Clausen, Peltzman, and Issue codes for 1st to 113th Congresses

Keith Poole

January 22, 2026

Clausen Categories

  1. Government Management: Environmental control; government regulation of business; natural resource management; government ownership of business; government control of the economy; budget balancing; tax policy; interest rates; management of the bureaucracy; etc.
  2. Social Welfare: Social security; public housing; urban renewal; labor regulation; education; urban affairs; employment opportunities and rewards; welfare; medicare; unemployment; minimum wage; legal services; immigration, etc.
  3. Agriculture: Price supports and subsidies; commodity control; acreage limitations; etc.
  4. Civil Liberties: Civil rights; equality; criminal procedure; privacy; guarantees of the Bill of Rights; slavery; Hatch Act; etc.
  5. Foreign and Defense Policy: International policy; foreign aid; aid to international organizations; armament policy; defense procurement; international trade; military pensions; etc.
  6. Miscellaneous Policy: Unclassifiable or unidentifiable votes; all votes concerned with internal organization of Congress; procedural motions.

Peltzman Categories

  1. Budget General Interest: Debt limit; budget targets; revenue sharing; unemployment insurance; tax rates; continuing appropriations; etc.
  2. Budget Special Interest: Authorization/appropriations for agencies, departments; public works; subsidized housing; NSF; parks; food stamps; etc.
  3. Regulation General Interest: General tariffs; minimum wage; gasoline rationing; auto emissions; water pollution; etc.
  4. Regulation Special Interest: Union regulations; coal mine regulations; export/import controls; fish and wildlife; etc.
  5. Domestic Social Policy: Abortion; school prayer; busing; criminal code and federal courts; immigration; gun control; Hatch Act; veterans preference; Legal Services Corporation; voting rights; slavery; etc.
  6. Defense Policy Budget: Authorization/appropriations for military; military pensions.
  7. Defense Policy Resolutions: Number of Army divisions; duties of officers; etc.
  8. Foreign Policy Budget: Authorization/appropriations for State Department and international organizations; etc.
  9. Foreign Policy Resolutions: Condemn/thank foreign nations; Taiwan relations; disapproval of apartheid; etc.
  10. Government Organization: Setting up new agencies/bureaus/commissions; civil service regulations; government reorganization; Federal Election Commission; constitutional amendments; admission of States; census; etc.
  11. Internal Organization: Election of Speaker; party ratios on committees; creating committees; procedural rules; disputed elections; congressional pay; etc.
  12. Indian Affairs: Indian treaties; appropriations for Indian Department; Indian lands and reservations; etc.
  13. D. C.: All votes dealing with the District of Columbia.

Issue Codes

  1. Gasoline rationing/allocation
  2. Fish & Wildlife
  3. Tax rates
  4. Budget resolution
  5. Women’s Equality
  6. South Africa/Rhodesia
  7. Amnesty (all wars)
  8. Unemployment/Jobs
  9. Emergency Fuel Assistance
  10. Union Regulation/Davis-Bacon/Situs Picketing
  11. Coal Mining Regulation/Strip Mining/Black Lung
  12. Arms Control
  13. U. N.
  14. Panama Canal
  15. Food Stamps/Food Programs
  16. Human Rights
  17. Pollution and Environmental Protection
  18. Welfare and Medicaid
  19. OSHA
  20. Civil Rights/Desegregation/Busing/Affirmative Action
  21. Abortion/Care of deformed newborns
  22. Homosexuality
  23. B-1 Bomber and Stealth (B-2)
  24. Shipping/Maritime
  25. Agriculture
  26. Minimum Wage
  27. Breeder Reactor
  28. Neutron Bomb
  29. Consumer Protection Agency/Consumer Protection
  30. Taiwan
  31. SST
  32. MX Missile
  33. School Prayer
  34. Nuclear Power
  35. Selective Service (The Draft)
  36. Vietnam War
  37. Public Lands
  38. Investigations
  39. Alien and Sedition Laws
  40. Religion
  41. Election of House Officers
  42. Civil Service and Patronage
  43. Election of the Speaker of the House
  44. Presidential Impeachment
  45. Education
  46. Parks and Conservation
  47. Banking and Finance
  48. Campaign Contributions/House Ethics/Lobbying/Campaign Laws
  49. Electoral Votes
  50. Tariffs and Trade Regulation
  51. Constitutional Amendments
  52. Slavery
  53. National Bank
  54. Disputed Elections to Congress
  55. Military Pensions/Veterans Benefits
  56. Mediterranean Pirates
  57. Whiskey Rebellion
  58. Treaties
  59. Immigration/Naturalization
  60. Public Works
  61. Voting Rights
  62. Ratio of Representatives to Population
  63. Congressional Pay and Benefits
  64. States Rights vs. Federal Government
  65. Supreme Court
  66. Humanitarian Assistance (foreign)
  67. Exchange Rates
  68. Nullification/Secession/Reconstruction
  69. Temperance and Liquor
  70. U.S. Currency
  71. Science and Technology
  72. Workplace conditions/8 hour day
  73. Minorities (non-black)
  74. Judiciary
  75. Impeachment of Officials Other than the President
  76. Public Safety
  77. Interstate Commerce/Anti-trust/Restraint of Commerce
  78. Children (aid, infant mortality, etc.)
  79. WWI
  80. Public Health
  81. Narcotics
  82. Firearms
  83. Radio/Television/Motion Pictures/Telecommunications
  84. Airlines/Airports/Airline Industry
  85. Peace Movements/Pacifism/Anti-Military
  86. Social Security
  87. Communists/Communism/Unamerican Activities
  88. Housing/Housing Programs/Rent Control
  89. Price Controls
  90. Debt Ceilings
  91. Nuclear Weapons
  92. CIA/Spying/Intelligence
  93. Korean War
  94. Space Exploration/NASA
  95. Handicapped
  96. Energy
  97. Central America
  98. Iran and Iraq
  99. Railroads
  100. National Endowment for the Arts
  101. Corp. for Public Broadcasting
  102. Death Penalty
  103. Medicare
  104. Haiti
  105. HIV & AIDS
  106. Tobacco
  107. Legal Services Corporation
  108. War on Terror (After 9-11)
  109. Bankruptcy and Pensions

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