdays. After five years, the Education Department would be required to produce a study about whether this model could or should be expanded nationwide.

The bill has attracted five Democratic cosponsors, but has not yet received a vote in the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee.

“My mother raised my sister and me while working demanding, long hours,” Sen. Harris said in a press release. “So I know firsthand that, for many working parents, juggling between school schedules and work schedules is a common cause of stress and financial hardship. But this does not have to be the case. My bill provides an innovative solution that will help reduce the burden of child care on working families. It is time we modernize the school schedule to better meet the needs of our students and their families.”

After her election in 2016, Harris’s first-ever bill in February 2017 would have clarified under federal law that undocumented immigrants held or detained have the right to a lawyer during their legal proceedings.

The bill attracted seven Democratic cosponsors — including presidential campaign rivals Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) — but never received a vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“Detention without access to representation goes against the basic values of our judicial system,” Sen. Harris said in a press release. “Refugees, immigrants, students, and tourists all deserve to be able to access their lawyer in legal proceedings that could change the course of their lives, whether they enter the country at an airport or come across the border. Interactions with immigration enforcement officials are often confusing and disorienting and no one should be exploited because of their lack of knowledge of our legal system.”

Sen. Harris also re-introduced the bill in the current Congress, in July 2019. It’s attracted six Democratic cosponsors, but again has not yet received a vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Six cosponsors are the same as the seven who signed on the previous Congress, but Sen. Tom Carper of Delaware hasn’t cosponsored this new version. . . .

The Congressional Gold Medal is the highest civilian honor that Congress can bestow, awarded to 19 people from arts and entertainment throughout American history, including Walt Disney, actor John Wayne, singer Frank Sinatra, and Peanuts illustrator Charles M. Schulz.

In August 2018, Sen. Harris proposed the late singer and civil rights activist Aretha Franklin, a mere five days after Franklin’s death. The bill attracted 41 cosponsors — 35 Democrats, five Republicans, and one independent — but never received a vote in the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee.

In February 2019, Sen. Harris reintroduced it with a smaller 25 cosponsors to date: 23 Democrats and two Republicans. Again, it has not yet received a vote in the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee.

A House version introduced by Rep. Brenda Lawrence (D-MI14) has attracted 68 cosponsors, 64 Democrats and four Republicans, and awaits a potential vote in either the House Administration or Financial Services Committee.

“From listening to Mary Don’t You Weep, to standing in the living room dancing to Rock Steady over and over again, to hearing from the Queen herself how lucky I was to be young, gifted and Black — Aretha’s songs were the soundtrack of my childhood,” Sen. Harris said in a press release. “Aretha was simply a legend. Her work and impact will be felt for generations to come, and it’s long past time Congress honor her with the Congressional Gold Medal.”

(Excerpt Gov Track Insider. Article by Jesse Rifkin Photo Credit: Getty Images.)

What are your thoughts on the bills she has introduced?