InsideGov

Senator

James Risch

Idaho · Republican

In the Senate since 2009 · 9 Congresses served

About

James Elroy Risch is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Idaho since 2009. A member of the Republican Party, he served as lieutenant governor of Idaho under governors Dirk Kempthorne and Butch Otter, and briefly as governor between their terms.

From Wikipedia (text may be abridged), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

In the 119th Congress

James Risch sits 83rd from the left of 102 scored senators (2 of them since left office, marked "former" below). Ringed below; the rest of the chamber is faded.

ProEstablishmentAnti
Risch
Economic left–right
More liberalMore conservative

A–Z by last name · 101 members

Sen. Angela AlsobrooksD-MDSen. Alan ArmstrongR-OKSen. Tammy BaldwinD-WISen. Jim BanksR-INSen. John BarrassoR-WYSen. Michael BennetD-COSen. Marsha BlackburnR-TNSen. Richard BlumenthalD-CTSen. Lisa Blunt RochesterD-DESen. Cory BookerD-NJSen. John BoozmanR-ARSen. Katie BrittR-ALSen. Ted BuddR-NCSen. Maria CantwellD-WASen. Shelley CapitoR-WVSen. Bill CassidyR-LASen. Susan CollinsR-MESen. Christopher CoonsD-DESen. John CornynR-TXSen. Catherine Cortez MastoD-NVSen. Tom CottonR-ARSen. Kevin CramerR-NDSen. Mike CrapoR-IDSen. Ted CruzR-TXSen. John CurtisR-UTSen. Steve DainesR-MTSen. Tammy DuckworthD-ILSen. Richard DurbinD-ILSen. Joni ErnstR-IASen. John FettermanD-PASen. Deb FischerR-NESen. Ruben GallegoD-AZSen. Kirsten GillibrandD-NYSen. Darline GrahamR-SCSen. Lindsey GrahamR-SC (fmr)Sen. Chuck GrassleyR-IASen. Bill HagertyR-TNSen. Maggie HassanD-NHSen. Josh HawleyR-MOSen. Martin HeinrichD-NMSen. John HickenlooperD-COSen. Mazie HironoD-HISen. John HoevenR-NDSen. Jon HustedR-OHSen. Cindy Hyde-SmithR-MSSen. Ron JohnsonR-WISen. Jim JusticeR-WVSen. Tim KaineD-VASen. Mark KellyD-AZSen. John KennedyR-LASen. Andy KimD-NJSen. Angus KingI-MESen. Amy KlobucharD-MNSen. James LankfordR-OKSen. Mike LeeR-UTSen. Ben LujánD-NMSen. Cynthia LummisR-WYSen. Ed MarkeyD-MASen. Roger MarshallR-KSSen. Mitch McConnellR-KYSen. Dave McCormickR-PASen. Jeff MerkleyD-ORSen. Ashley MoodyR-FLSen. Jerry MoranR-KSSen. Bernie MorenoR-OHSen. Markwayne MullinR-OK (fmr)Sen. Lisa MurkowskiR-AKSen. Christopher MurphyD-CTSen. Patty MurrayD-WASen. Jon OssoffD-GASen. Alex PadillaD-CASen. Rand PaulR-KYSen. Gary PetersD-MISen. Jack ReedD-RISen. Pete RickettsR-NESen. Jacky RosenD-NVSen. Mike RoundsR-SDSen. Bernie SandersI-VTSen. Brian SchatzD-HISen. Adam SchiffD-CASen. Eric SchmittR-MOSen. Chuck SchumerD-NYSen. Rick ScottR-FLSen. Tim ScottR-SCSen. Jeanne ShaheenD-NHSen. Tim SheehyR-MTSen. Elissa SlotkinD-MISen. Tina SmithD-MNSen. Dan SullivanR-AKSen. John ThuneR-SDSen. Thom TillisR-NCSen. Tommy TubervilleR-ALSen. Chris Van HollenD-MDSen. Mark WarnerD-VASen. Raphael WarnockD-GASen. Elizabeth WarrenD-MASen. Peter WelchD-VTSen. Sheldon WhitehouseD-RISen. Roger WickerR-MSSen. Ron WydenD-ORSen. Todd YoungR-IN

Ideological trajectory · dimension 1 by Congress

James Risch's per-Congress position (nokken–poole), against the party mean.

0.250.500.75200920132017202120252023: 0.532023: 0.55

Idaho delegation · both senators on dimension 1

James Risch and their seatmate, gap 0.08. All 50 delegations →

-1.0-0.50.00.51.0IdahoCrapo 0.56Risch 0.640.08

Committee memberships

James Risch’s 6 committee assignments in the 119th Congress ranked by seniority. Each row also shows how James Risch’s own position compares to that committee’s overall blend.

Foreign RelationsChair
22 members · seniority rank 1
Δ 0.42 from center
▸Serves on 7 subcommittees
  • Africa and Global Health Policy
    11 members
  • East Asia, the Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy
    11 members
  • Europe and Regional Security Cooperation
    11 members
  • Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy, and Environmental Policy
    11 members
  • Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism
    11 members
  • State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development
    11 members
  • Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights, and Global Women's Issues
    11 members
Ethics
6 members · seniority rank 2
Δ 0.51 from center
Intelligence
21 members · seniority rank 2
Δ 0.55 from center
Small Business and Entrepreneurship
19 members · seniority rank 2
Δ 0.50 from center
International Narcotics Control
7 members · seniority rank 3
Δ 0.46 from center
Energy and Natural Resources
20 members · seniority rank 3
Δ 0.50 from center
▸Serves on 3 subcommittees
  • Energy
    17 members
  • Public Lands, Forests, and Mining
    15 members
  • Water and Power
    13 members
James Risch’s own positionCommittee’s blended position

Laws James Risch sponsored or cosponsored

Every public law that James Risch sponsored or cosponsored, newest first. Each law shows the part James Risch played, the policy area, and its closest recorded final-passage vote. Only bills that became law appear: most bills a member sponsors never do.

Loading laws…
    Data notes

    Public laws from the 93rd Congress (1973) on, from Congress.gov and GovInfo bill data, listed under the bill that was enacted. Cosponsors who withdrew are not counted. “Major” follows David Mayhew’s list of important enactments, which stops at the 118th Congress; later laws are not yet assessed. Votes and policy areas are as on the Laws page.

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    Financial disclosures · Senate

    Net worth over time

    Net worth for 2025

    $55.56M

    Range $19.4M – $91.72M

    $100M$80M$60M$40M$20M$02013201520172019202120232025
    MidpointFull reported range

    40 +/- Acres Land, Canyon County, ID Description: Currently Operated as Farm and Ranch Land (Canyon County, ID)

    $15M

    Joint · Farm/Ranch

    $5,000,001 - $25,000,000

    40+ Acres Land, Ada County, ID Description: Currently Operated as Farm and Ranch Land (Ada County, ID)

    $15M

    Joint · Farm/Ranch

    $5,000,001 - $25,000,000

    Agricultural and Commercial Real Estate Property Description: 77 Acres Land, Agricultural and Commercial Real Estate Property, Cloverdale Road (Ada County, Idaho)

    $15M

    Joint · Real Estate Commercial

    $5,000,001 - $25,000,000

    Total assets$20.45M – $92.24M
    Total liabilities$515K – $1.05M
    Net worth$19.4M – $91.72M
    Midpoint estimate$55.56M

    Values are the bands reported on the filing; midpoints are our estimate. Source: Senate eFD PDF, filed in 2026.

    Members of Congress don't report a net worth. They file annual disclosures listing assets and liabilities as value ranges, like “$15,001-$50,000.” We take the midpoint of each range and subtract liabilities from assets to estimate net worth. Expect wide margins: these are estimates, best read as trends and comparisons rather than exact totals.

    How to read this

    What's in a filing. Each year, members report the previous year's assets (stocks, funds, real estate other than a personal residence, retirement accounts, business interests, bank accounts) and liabilities. A spouse's or dependent child's holdings are included; a member's home, vehicles and household goods generally are not.

    Why ranges. Each item is reported within a set band, not as an exact amount, and the bands widen as values grow. The top band is open-ended (“over $X”), so a very large holding is shown with a floor, not an estimate.

    How we estimate. Net worth is the sum of asset midpoints minus the sum of liability midpoints, so the true figure could sit well above or below ours. Filings we couldn't read with confidence are flagged, and some years are missing.

    What it can and can't tell you. Comparing a member to themselves over time is more reliable than comparing two members. A year-to-year jump can be an asset crossing into the next band.

    Years are the year each report covers, so a report filed in 2025 appears as 2024. The line traces the midpoint and the shaded band shows the full reported range. Source: Senate eFD.