The President pro tempore of the Vermont State Senate presides over the Senate of the U.S. state of Vermont in the absence of the Lieutenant Governor. The Presidentpro tempore is third in the line of succession to the office of Governor of Vermont. In addition, the Senate pro tempore President serves as a member of the Committee on Committees. The Committee on Committees, made up of the Lieutenant Governor, President of the Senate and a State Senator chosen by his or her peers, is responsible for making committee assignments and designating committee chairpersons, vice chairpersons and clerks. Since January 6, 2017 the Senate President has been Senator Tim Ashe of Chittenden. Peter Welch, Vermont's member of the United States House of Representativessince 2007, served as President from 1985 to 1989 and 2003 to 2007, and was the first Democrat to hold the post. Peter Shumlin, Governor from 2011 to 2017, served as Senate President from 1997 to 2003 and 2007 to 2011. In the early days of the Vermont Senate, when the legislature met for a relatively short time each year, the lieutenant governor was usually on hand to preside over regular Senate sessions, and temporary presidents would be chosen on an as needed basis for periods as short as one day, or even just the morning or afternoon session of one day. By the 1870s, the position had evolved to the point where a permanent president pro tempore was chosen immediately after the convening of each new legislature. From the founding of the Republican Party in the 1850s until the 1960s, only Republicans won statewide offices, and Republicans also controlled both the Vermont Senate and Vermont House of Representatives. As part of the party's Mountain Rule, the post of Senate President, along with that of House Speaker, were used to groom future Governors and Lieutenant Governors. Including Shumlin, nine Governors have served as Senate President, as have six Lieutenant Governors who did not attain the governorship. The President pro tempore of the Vermont Senate earned $10,080 in annual compensation as of 2005. Starting in 2007, this total receives an annual cost of living adjustment.
