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Donald Collins
Donald E. "Don" Collins is a former Democratic member of the Vermont State Senate, representing the Franklin District from 2012 to 2015. Collins did not seek re-election in 2014.
Committee assignments
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Collins served on the following committees:
| Vermont committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs |
| • Education, Vice chair |
Issues
Charter schools
On February 8, 2013, Collins and fellow Senators Richard McCormack, David Zuckerman, and Richard Sears introduced a bill to impose more requirements on many independent schools. Under Senate Bill 91, any independent schools receiving public tuition funds for more than one third of its students would have been required to hire only state-certified teachers, accept all publicly funded students who apply so long as space permits, provide free and reduced-price lunch to eligible students and be approved to offer at least four categories of special education.[1] John McClaughry of the Ethan Allen Institute, a free-market think tank, criticized McCormack's bill as "clearly designed to put as many general purpose independent schools under the big fat thumb of the Education Agency in Montpelier." He accused McCormack of attempting to rush the bill through without input from the independent schools.[2] The Vermont Independent Schools Association also opposed the bill, saying, "State control of admissions and of hiring would strongly impair independent schools' ability to fulfill their unique missions."[3] McCormack and bill supporters argued that the independent schools were weakening public education by attracting students and state tuition dollars away from public schools without being required to meet state mandates, such as the requirement to offer expensive special education services. The Vermont National Education Association and the Vermont School Board Association endorsed SB 91. The bill was referred to the Education Committee, chaired by McCormack. Collins and Zuckerman were also members of the five-member committee. After just over a year's wait, the committee reported favorably on the bill. After a failed attempt at an immediate vote, the bill received a second reading, an amendment and a third reading before being passed on March 14, 2014. After receiving two readings in the House, the bill was ordered to lie, ending its progress.[4]
Elections
2016
Elections for the Vermont House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election took place on August 9, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was May 26, 2016.
Incumbent Brian Savage and Marianna Gamache defeated Donald Collins and Andrew Judge in the Vermont House of Representatives Franklin-4 District general election.[5][6]
| Vermont House of Representatives, Franklin-4 District General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Brian Savage Incumbent |
33.38% | 1,976 | |
| Republican | Marianna Gamache |
26.57% | 1,573 | |
| Democratic | Donald Collins | 25.27% | 1,496 | |
| Democratic | Andrew Judge | 14.78% | 875 | |
| Total Votes | 5,920 | |||
| Source: Vermont Secretary of State | ||||
Donald Collins and Andrew Judge were unopposed in the Vermont House of Representatives Franklin-4 District Democratic primary.[7][8]
| Vermont House of Representatives, Franklin-4 District Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Donald Collins |
60.54% | 339 | |
| Democratic | Andrew Judge |
39.46% | 221 | |
| Total Votes | 560 | |||
Incumbent Brian Savage and Marianna Gamache defeated Jamie Carter in the Vermont House of Representatives Franklin-4 District Republican primary.[7][8]
| Vermont House of Representatives, Franklin-4 District Republican Primary, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican | Brian Savage Incumbent |
46.56% | 541 | |
| Republican | Marianna Gamache |
39.24% | 456 | |
| Republican | Jamie Carter | 14.20% | 165 | |
| Total Votes | 1,162 | |||
2012
- See also: Vermont State Senate elections, 2012
Collins won election in the 2012 election for Vermont State Senate Franklin District. Collins was unopposed in the August 28 Democratic primary and won election in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[9]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Donald Collins |
22.6% | 7,433 | |
| Republican | Norman McAllister |
23.5% | 7,732 | |
| Democratic | Caroline Bright | 21.4% | 7,043 | |
| Republican | Dustin Degree | 22.5% | 7,407 | |
| Independent | Judith McLaughlin | 6.1% | 1,999 | |
| Independent | Peter Moss | 3.9% | 1,291 | |
| Total Votes | 32,905 | |||
Campaign themes
2012
Collins' website highlighted the following campaign themes:[10]
...I believe the number one issue in Franklin and Grand Isle Counties, the State of Vermont and the United States of America is jobs that offer a livable wage and reasonable benefits.
We need to use our Yankee ingenuity and common sense when it comes to creating jobs that provide products and services of a high quality and support the efforts of Vermonters doing the same in other parts of our state. As a small business owner I have reinforced my belief that a cleaner Lake Champlain and area waterways is critical to the future economy of Northwestern Vermont. Certainly agriculture, high quality manufacturing and business services and tourism related offerings are also critical to our future. Through partnerships and working together the residents of Northwestern Vermont can be leaders in job creation and healthy, robust communities....
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Vermont scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2014
In 2014, the Vermont General Assembly was in session from January 7 to May 10.
- National Federation of Independent Business in Vermont: 2013-2014 Legislative Voting Record
- Legislators are scored based on their votes on small business issues.
- Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility: 2013-2014 Legislative Scorecard
- Legislators are scored based on whether or not their votes aligned with VBSR’s stance on each policy.
- Vermont Conservation Voters: 2013-2014 Environmental Scorecard
- Legislators are scored based on their voting records on environmental issues.
- Vermont Public Interest Research Group: 2013-2014 Legislative Scorecard
- Legislators are scored by VPIRG on bills related to public interest issues.
2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the Vermont General Assembly was in session from January 9 to May 14.
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See also
- Vermont State Legislature
- Vermont State Senate
- Vermont State Senate Committees
- Vermont Joint Committees
- Vermont state legislative districts
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Vermont State Legislature, "Text of SB 91," accessed March 7, 2013
- ↑ Ethan Allen Institute, "The Sudden New Assault on Independent Schools," accessed March 7, 2013
- ↑ Caledonian Record, "Senate Bill Threatens School Choice, Independent Schools," February 26, 2013
- ↑ Vermont General Assembly, "S.91," accessed December 25, 2014
- ↑ Vermont Secretary of State, "Candidate listings," accessed November 4, 2016
- ↑ Vermont Secretary of State, "2016 general election results," accessed November 28, 2016
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Vermont Secretary of State, "Qualified candidates for the statewide primary - August 9, 2016," accessed May 26, 2016
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Vermont Secretary of State, "Vermont Election Night Results," accessed August 9, 2016
- ↑ Vermont Secretary of State, "Election Results Search," accessed April 22, 2014
- ↑ Don Collins For Senate, "Home page," accessed October 23, 2012
