Fresh from an accepting her nomination in the primary election, four-term incumbent Rep. Anne B. Donahue of Northfield has announced a platform of independence, advocacy, transparency and “open, public debate.”

Ms. Donahue, 54, had no opposition for the Republican nomination for a seat in the Vermont House of Representatives from the Washington-2 District, which includes Moretown, Northfield and Roxbury.

She said she looked forward to the opportunity to continue advocating for open government and for a healthy exchange of ideas.

“I am a strong believer in the value of transparency in government and the role of debate so that all aspects are seriously considered in decision-making,” Ms. Donahue said. “Increasingly, over the past several terms, I have seen many votes where elected representatives simply follow ‘marching orders’ and vote without challenging or questioning the underlying bill.”

Ms. Donahue said the “super-majority” the Democrats hold in the House and Senate make even it more important to have strong voices bringing alternative viewpoints, both in committee discussions and on the House floor.

“It isn’t about any one party affiliation, but when one party has a strong majority, the ability to push laws through rapidly – sometimes too rapidly – increases,” she said.

Ms. Donahue said many House Democrats have told her how much they value the perspectives she brings, even when they don’t agree.

“It makes people think more broadly,” she said. “I believe Independents and Democrats in our district recognize the importance of this, and support me for bringing that perspective to the legislative process.”

Ms. Donahue expressed concern that decisions on key issues were often made “behind closed doors by a small group of people, including members of the administration, and occasionally including minority party members.

“Then all legislators are expected to support the outcomes,” she said. “That just isn’t the way we should do things here in Vermont.”

Although born in Burlington, Ms. Donahue has five generations of roots in Northfield, where she moved 20 years ago and is currently editor of Counterpoint, Vermont’s mental health consumer newspaper.

A long-time advocate for children and the disenfranchised, she is a former program director for homeless street youth in New York and Los Angeles and holds a JD from Georgetown University, magna cum laude, and a BA in political science and philosophy from Boston College.

In 1997, she received a lifetime achievement Jefferson Award from the National Institute for Public Service. Her original co-honorees were former President Jimmy Carter, General Colin Powell, and teacher Jaime Escalante, whose success teaching calculus to inner city students in Los Angeles was dramatized in the film, “Stand and Deliver.”

“My own experience with mental illness in the 1990's drew me to focus on mental health parity law and to engage more directly in both overall health care policy and legislative issues,” Ms. Donahue said. “Although I had worked in public policy in the 1980's, it was not until returning to Vermont that I became active in the political process.”

In 2001, she was encouraged by both Republican and Democrat legislators to run for a House seat, she said.

“My political positions are based more upon a consistent set of values than a pre-set party agenda,” Ms. Donahue said. “But as a whole, I found myself more often supporting a view of more limited government interference that was in line with the Republican platform.”

“For example, no one questions that having access to a job is a better way out of poverty than building over-reliance on government support,” she said.

Ms. Donahue said one of her greatest strengths as a representative is encouraging open and informed decision-making, rather than “knee-jerk” positions.

“It is not unusual to see my name broken off from a party line vote, or to see my name on a floor amendment to improve a bill,” she said. “The majority of the amendments may not pass in the current, highly partisan environment, but the underlying issue has been highlighted to everyone. They have to think about consequences of their actions. That’s vital to the process.”

Careless decisions are most often made in the frenzied rush to adjourn, she said.

“I have made it a priority to challenge rash actions. I’ve intercepted unconstitutional bills, and voted against any bill that was brought up for a vote without the time to read it,” Ms. Donahue said. “It is a sad statement that it is considered unusual in the House to read all bills before voting on them.”

For example, she cited a bill last spring that violated the first amendment, yet had passed the Senate and a House committee unanimously. After her questioning, the legislature’s attorneys verified it was unconstitutional. The bill was then amended.

She has received commendations from the Vermont ACLU for sometimes taking unpopular positions in support of constitutional values.

Ms. Donahue identified a bill last session that inadvertently repealed the state’s motor vehicle organ donor registry, and then she introduced the first bill of the session last year to correct the error.

When it comes to more complicated issues, “solutions that appears simple may sound good, but are rarely realistic,” Ms. Donahue said.

Health Care Reform “For instance, solutions to health reform do not come in the two word ‘single payer’ answer. There are complex interactions and consequences flowing from every action.

“I support reforms to health care that increase equitable access to quality care, and that recognize that ensuring such access is a core function of society,” she said. “But the most fundamental part of health reform is informed consent. Just as full information is critical to personal health choices, decisions about our system must be based on understanding the pros and cons that come with any choice.

“I believe we could make a strong start by showing that we can make our existing single payer system, Medicaid, transparent and internally sustainable.”

Ms. Donahue’s first major bill, which passed in her first year in the Legislature in 2002, reshaped the oversight and planning structures for hospital cost containment in the state.

This creation of a statewide “health resource allocation plan” and hospital report card requirements that make quality and cost information web-accessible remain an underlying core for current work on those issues, she said.

Energy

Similarly, she said, it is easy to say that Vermont Yankee must be shut down, since its current ownership has been a fiasco and its age raises serious concerns.

“But that doesn’t answer all the questions, because people still need and want sources for power. So replacement and its cost are part of the core issue, not separate ones.

“Wind? Where will the wind towers go? – since everyone has some legitimate concerns about their ridge lines,” she asked, pointing to the current controversy over wind turbines on the Northfield ridge. “Solar panels and small hydro? These need to be evaluated and weighed, and the decision-making process needs to be constantly challenged, so we can have confidence that the right questions are being asked,” Ms. Donahue said.

“We cannot close off discussion on potentially viable energy sources. Local project considerations must be rooted in a strong statewide energy policy.”

Education/Property Tax Reform

As for education financing and the property tax, Ms. Donahue has argued since 2003 for the need to work from a clean table, instead of attempting patchwork fixes that further complicate the existing system.

“The underlying basis of Act 60/68 is a statewide ‘common level of appraisal’ that is simply unworkable and thus inherently inequitable,” she said. “It is also impossible to realistically understand school costs or opportunities for savings when local taxes are so heavily influenced by outside factors.

“We should begin by reviewing what other states are doing to address these challenges before assuming that all answers are in Montpelier,” she said. “We tend to assume Vermont can come up with the best new ideas all on its own. Other states are valuable resources for ideas.”

State Hospital

Ms. Donahue has also been active in the process to develop alternatives to allow the Vermont State Hospital to close.

“It is disgusting to see politics rather than good public policy control decision-making so profoundly that seven years after two deaths and decertification of the hospital, no plan for replacement has been adopted.”

Ms. Donahue has been a member of the Health and Welfare Committee, renamed the Human Services Committee, since her first term beginning in 2002. She has also served on the Mental Health Oversight Committee since its inception.

Ms. Donahue was named a “Legislative Standout” by the Burlington Free Press in 2008. In 2004, she was recognized by the Vermont Coalition for Disability Rights for her “unwavering advocacy for the voices of people with disabilities to be heard,” and in 2006 received a similar advocacy award from The Vermont Children’s Forum.

She was also featured in the Times Argus and the Rutland Herald in 2010 for her opposition to the “Challenges for Change” legislation, which she said falsely claimed to close a budget gap through efficiencies and a restructuring of government.

Most of that bill actually represented cuts for which legislators did not want to take responsibility, and the projected savings still did not add up to create a balanced budget, she said.

Her view was shared by a majority of legislators, yet she was one of a tiny minority who vigorously opposed it on the House floor, then voted against it, she said.

The article was headlined, “I Will Not Stand By in Silence.”

“I have evolved into becoming an aggressive voice for open, public debate. I think it is an important part of the process, and it is a primary reason that I am running again,” Ms. Donahue said.

“If no single major special interest group thinks I’m the best thing since sliced bread, I must be doing something right.”