Former member of Congress · last served 112th Congress
Joe Baca
Joe Baca was a Democratic U.S. representative from California, first elected to Congress in 1999, who voted with most Democrats on 93% of the 112th Congress’s yes/no votes and sponsored 4 bills that became law (106th–112th Congress).
How we count: “Broke with party” is a yes/no roll call where the member voted against most of their own party on that vote (party as recorded; even splits not counted). “Pork: own share” splits each earmark shared by several members evenly among them.
5 most recent votes
- YeaOn Motion to Concur in the Senate Amendments — American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012Jan 1, 2013 · Passed
- YeaOn Agreeing to the Resolution — Providing for consideration of the Senate amendments to the bill (H.R. 8) to extend certain tax relief provisions enacted in 2001 and…Jan 1, 2013 · Passed
- YeaOn Motion to Suspend the Rules and Concur in the Senate Amendment — Drywall Safety Act of 2012Jan 1, 2013 · Passed
- YeaOn Motion to Suspend the Rules and Concur in the Senate Amendment — To provide for the conveyance of certain property from the United States to the Maniilaq Association located in Kotzebue, Alaska.Jan 1, 2013 · Passed
- NayOn Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass — Congressional Pay Freeze and Fiscal Responsibility ActJan 1, 2013 · Passed
5 most recent bills
- H.R. 6395 Foreclosure Accountability and Transparency ActOct 1, 2012 · Referred to the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit.
- H.R. 6366 Flexible Refinancing for American Families Act of 2012Oct 1, 2012 · Referred to the Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government Sponsored Enterprises.
- H.R. 5654 S.O.S. (Save Our Schools) Act of 2012Sep 26, 2012 · Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.
- H.R. 5546 RETAIN ActSep 26, 2012 · Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.
- H.R. 6295 To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to encourage the building of housing for moderate income seniors.Aug 2, 2012 · Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
Top bills sponsored
- H.J.Res. 62 (110th) Native American Heritage Day Act of 2008Became law
- H.R. 3569 (110th) To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 16731 Santa Ana Avenue in Fontana, California, as the "Beatrice E. Watson Post Office…Became law
- H.R. 1243 (111th) To provide for the award of a gold medal on behalf of Congress to Arnold Palmer in recognition of his service to the Nation in promoting excellence and good…Became law
- H.J.Res. 40 (111th) Native American Heritage Day Act of 2009Became law
- H.Con.Res. 44 (109th) Recognizing the historical significance of the Mexican holiday of Cinco de Mayo.Passed a chamber
- H.R. 4606 (108th) Southern California Groundwater Remediation ActPassed a chamber
- H.R. 4252 (111th) Inland Empire Perchlorate Ground Water Plume Assessment Act of 2010Passed a chamber
- H.Con.Res. 84 (107th) Supporting the goals of Red Ribbon Week in promoting drug-free communities.Passed a chamber
Laws first, then bills that passed a chamber, were reported from committee, or drew the most cosponsors.
Elections Rep. Baca has won
Rep. Baca has won 6 U.S. House elections (2000–2010). Of the contested races, margins ran from 24.6 to 38.3 points.
Full election history for this seat →
Source: MIT Election Data and Science Lab, U.S. House V15 / U.S. Senate V8 (CC0), retrieved 2026-10-18; winners matched to member records by seat and term. Results run through the 2024 elections; nothing from 2026 is shown until it is certified. A margin is a fact about one election, never a score of how well a member represents anyone, and PORKER does not rank members by it.
How has California’s 43rd district done while Rep. Baca served?
2005 to 2011 in CA-43: typical household income was down 10% after inflation, the share of people below the poverty line was up 5.3 points, and the share of workers looking for a job was up 12.4 points.
Each mini chart has its own scale, fitted to its lines (it does not start at zero), so compare the numbers, not the heights. Teal = district, oxblood = state, grey = U.S.
While they served, not because of them. This shows what happened in California’s 43rd district during Baca’s time representing it (2003 to 2013). It does not say what the member did or caused. It is not a score, and PORKER never ranks members on it.
Only one set of district lines is shown. CA-43 was redrawn in 2012 and again in 2022, and a redrawn district is a different place. So this card shows only the longest stretch on the same lines during the term, 2005 to 2011 (no 2020 yearly estimate), not the full 2003 to 2013.
Official records on bills this member sponsored
112th Congress. What Congress.gov lists for the 40 bills sponsored.
| Record | Bills | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Bills sponsored | 40 | Source: Congress.gov member record, PORKER copy of October 26, 2026 ↗ See them → |
| With a sponsor’s constitutional-authority statement | 37 | See the 37 → |
| With a CBO cost estimate listed | 1 | See the 1 → |
| With a committee report listed | 1 | See the 1 → |
| With a Congress.gov note | 1 | See the 1 → |
Evidence
- How counted
- Bills where this member is the lead (first-listed) sponsor in the 112th Congress, read from the stored Congress.gov bill records
- Fields
- cboCostEstimates, committeeReports, constitutionalAuthorityStatementText, notes
- PORKER copy refreshed
- October 26, 2026 (nightly)
Read this first. These are counts of records Congress.gov lists. Many bills never get a CBO estimate or a report, so a zero is not a mark against a member. We never show this as a score.
Data as of Oct 26, 2026 · latest recorded House vote Sep 16, 2026 · Sources: Congress.gov, Senate.gov, House Clerk, Appropriations Committee earmark tables. PORKER is non-partisan.