July 20, 2026Methodology v2.2 · Data: BLS, 20102025
Political Grades
government — just the stats

CongressIdaho

James E. Risch

U.S. Senator, Idaho · Republican · in office since Jan. 3, 2021

James E. Risch
U.S. Senator · Idaho · Republican · in the Senate since Jan. 2009
Overall grade · among senators
No. 28 of 91
−0.04σ · 65% of the grade measured
How this grade is built
35%Bills they move (LES)+0.29
30%Idaho: trend + condition (26% condition, 17.5y served)−0.33
25%Alignment (promises vs. votes)reserved
10%Attendancereserved
Idaho outcomes over their Senate service
CategoryLatestScore vs. peers
Education scale score278.124+1.13σ
Air quality AQI3424−1.44σ
Water quality % of community systems7.025+0.40σ
Unemployment %3.725+0.59σ
Health coverage % of adults 18-6411.524+0.66σ
Tax burden % of personal income6.924−0.09σ
Energy cost cents/kWh11.524−0.19σ
Cost of living index, US=10095.524+0.12σ
Crime deaths per 100,0001.824+0.73σ
Teen births per 1,000 females 15-199.924+1.22σ
Wellbeing mean days of past 304.724+0.24σ
Obesity % of adults32.724+1.16σ
Early literacy % of 4th graders38.624+0.31σ
Gun deaths deaths per 100,000 (age-adjusted)15.924+0.35σ
Food-aid access index (higher = easier access)0.523−1.57σ
Jobless-benefit access % of unemployed receiving UI18.324−1.38σ
Their own recordValue
Legislative effectiveness LES · chamber avg = 1.0
1.22
Missed votes3.5%
Ideology 0 = left · 1 = right (GovTrack)0.89
Promises keptIn human review

A senator’s constituency is the whole state, so they are scored on the same verified state outcomes as the governor — ranked against other senators — alongside their own legislative record. Influence is shared with 99 colleagues and the governor; the score shows relative movement, not sole credit. Methodology v2.2

What Risch voted to fund

These pies aggregate the largest verified spending items — appropriations and mandatory outlays — in the bills Risch cast a recorded vote on, sliced by category, every dollar quoted from the bill text. Authorizations, guarantee ceilings and pay-fors are excluded, exactly as on the bill pages. This shows what the bills contained, by Risch’s own votes — not a claim that Risch wrote the spending or that it did or didn’t work. Click any slice to read the cited line-items.

Voted to fund — every dollar, cited

transportation$126.0B

  • Mandatory general-fund transfer to the Highway Account of the Highway Trust Fund (backfills highway contract authority; not a program outlay)Highway Trust Fund — Highway Account$90,000,000,000
    H.R. 3684 — read the cited text →
  • Mandatory general-fund transfer to the Mass Transit Account of the Highway Trust FundHighway Trust Fund — Mass Transit Account$28,000,000,000
    H.R. 3684 — read the cited text →
  • Federal Transit Administration Capital Investment Grants (New Starts transit)Federal Transit Administration$8,000,000,000
    H.R. 3684 — read the cited text →

broadband$64.4B

energy$61.4B

water$24.5B

environment$2.6B

community & regional development$1.0B

health$676.0M

Voted against — every dollar, cited

community & regional development$411.7B

income security$301.3B

education$162.6B

veterans$161.4B

  • VA Medical Services — inpatient/outpatient care for veterans (FY2025 advance appropriation)$71,000,000,000
    H.R. 4366 — read the cited text →
  • Appropriation to the Cost of War Toxic Exposures Fund for veterans' health care (PACT Act), available Oct 1 2024Dept. of Veterans Affairs - Cost of War Toxic Exposures Fund$24,455,000,000
    H.R. 3746 — read the cited text →
  • VA Medical Community Care — care at non-Department facilities (FY2025 advance appropriation)$20,382,000,000
    H.R. 4366 — read the cited text →
  • Appropriation to the Cost of War Toxic Exposures Fund for veterans' health care (PACT Act), available Oct 1 2023Dept. of Veterans Affairs - Cost of War Toxic Exposures Fund$20,268,000,000
    H.R. 3746 — read the cited text →
  • VA medical care and health needs (backlog and COVID-19 costs)Department of Veterans Affairs$14,482,000,000
    H.R. 1319 — read the cited text →
  • Veterans Benefits Administration — General Operating Expenses$3,899,000,000
    H.R. 4366 — read the cited text →
  • Mandatory appropriation to the Medical Facilities account for the 31 FY2023 major medical facility leasesDepartment of Veterans Affairs (Medical Facilities account)$1,880,000,000
    S. 3373 — read the cited text →
  • Mandatory appropriation to enter into enhanced-use leases of VA property (FY2022)Department of Veterans Affairs$922,000,000
    S. 3373 — read the cited text →
  • Mandatory appropriation to the Medical Facilities account for major medical facility leases (FY2031)Department of Veterans Affairs (Medical Facilities account)$650,000,000
    S. 3373 — read the cited text →
  • Mandatory appropriation to the Medical Facilities account for major medical facility leases (FY2030)Department of Veterans Affairs (Medical Facilities account)$620,000,000
    S. 3373 — read the cited text →
  • Mandatory appropriation to the Medical Facilities account for major medical facility leases (FY2029)Department of Veterans Affairs (Medical Facilities account)$610,000,000
    S. 3373 — read the cited text →
  • Mandatory appropriation to the Medical Facilities account for major medical facility leases (FY2028)Department of Veterans Affairs (Medical Facilities account)$600,000,000
    S. 3373 — read the cited text →
  • Initial mandatory appropriation seeding the Cost of War Toxic Exposures Fund (FY2022)Cost of War Toxic Exposures Fund$500,000,000
    S. 3373 — read the cited text →
  • Mandatory appropriation to the Medical Facilities account for major medical facility leases (FY2027)Department of Veterans Affairs (Medical Facilities account)$450,000,000
    S. 3373 — read the cited text →
  • Mandatory appropriation to the Medical Facilities account for major medical facility leases (FY2026)Department of Veterans Affairs (Medical Facilities account)$400,000,000
    S. 3373 — read the cited text →
  • Mandatory appropriation to the Medical Facilities account for major medical facility leases (FY2025)Department of Veterans Affairs (Medical Facilities account)$200,000,000
    S. 3373 — read the cited text →
  • Mandatory appropriation to the Medical Facilities account for major medical facility leases (FY2024)Department of Veterans Affairs (Medical Facilities account)$100,000,000
    S. 3373 — read the cited text →

commerce & housing credit$127.8B

other$127.3B

health$104.2B

transportation$76.9B

energy$66.6B

science$40.0B

defense$31.2B

agriculture$22.3B

broadband$18.7B

water$15.7B

Federal spending during Risch’s current term

Total U.S. federal outlays for each fiscal year of Risch’s current term. This is the whole federal budget — mostly Social Security, Medicare, defense, interest on the debt, and prior commitments — not money Risch personally directed. A president proposes and Congress appropriates; no single official controls it.

FY21
$6.82T−$2.77T deficit
FY22
$6.27T−$1.37T deficit
FY23
$6.13T−$1.69T deficit
FY24
$6.74T−$1.82T deficit
FY25
$7.01T−$1.77T deficit

Source: OMB Historical Tables, Table 1.1 (Summary of Receipts, Outlays, and Surpluses or Deficits: 1789-present) · figures. Nominal dollars, by fiscal year (Oct–Sep).

How Risch is graded

A senator’s constituency is the whole state, so Risch is graded on the same verified state outcomes as the governor — measured as the change on their watch versus the other 49 states, capped because influence is shared with 99 colleagues, the governor and a world economy — blended with what they personally control: how effectively they move legislation and how they vote. Every part decomposes on the card above, and the “measured” figure says how much of the grade is real versus still reserved.

Legislative Effectiveness Scores come from the Center for Effective Lawmaking, which benchmarks each chamber’s average to 1.0. Voting statistics come from GovTrack. The Honesty ledger — promises matched against this member’s votes — publishes only with an evidence trail and two agreeing human reviews.