Rich Collins
Staff Reporter
Rich Collins
After representing the state’s 41st District since 2014, Rep. Rich Collins has announced he won’t seek re-election in November 2026, telling the Coastal Point that his decision was based on “age and religion,” and that he wants to travel to Israel.
Collins, who grew up in Seaford and lives in Millsboro, is known as one of the most conservative members of the Delaware General Assembly and has been an outspoken critic of government actions he said “infringed on citizens’ freedoms.” He has authored numerous bills aimed at reducing taxes, limiting state agencies’ regulatory authority and increasing government accountability, according to a news release announcing his plan not to seek re-election.
Last year, Collins sponsored a law requiring DNREC to notify citizens about public hearings, ensure access to in-person and virtual attendance options, and facilitate public comment on proposed actions, according to the news release.
“Let me be clear that I will remain fully engaged with the community and will continue to serve them as I always have through the end of my term on election day next year. Even though I am leaving elected office, I will continue to share my views on state and federal policy, help educate the public about what is happening in D.C. and Dover, and work to protect our community from government excess,” Collins said.
A graduate of Seaford High School and the University of Delaware, Collins worked in the insurance industry for many years as the owner of Access Insurance & Financial Services. He was a teacher and farmer, as well as former executive director of the Positive Growth Alliance, whose members are dedicated to protecting property rights.
The 41st District includes Millsboro, Dagsboro, Frankford and Selbyville and the unincorporated communities of Roxana and Gumboro. Collins and his wife, Susan, have three children and five grandchildren.
During a recent telephone conversation with the Coastal Point, he talked about his decision not to seek re-election, his goals for his final year in office and his accomplishments.
Q. Why did you decide not to run for another term?
A. I am 76 now. If I was reelected in November of 2026, I would be 78 in April. I decided not to run based on age and religion. When you’re young, you can do anything and you feel you can do it forever. I am still able to do things. I enjoy going outdoors. The way the General Assembly works, we’re tied up in May and June with government work, and last summer it was just so stinking hot in July, I didn’t want to do anything until the first half of August.
Q. What are your plans after you retire?
A. I have a few more big things I want to do in life. I’m going to Israel through Crossroads Church. I wanted to go with my wife. Then Hamas attacked Israel, and we realized we wouldn’t go then. We’re talking about next year sometime.
Q. What are your goals for your last year in office?
A. You know, people have short memories, but I thought the COVID regime was oppressive. I think it was damaging to the schools. It hurt businesses. It’s impacting New Castle County dramatically right now, because they did a reassessment and found out these giant office buildings in Wilmington are empty. The workers have never gone back to work there after COVID. Because those buildings were used dramatically less, they are not generating income, so they jacked up the rates.
They are still in the middle of figuring it out. We had to give them the right to delay billing people. Big buildings that did not see their value decline and maybe went up a lot will see their bills increase and then double over that, and this is because of COVID.
And the health outcomes in Delaware were no better than anywhere else. Delaware had some of the most restrictive requirements, forcing people to get vaccines and Christiana firing 300 workers who didn’t take the vaccine. It was just a nightmare.
I am hoping the governor will agree, and members of our General Assembly will agree, to minor changes in the wording of emergency laws. Right now, a governor can declare an emergency for any reason and then keep it in place. They can literally declare an emergency on the first day and keep it in place for eight years. The legislature has no say in it trying to get that changed. That would apply if there was a disease or a war scenario.
I do everything I can to convince other legislators not to do stupid things. Spending more money on social welfare keeps people dependent. There is no government program that celebrates that they help the person and get them to be upwardly mobile so they don’t need aid anymore. The government never talks about how anybody succeeded, just “How many people can we put on this program?” Now we have so many people who are dependent, and they demand more money, more support. It’s human nature.
There is a real mindset in government. They think it’s their job to make everyone dependent on the government. This is probably running against the flow, but that would include mental health, the drive to hire psychologists, more and more psychologists.
I keep asking, “If you are going to hire someone and put him in the schools, is it their job to find someone who has a need?” If they don’t, how are they going to collect a paycheck? If someone decides you need psychiatric help, how do you prove you don’t? How do you ever advance to the point that you don’t? So many people are convinced they have issues and if they got focused on something bigger than themselves, maybe they wouldn’t need a psychologist.
I went to school in Seaford. Now, if you were a Black kid in Seaford, things were not good at that time but, hopefully, we have moved past that. But when I was growing up, I don’t remember all these problems. Is education getting better or worse? Is school attendance getting better? Teacher attendance? We’re running out of money. The state debt is getting worse.
If you’re in the minority, as deep in the minority as we Republicans are — 27-14 in the House and 15-6 in the Senate — and the governor has been the other party for several terms now, we are not going to pass a lot of legislation. My hope is to stop some stuff, to get them to understand they have to do different things. And, in all honesty, I have done some of that.
The electric car, the mandate, I went to those legislators over and over and over, and showed them the facts. I’m not opposed to electric cars. People can buy an electric car, and they are buying them. But to force people to do something, I don’t agree with that. There was one issue I spent the entire year on. One Democrat told me, “You’re in our office building more than the Democrats are.” People would disagree with me wholeheartedly in the office, but they absolutely would not change their vote.
Q. What accomplishments are you most proud of?
A. I am mostly focused on not doing things. I’ll give you one small example: I have never voted for tax increases. The government has more money than they need, and the more money they get, they will spend. So I have been able to stop many taxes and fees.
Last year, there was a big fuss between the town of Newark and the University of Delaware. It was money, because Newark is the University of Delaware, really. The City wanted money, and their representative put in a bill that would have charged a tax on every University of Delaware student, $50 that would go to the City.
I said, “No way. No way I’d support that.” That didn’t happen. That was two or three years ago. When you come out with a bad idea, the more you keep pushing it, people will eventually come on board for whatever reason. So, now, the bill was not only $50 a semester, but it had an inflation adjustor on it. We’ve never done that in Delaware.
I said, “You’re setting a precedent on this. If you do this, we’ll soon have all kinds of taxes.” So I went to the sponsor and said, “Look. Here’s the deal. I’ll vote for the tax, but you have to do away with this inflation thing.” Technically, I did not vote for it. Technically, I authorized the City to enact the tax.
When I was growing up, we did not go around thinking all day long, “What is the government going to do for us today?” Now there are millions of people in this country who go around all day long thinking that. “What am I going to get from the government?” Even poor people, but they don’t realize they are paying for it in ways like the registration for their vehicles, in gas tax, in gross receipt tax for everything you buy.
Q. You’re known for being conservative, but you get along with liberals.
A. Yes, I do, and I don’t understand people who don’t get along with liberal people. I have people in the General Assembly I get along with just fine.
Q. Are you concerned about who will take your place and what will happen after you are out of office?
A. There are some people thinking about running for my seat, but I’m not endorsing anybody. Not yet.
Q. How would you characterize your years in office?
A. I have fought 100 percent of the time for fiscal responsibility, less spending, fewer taxes and fewer regulations by working with the Democrats and attempting to persuade them.
Q. Do you get frustrated?
A. Oh, I do. If I was in the majority, there’s a good chance I would not retire. But it would be one more year of beating my head against the wall.
Staff Reporter
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The Coastal Point is a local newspaper published each Friday and distributed in the Bethany Beach, South Bethany, Fenwick Island, Ocean View, Millville, Dagsboro, Frankford, Selbyville, Millsboro, Long Neck and Georgetown, Delaware areas.
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