House · Democrat
Aaron Vega
Data through FY2026; built October 19, 2026.
Residence
Holyoke
First elected
House 2012
Occupation
Small Business Owner, Yoga Instructor, Film Editor
Left office
did not seek reelection in 2020 (not a candidate in the 2020 primary or general election for this seat); term ended January 6, 2021
| Session | Chamber | District | Lines | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 189th (2015–16) | House | 5th Hampden | 2011 lines | |
| 190th (2017–18) | House | 5th Hampden | 2011 lines | |
| 191st (2019–20) | House | 5th Hampden | 2011 lines |
Posts and stipends
Aaron Vega was paid $21,665 in leadership and committee stipends from 2017 to 2020.
| Session | Posts | First year | Second year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 189th (2015–16) | Vice chair, Joint Committee on Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities | not available | $0 |
| 190th (2017–18) | Vice chair, Joint Committee on Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities | $5,200 | $5,200 |
| 191st (2019–20) | Vice chair, House Committee on Technology and Intergovernmental Affairs | $5,633 | $5,633 |
Posts: the Legislature’s leadership and roster records as compiled for this project; where those name no post, the member’s committee chair, vice-chair and ranking roles from the Legislature’s member profiles. Stipends: additional compensation in the Comptroller’s payroll data (CTHRU dataset 9ttk-7vz6), 2016–2026; 2026 is the year to date. Stipends for 2015 are not available. Base salary is not included.
The district
5th Hampden on its 2011 lines: 1 city or town, 38,238 residents (2020).
Percentages are each place’s share of the district’s 2020 residents; for a town split between districts, the share of the town inside this one follows.
Population-weighted Fairness Index of the district’s cities and towns: 78 for all state aid and 74 for discretionary money (50 is a fair share).
Local earmarks are counted three ways. District money uses the first, clauses that name a place in the district; the second table adds organizations located in the district (placed in the district) and state facilities located there (everything placed). Three ways to count a local earmark.
| Session | District | Dollars | In corrective clauses | Per resident per budget, rank | Without corrective clauses, rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 189th (2015–16) | 5th Hampden | $289,000 | $0 | $7.55 · 17th of 160 | $7.55 · 16th of 160 |
| 190th (2017–18) | 5th Hampden | $590,000 | $0 | $7.71 · 16th of 160 | $7.71 · 15th of 160 |
| 191st (2019–20) | 5th Hampden | $661,000 | $0 | $8.64 · 11th of 160 | $8.64 · 11th of 160 |
District money is where enacted earmarks land, by the place a clause names, mapped to districts by 2020 population; it is not attributed to the member and does not include leadership’s base-text money that names no place. Ranks are of district money per resident among the chamber’s districts, 1 = most. “In corrective clauses” is the part carried by a Ways and Means chair’s corrective amendments, which is leadership’s money; the last column gives the per-resident figure and rank without it. Sessions are labeled by the General Court that enacted each budget. Per-resident figures use the district as drawn for each session (2011 lines through the 192nd General Court, 2021 lines from the 193rd), so they will not equal a session’s dollars divided by the resident count above.
| Session | District | Placed in the district | Per resident per budget, rank | Everything placed | Per resident per budget, rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 189th (2015–16) | 5th Hampden | $189,000 | $4.94 · 57th of 160 | $289,000 | $7.55 · 34th of 160 |
| 190th (2017–18) | 5th Hampden | $660,000 | $8.63 · 27th of 160 | $690,000 | $9.02 · 26th of 160 |
| 191st (2019–20) | 5th Hampden | $861,000 | $11.26 · 21st of 160 | $861,000 | $11.26 · 23rd of 160 |
Budget amendments
Aaron Vega sponsored 42 budget amendments in FY2017–FY2026, asking for $84.5 million in all.
Amendments sponsored
42
FY2017–FY2026 budgets
Adopted, known outcomes
41%
11 of 27
Chamber rate, same ask sizes
54%
expected at the chamber’s rates
Of the 27 with a known outcome, 11 were adopted (41%). At the chamber’s adoption rate for amendments of the same size, about 15 (54%) would have been.
| Year | Amount | Enacted budget text (excerpt) | Amendment |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $60,000 | “an arts integration program for Enchanted Circle, Inc. of Holyoke to operate in the local public schools” | H3800 #180 |
| FY2019 | $50,000 | “the SPARK program operated by the Greater Holyoke Chamber of Commerce” | H4400 #190 |
| FY2020 | $30,000 | “Homework House, Inc. of Holyoke” | H3800 #184 |
| FY2019 | $30,000 | “the Holyoke Safe Neighbor Initiative at the Hampden County Sheriff's department” | H4400 #194 |
| FY2019 | $30,000 | “not less than $30,000 shall be appropriated to Homework House of Holyoke” | H4400 #205 |
Strong matches: 7 enacted items, $235,000 (the member’s share where several amendments claim one clause). House attribution is inferred throughout, because the House adopts most amendments inside consolidated amendments.
25 outcomes are inferred by matching amendment text to the House’s consolidated amendments, because the House records most amendments only as “Consolidated A–G.” Ask size is the larger of the earmark dollars and the line-item change an amendment requests; bands: no dollar amount, under $50,000, $50,000–$250,000, $250,000–$1 million, $1–5 million, $5 million or more. Leadership’s unattributed base-text and corrective-amendment money is never assigned to a member. The comparison describes outcomes; it is not a measure of merit.
Bills sponsored
Aaron Vega filed 87 bills as lead sponsor in these sessions; nine were enacted on their own. In completed sessions, 10% of their lead bills were enacted on their own, against chamber medians of 4% to 7% for the same sessions.
Most bills die in every legislature, and many policies pass inside other bills; the chamber median for the same session is the fair comparison.
| Session | Chamber | Lead bills | Enacted | Folded into an enacted bill | Sent to study | Reported favorably, then died | No action | Enacted rate | Chamber median | Cosponsored |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 189th (2015–16) | House | 26 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 9 | 1 | 23% | 6% | 194 |
| 190th (2017–18) | House | 35 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 12 | 5 | 6% | 7% | 258 |
| 191st (2019–20) | House | 26 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 10 | 3 | 4% | 4% | 209 |
Enacted bills as lead sponsor
- H3243 (189th): An act providing free access to certain parks and recreation areas to Purple Heart Recipients. · Chapter 132 of the Acts of 2015
- H3329 (189th): An Act Reducing the Size of the City Council of the City of Holyoke · Chapter 89 of the Acts of 2015
- H3558 (189th): An Act establishing a 4-year term for the office of Mayor of the city of Holyoke · Chapter 91 of the Acts of 2015
- H4124 (189th): An Act establishing a sick leave bank for Miranda Marie Flanagan, an employee of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation · Chapter 113 of the Acts of 2016
- H4262 (189th): An Act authorizing the city of Holyoke to establish a program for enforcement against illegal dumping · Chapter 243 of the Acts of 2016
- H4773 (189th): An Act establishing a sick leave bank for Ronald Friel, an employee of the Department of Developmental Services · Chapter 419 of the Acts of 2016
- H3691 (190th): An Act authorizing the merger of the Salvation Army of Massachusetts, Inc. into the Salvation Army, a New York Corporation · Chapter 315 of the Acts of 2018
- H3796 (190th): An Act establishing a sick leave bank for Edward Gates, an employee of the Department of Environmental Protection · Chapter 73 of the Acts of 2017
- H4590 (191st): An Act further regulating certain affordable housing in Holyoke, Massachusetts · Chapter 308 of the Acts of 2020
Outcomes are the furthest point each bill reached in the record. “Folded into an enacted bill” means the history names the enacted bill that absorbed it. “Passed both branches; no chapter recorded” means the bill was enacted by both branches and laid before the Governor, with no chapter or veto in the history; in the 194th General Court such bills are shown as laid before the Governor (pending). The 194th General Court is in session until January 2027, so its open bills are pending, not dead, and its rates (*) are not comparable with completed sessions. Chairs and leaders control the calendar, which raises their rates. Source: malegislature.gov bill histories.
Recorded votes on accountability measures
Aaron Vega cast 46 yes-or-no votes on the 46 accountability roll calls in this file (seven yes, 39 no).
| Date | Measure | Vote | Chamber result |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 25, 2017 | Recommit the 2017 pay-raise bill (H.58) to Ways and Means | No | Yeas 35, nays 125 |
| January 25, 2017 | Amd 3 (Lyons): legislators' raise not effective until next General Court | No | Yeas 40, nays 120 |
| January 25, 2017 | Amd 5 (Lyons): cap the increases at 4% | No | Yeas 36, nays 124 |
| January 25, 2017 | Engrossment of the pay-raise bill (stipend increases) | Yes | Yeas 116, nays 44 |
| January 26, 2017 | Enactment of the pay-raise bill | Yes | Yeas 116, nays 43 |
| February 2, 2017 | Override of Gov. Baker's veto of the pay-raise bill | Yes | Yeas 116, nays 43 |
| February 2, 2017 | Amendment 1.0 (Geoff Diehl): Text of the proposed House amendment (Representative Diehl) to the House Bill relative to Rank and File (House, No. 2017) | No | Yeas 34, nays 124 |
| February 2, 2017 | Sustain the Chair's ruling (point of order, Mr. Mark) against Diehl amd 2, Speaker term limits | Yes | Yeas 123, nays 33 |
| February 2, 2017 | Amendment 3.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): 24 Hour Time Frame for Bills to Be Acted On | No | Yeas 35, nays 124 |
| February 2, 2017 | Amendment 4.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Access to Information | No | Yeas 35, nays 124 |
| February 2, 2017 | Amendment 9.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Emergency Scheduling of Hearings | No | Yeas 38, nays 121 |
| February 2, 2017 | Amendment 10.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Equal Representation on Ethics Committee | No | Yeas 35, nays 124 |
| February 2, 2017 | Amendment 15.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Inoculators | No | Yeas 37, nays 122 |
| February 2, 2017 | Amendment 16.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Local Aid Resolution | No | Yeas 38, nays 121 |
| February 2, 2017 | Amendment 27.0 (James J. Lyons, Jr.): Defining and Limiting Informal Session | No | Yeas 34, nays 124 |
| February 2, 2017 | Amendment 20.0 (Shaunna L. O'Connell): Public access to House financial accounts audits | No | Yeas 34, nays 125 |
| February 2, 2017 | Amendment 21.0 (Shaunna L. O'Connell): Public access to committee votes | No | Yeas 41, nays 118 |
| February 2, 2017 | Amendment 5.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Local Aid Resolution | No | Yeas 37, nays 122 |
| February 2, 2017 | Amendment 11.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Committee Roll Calls on Website | No | Yeas 38, nays 121 |
| February 2, 2017 | Amendment 13.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Reports of Conference Filing Deadline | No | Yeas 37, nays 122 |
| February 2, 2017 | Amendment 14.0 (Shaunna L. O'Connell): Public access to committee votes | No | Yeas 38, nays 121 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 1.0 (Jonathan Hecht): Time to review bills | No | Yeas 55, nays 103 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 2.0 (Jonathan Hecht): Time to review amendments | No | Yeas 47, nays 111 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 3.0 (Jonathan Hecht): Committee materials and votes | No | Yeas 49, nays 109 |
| January 30, 2019 | Collective bargaining for House employees (curb on leadership control of staff); not a disclosure/power-of-leadership rule in the narrow sense (contested meaning) | No | Yeas 9, nays 149 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 11.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Access to Information | No | Yeas 40, nays 118 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 12.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Emergency Scheduling of Hearings | No | Yeas 35, nays 123 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 14.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Committee Polls – 2 Hours | No | Yeas 44, nays 114 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 16.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): House Audits | No | Yeas 35, nays 123 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 17.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): HWM Reports on Bills | No | Yeas 33, nays 125 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 19.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Local Aid Resolution | No | Yeas 32, nays 126 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 20.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Review of Consolidated Amendments | No | Yeas 32, nays 125 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 22.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Committee Votes on Website | No | Yeas 44, nays 113 |
| January 30, 2019 | Fingerprint remote voting from committee rooms (contested meaning) | No | Yeas 32, nays 125 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 25.0 (Marc T. Lombardo): Matters considered in an informal session | No | Yeas 32, nays 125 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 31.0 (John H. Rogers): Relative to Rule 18C | No | Yeas 43, nays 113 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 32.0 (Patrick Joseph Kearney): relative to Rule 100 ( c ) 3 | No | Yeas 5, nays 152 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 33.0 (Patrick Joseph Kearney): relative to Rule 20A and Rule 33A | No | Yeas 5, nays 152 |
| January 30, 2019 | Equitable office space (leadership allocates offices) (contested meaning) | No | Yeas 11, nays 146 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 38.0 (Denise Provost): To assure adequate time to prepare and file amendments | No | Yeas 44, nays 113 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 41.0 (Russell E. Holmes): Equal Pay Amendment II | No | Yeas 5, nays 152 |
| January 30, 2019 | House rules (H2019), rules package: on adoption of the order (contested meaning) | Yes | Yeas 125, nays 32 |
| January 30, 2019 | Conference-committee appointment deadline; adopted 157-0 (contested meaning) | Yes | Yeas 157, nays 0 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 11.0 (Bradley H. Jones, Jr.): Committee Roll Calls on Website | No | Yeas 47, nays 110 |
| January 30, 2019 | Amendment 12.0 (Marc T. Lombardo): Informal Session | No | Yeas 36, nays 121 |
| January 30, 2019 | Joint rules (H2021), rules package: on adoption of the order (contested meaning) | Yes | Yeas 157, nays 0 |
Votes marked “contested meaning” are rules-package and public-records passage votes; reform advocates were on both sides of them. Descriptions are the project’s plain summaries of each question, or the question as recorded for rules-package roll calls; the official record is on malegislature.gov. Votes are facts; no score is computed.
Campaign money in
Aaron Vega’s committee reported $44,000 in contributions of $250 or more in years the member served, 2015–2020.
| Year | Contributions |
|---|---|
| 2015 | $9,900 |
| 2016 | $13,000 |
| 2017 | $5,568 |
| 2018 | $8,950 |
| 2019 | $5,550 |
| 2020 | $750 |
| Kind | Total | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Individuals | $31,000 | 70% |
| Political committees and PACs | $8,300 | 19% |
| Unions and associations | $4,850 | 11% |
| Employer reported | Share |
|---|---|
| A named employer | 52% |
| Self-employed | 33% |
| Retired | 3% |
| Not reported or withheld | 11% |
Not counted as contributions: $500 in other receipts of $250 or more in the same years (candidate loans and the candidate’s own money, transfers, refunds, bank interest and aggregated small receipts).
| Employer or organization | Kind | Total | Contributions |
|---|---|---|---|
| W E R E REALITY | individuals, by employer | $2,750 | 8 |
| TOWING REPAIR AND COLLISION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE | committee or PAC | $1,950 | 5 |
| HOUSING MANAGEMENT RESOUCES | individuals, by employer | $1,600 | 4 |
| HOLYOKE MEDICAL CENTER | individuals, by employer | $1,500 | 2 |
| VICTORY HOME HEALCARE | individuals, by employer | $1,250 | 4 |
| GTI | individuals, by employer | $1,200 | 2 |
| AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS MA PAC | committee or PAC | $1,000 | 2 |
| MA & NORTHERN NE LABORERS' DISTRICT COUNCIL POL ACTION COMM | committee or PAC | $1,000 | 2 |
| CENTER SCHOOL | individuals, by employer | $1,000 | 2 |
| NEW ENGLAND LABORERS DISTRICT | union or association | $1,000 | 2 |
Source: Office of Campaign and Political Finance, itemized receipts of $250 or more since 2015; OCPF filer record: Vega Committee (CPF 15533). Individuals are grouped by the employer they reported; no individual contributor is named, and an employer field that is a person’s name is withheld. Massachusetts bars business contributions to candidates. Employer shows affiliation, not instruction.
Sources
Every figure traces to a public record.
- Massachusetts Legislature, members, districts and roll calls
- Budget amendments and enacted budgets, FY2017–FY2026
- CTHRU payroll, Office of the Comptroller (stipends)
- Office of Campaign and Political Finance
- District lines: Acts of 2011 and 2021; Census 2020 block populations
- Official profile (prior offices, occupation)
- Election statistics (first elected, residence)
- Leaving office (election statistics)
Facts only: posts, stipends, sponsored amendments, enacted items, roll-call votes and district money. No score or grade is computed. Associations shown here are not evidence of cause. Method.