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U.S. Senator from Montana

Steve Daines

Republican · Montana

Former tech executive (Procter & Gamble), serving since 2015. NRSC chair. Focus on agriculture, public lands, energy, and China trade policy.

Record

Conservative Republican. Led NRSC to Senate majority. Business background informing China trade hawkishness. Focus on Montana's agricultural economy and federal land management for ranchers.

Legislative Record

Recently sponsored bills (8 on record)

  • S.5048 — Hydropower Licensing Affordability Act (Introduced, Jul 21, 2026)
  • S.4992 — A bill to require the Secretary of the Army to issue guidance relating to the review of applications for alteration or temporary or permanent occupation or use of certain hydropower projects, and for other purposes. (Introduced, Jul 15, 2026)
  • S.4838 — Outdoor Recreational Outfitting and Guiding Act (Introduced, Jun 18, 2026)
  • S.4752 — A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to increase criminal and civil penalties for unauthorized disclosure of taxpayer information, and for other purposes. (Introduced, Jun 11, 2026)
  • S.4489 — Dry-Redwater Regional Water Authorization Act (Introduced, May 12, 2026)
  • S.4314 — Foster Youth Education and Workforce Opportunity Act of 2026 (Introduced, Apr 16, 2026)
  • S.4041 — Cooperative Watershed Management Program Reauthorization Act of 2026 (Reported, Mar 10, 2026)
  • S.537 — Protecting Access for Hunters and Anglers Act of 2025 (Introduced, Feb 12, 2025)
    Protecting Access for Hunters and Anglers Act of 2025 This bill bars the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the Forest Service from prohibiting or regulating the use of lead ammunition or tackle on federal land or water. The bill makes exceptions for specified…

Notable votes

  • Voted Yea on S.Res. 817 — S. Res. 817 (Resolution Agreed to, Jul 30, 2026)
  • Voted Yea on S.Res. 817 — Motion to Invoke Cloture: S. Res. 817 (Cloture Motion Agreed to, Jul 29, 2026)
  • Voted Yea on H.R. 6644 — Motion to Invoke Cloture: Motion to Concur in the House Amendment to the Senate Amendment to H.R. 6644 with an Amendment (SA 5823) (Cloture Motion Agreed to, Jun 18, 2026)
  • Voted Yea on S. 2 — S. 2, As Amended (Bill Passed, Jun 5, 2026)
  • Voted Nay on S. 2 — Cortez Masto Amdt. No. 5463 (Amendment Rejected, Jun 5, 2026)
  • Voted Nay on S. 2 — Padilla Amdt. No. 5808 (Amendment Rejected, Jun 5, 2026)
  • Voted Nay on S. 2 — Gallego Amdt. No. 5813 (Amendment Rejected, Jun 5, 2026)
  • Voted Nay on S. 2 — Peters Amdt. No. 5763 (Amendment Rejected, Jun 5, 2026)

Recently cosponsored bills (12 on record)

  • S.5179 — A bill to clarify that for purposes of Federal nondiscrimination requirements applicable to education programs or activities receiving Federal financial assistance, discrimination prohibited under title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 is based on the biological reality of sex. (Introduced, Jul 30, 2026)
  • S.5202 — A bill to prohibit the use of Federal funds for gender transition for minors. (Introduced, Jul 30, 2026)
  • S.4318 — Breast Cancer Stamp Reauthorization Act (Introduced, Jul 28, 2026)
  • S.5119 — A bill to require the United States Postal Service to sell the Alzheimer's semipostal stamp for 6 additional years. (Introduced, Jul 23, 2026)
  • S.5041 — Advancing Research for Chronic Pain Act of 2026 (Introduced, Jul 21, 2026)
  • S.4952 — Protecting American Taxpayers Act (Introduced, Jul 20, 2026)
  • S.5025 — Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia Act of 2026 (Introduced, Jul 16, 2026)
  • S.4378 — Protecting American Taxpayers Act (Introduced, Jul 15, 2026)

Voting analysis

Steve Daines chairs the national parks subcommittee and a foreign relations subcommittee on European security, and files more bills on water resources than on anything else — hydropower in particular.

6.6%
Votes against the Republican majority
211
Roll calls where a party majority formed
20 of 51
Rank among Senate Republicans, most defections first

Amendments backed, bills opposed

His departures divide evenly. He supported amendments from two Republican colleagues that the chamber rejected, and voted against a bill at passage plus two cloture motions his conference wanted carried — including one on an amendment offered by a Democratic senator. Supporting failed conservative amendments while blocking his own side's procedural steps places him among the conference's fiscal sceptics rather than its dealmakers.

The 10 most recent of 14 roll calls where Steve Daines voted against the Senate Republican majority.
Roll callDateOutcomeTheir vote
H.R. 3944
Johnson Amdt. No. 3428
On the Amendment S.Amdt. 3428 to S.Amdt. 3411 to H.R. 3944 (No short title on file) · roll call 119		Aug 1, 2025Amendment RejectedYea (party: Nay)
S.Con.Res. 7
Paul Amdt No. 999
On the Amendment S.Amdt. 999 to S.Con.Res. 7 (No short title on file) · roll call 119		Feb 21, 2025Amendment RejectedYea (party: Nay)
H.R. 82
On Passage of the Bill H.R. 82 · roll call 118		Dec 21, 2024Bill PassedNay (party: Yea)
H.R. 3935
Motion to Invoke Cloture: Cantwell Amdt No. 1911 as Modified to H.R. 3935
On the Cloture Motion H.R. 3935 · roll call 118		May 9, 2024Cloture Motion Agreed toNay (party: Yea)
H.R. 815
Motion to Invoke Cloture: Motion to Concur in the House Amdt to the Senate Amdt to H.R. 815
On the Cloture Motion H.R. 815 · roll call 118		Apr 23, 2024Cloture Motion Agreed toNay (party: Yea)
H.R. 7888
On Passage of the Bill H.R. 7888 · roll call 118		Apr 19, 2024Bill PassedNay (party: Yea)
H.R. 7888
Lee Amdt No. 1840
On the Amendment S.Amdt. 1840 to H.R. 7888 (No short title on file) · roll call 118		Apr 19, 2024Amendment RejectedYea (party: Nay)
H.R. 7888
Durbin Amdt No. 1841 as Modified
On the Amendment S.Amdt. 1841 to H.R. 7888 (No short title on file) · roll call 118		Apr 19, 2024Amendment RejectedYea (party: Nay)
H.R. 7888
Paul Amdt No. 1828
On the Amendment S.Amdt. 1828 to H.R. 7888 (No short title on file) · roll call 118		Apr 19, 2024Amendment RejectedYea (party: Nay)
H.R. 7888
Wyden Amdt No. 1820
On the Amendment S.Amdt. 1820 to H.R. 7888 (No short title on file) · roll call 118		Apr 19, 2024Amendment RejectedYea (party: Nay)

Both Montana seats

Montana returns two Republican senators, and the pair hold to the conference line tightly. Daines is the more frequent departer, though the margin is small.

Among the 2 Republicans in the Montana delegation, the average rate of voting against the party majority is 4.0%. Steve Daines is above that average at 6.6%.

What he legislates on

Water and hydropower dominate: the Hydropower Licensing Affordability Act sits beside a bill requiring the Secretary of the Army to issue guidance on applications to alter or occupy certain hydropower projects. The Outdoor Recreational Outfitting and Guiding Act rounds out a portfolio drawn almost entirely from a mountain state's rivers and public lands.

Sponsored bills carry the Congressional Research Service's own subject classification. Steve Daines's cluster into: Water Resources Development (3), Energy (1), Families (1), Labor and Employment (1), Taxation (1).

643
Bills sponsored
2520
Bills cosponsored

Of the 8 most recent of those, 7 currently sit at Introduced.

Tenure and attendance

Counting an earlier House term, his time in Congress reaches back to the early twenty-tens, comfortably inside the veteran cohort and all of it as a Republican. He misses few votes.

First elected in 2013, now serving across 7 terms. Steve Daines falls in the veteran cohort.

4.1%
Roll calls recorded as not voting
220
Roll calls eligible to vote on
9
Recorded as not voting

By the numbers

In the 119th Congress, Steve Daines has 643 bills sponsored, 2520 cosponsored, 8 recent floor votes recorded.

Committee assignments

  • Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
  • Senate Committee on Finance
  • Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
  • Senate Committee on Indian Affairs
  • Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: National Parks (Chairman)
  • Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Public Lands, Forests, and Mining
  • Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Water and Power
  • Senate Committee on Finance: Energy, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure
  • Senate Committee on Finance: Health Care
  • Senate Committee on Finance: International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness
  • Senate Committee on Foreign Relations: Africa and Global Health Policy
  • Senate Committee on Foreign Relations: Europe and Regional Security Cooperation (Chairman)

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