Part One in a two-part series on Rutland races for the House of Representatives. Tomorrow, a report on the son of a Vermont governor running for the State House.
By Guy Page
A Democrat challenging a Republican for an open Rutland House seat works for the group that is suing the State of Vermont for failure to meet carbon emission reduction goals.
Anna Tadio is a staff attorney for the Vermont Conservation Law Foundation, which has filed suit against the State of Vermont for failure to make sufficient progress on meeting its mandated carbon reduction goals. The CLF site says she most recently worked as an immigration attorney for the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants.
Tadio and Republican Chris Howland are seeking the Rutland-4 House seat vacated by Republican Paul Clifford, a steadfast opponent of carbon emissions control legislation. [An earlier version of this story mistakenly reported Clifford was seeking re-election. We regret the error. – Ed]
As reported by VDC in September, Last month, the Conservation Law Foundation “filed a lawsuit against Vermont’s Secretary of the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) for not fulfilling her legal obligations under the Global Warming Solutions Act (GWSA), which is critical for keeping the state on track to reduce harmful emissions contributing to climate change.”
The lawsuit was made possible by a controversial provision in the Global Warming Solutions Act in 2020. The bill gave private parties (including activist lawyers like CLF’) the explicit right to sue the State state for not meeting the law’s aggressive carbon goals.
Tadio is one of the few Democratic House candidates who responded with a ‘Yes’ to a VDC survey question polling their likely vote on an upcoming vote next year on implementing the so-called Affordable Heat Act, which passed with Supermajority and CLF support last year. The law would create a ‘carbon tax’ as a way of paying for transition from fossil-fuel to electricity-based heating.
Tadio’s campaign website states that she is an attorney but does not mention her current employer. Instead, it states: “She most recently worked as a Senior Staff Attorney for the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants where she primarily served Afghan and Ukrainian asylum seekers and refugees.”
Neither does her campaign website section on climate change discuss the GWSA or the Affordable Heating Act or any other move towards carbon taxation. Here’s what her website says:
“Climate change affects us all. Every summer is hotter than the last and this impacts our health, our food systems, and our economy. We need to prepare for increased storm frequency and for more dramatic changes in weather patterns. We can provide subsidies for people to weatherize and insulate their homes which will help prevent further greenhouse gas emissions and will help people save on their heating bills in the winter.”
VDC has asked CLF via email if Tadio will continue to work for CLF if elected to the House. A response will be published when received.