Rep.
Megan L. Cotter was elected Nov. 8, 2022, to represent District 39 in
Exeter, Hopkinton, and Richmond. She is a member of both the House Education
Committee, the House Health and Human Services Committee,
and the House Small Business Committee.
In her first year the in the House, Representative Cotter
sponsored legislation that created a legislative commission to help the
state determine the best action for improving
forest management. In 2023 and 2024, she chaired that commission, which
issued
recommendations that included funding forest fire prevention programs
and more forestry staff in the Department of Environmental Management, state
and local collaboration to map accessible routes for firefighting in
forested lands, and helping owners of forested lands to develop fire
management plans. Her leadership and advocacy helped add funding in the 2025
state budget for additional
forest rangers at DEM, and led to the addition of
land conservation funding to the “green bond" proposal on the ballot in
November 2024. She continues to push for
property tax relief and support for
Early Intervention programs, as well as being a strong advocate for
education, children, and rural communities.
Representative Cotter is
the director of business development and category management for Foley Fish,
which delivers a full line of seafood products to fine restaurants. She is a
member of Women in Seafood.
She grew up in the Elmhurst section of
Providence, with working parents who divorced when she was young. Her father
imparted upon her and her siblings the importance of hard work and kindness,
involving the family in church and volunteering for those in need. She
graduated from Classical High School in 2002, and went on to University of
Rhode Island, where she triple majored in English, Comparative Literature,
and Classical Studies.
Shortly after college, she married her husband,
Christopher. They soon had three children, Emily, Joseph, and Charles. Like
many Rhode Islanders, they struggled under the weight of rent, utilities,
health care, and student loans, but eventually managed to buy a home in
Exeter. When that home was completely destroyed in a fire in 2017, their
tragedy was transformed into a profound lesson on kindness and community, as
neighbors and friends reached out with support from every direction. Rather
than move, they did not hesitate to rebuild in the same spot. They and their
children are active volunteers in the community that gave so much to them.