Thomas M. Salmon Explained

Tom Salmon
Order:29th
Office:Vermont Auditor of Accounts
Term Start:2007
Term End:2013
Governor:Jim Douglas
Peter Shumlin
Predecessor:Randy Brock
Successor:Doug Hoffer
Birth Date:28 July 1963
Birth Place:Bellows Falls, Vermont, U.S.
Party:Democratic (until 2009)
Republican (2009–present)
Parents:Thomas P. Salmon
Madeleine G. Savaria
Education:Boston College (BS)

Thomas M. Salmon (born July 28, 1963) is an American politician who was Vermont Auditor of Accounts from 2007 to 2013. He did not run for reelection in 2012, and was succeeded by Democrat/Progressive Douglas R. Hoffer. He was elected in 2006 as a Democrat and then became a Republican in 2009.

Early life

Salmon was born in Bellows Falls, Vermont. He graduated from Bellows Falls Union High School and attended Worcester Academy as a postgraduate year. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from Boston College.[1]

Salmon worked for Coopers and Lybrand (now PricewaterhouseCoopers) in Hartford and Los Angeles, and became a Certified Public Accountant in 1993.[2]

He taught school in the Los Angeles Unified School District from 1992 to 2002, and is a licensed English teacher for grades 7 to 12 in both California and Vermont. From 2004 to 2005 he was a Special Education teacher at Bellows Falls Union High School, working with emotionally challenged boys.[3]

Political career

Salmon served on the Rockingham, Vermont Selectboard beginning in 2006.[4]

In the 2006 Vermont Auditor of Accounts election, Salmon challenged Republican incumbent Randolph D. "Randy" Brock. With over 250,000 votes cast, the initial vote tally put Brock ahead by just 137 votes. Salmon requested a recount, and on December 21, 2006, he was declared the winner by a margin of 102 votes. This was one of the closest election victories in Vermont history, and the first time in the state's history that a statewide election's initially reported result was overturned by a recount.[5] [6]

Salmon was sworn in as state auditor on January 4, 2007. He was reelected in 2008 as a Democrat. He became a Republican in 2009[7] and won reelection in 2010 as the Republican nominee. In 2011 he became a Certified Fraud Examiner. He did not run for reelection in 2012.[8]

Military service

Salmon is a noncommissioned officer in the Navy Reserve and was deployed to Iraq in 2008. He ran successfully for reelection while serving overseas.[9]

Driving while intoxicated arrest

In 2009 Salmon was arrested for driving while intoxicated. His blood alcohol content was .086, over the legal limit of .080. He pleaded guilty and paid a fine, and later created public service announcements promoting safe driving.[10]

Later career

After leaving office in January, 2013, Salmon worked briefly as director of a special audit unit for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. He left to accept a position in Washington, D.C. as the Assistant Inspector General for Audit Services at the Office of Inspector General in the United States Department of Health and Human Services. At HHS he is responsible for audit services in eight regional offices across the country.[11]

Personal life

He is the son of former Vermont Governor Thomas P. Salmon.[12]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. National Association of State Auditors, Comptrollers and Treasurers, Biographical sketch, Thomas M. Salmon, 2009, page 1
  2. Association of Government Accountants, Speakers biography, Thomas M. Salmon, 2012
  3. Vermont Business Magazine, Q&A: Thomas Salmon, Vermont State Auditor, December 31, 2007
  4. Vermont League of Cities and Towns, Speakers biography, Tom Salmon, 2010, page 4
  5. http://www.rutlandherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061219/NEWS/612190371/1004/NEWS03
  6. http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061221/NEWS/61221012{{dead link|date=March 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
  7. Web site: Vermont auditor Tom Salmon switches parties, joins GOP: Times Argus Online . 2009-09-19 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090914114743/http://www.timesargus.com/article/20090909/NEWS01/909090336/1002/NEWS01 . 2009-09-14 .
  8. Vermont Business Magazine, Vermont Auditor Tom Salmon Will Not Run for Re-election, May 18, 2012
  9. WCAX, Salmon Will Be Allowed to Campaign from Afghanistan, June 23, 2008
  10. WCAX, Salmon DUI Arrest Video Released, October 29, 2010
  11. Heintz, Paul, "Salmon Takes, Then Leaves Job with Massachusetts Department of Transportation", Seven Days, March 13, 2013.
  12. Shay Totten, "Salmon: Political Fish Out of Water?", Seven Days, September 4, 2009.