Collins, Susan M.

Susan Collins represents Maine in the U.S. Senate and has served since 1997, making her the state's longest-serving member of Congress and the longest-serving Republican woman senator. As chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee since 2025, Collins wields significant power over the federal budget. The Appropriations Committee controls funding for virtually every federal agency and program, from defense to education to healthcare. The chair sets the committee's agenda, schedules hearings and markups, and determines which spending bills advance through Congress—making this one of the most influential positions in the legislative branch.

Collins brings decades of experience in government and fiscal management to this role. She began her career in 1975 as a legislative assistant to Senator William Cohen and later served as staff director of a Senate oversight subcommittee. She held positions as Maine's commissioner of professional and financial regulation, director of the Small Business Administration's New England regional office, and deputy state treasurer of Massachusetts. This background in regulatory affairs and budget management directly informs her work on appropriations.

Throughout her Senate career, Collins has established herself as a pragmatic moderate willing to break with her party on high-profile votes. She opposed the partial repeal of the Affordable Care Act, was the sole Republican to vote against confirming Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, and voted to convict President Trump during his second impeachment trial. She has consistently advocated for bipartisan compromise and preservation of the 60-vote Senate threshold, positioning herself as a pivotal vote on contentious legislation.

Collins is widely regarded as a moderate Republican and remains the only New England Republican in the Senate. Her legislative priorities, reflected in bills she has sponsored, include healthcare workforce development, veterans affairs, and rural development initiatives. Her leadership of the Appropriations Committee places her at the center of debates over federal spending priorities and gives her substantial influence over which programs receive funding and at what levels.