James J. Tarlau (born May 23, 1948) is an American politician from

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

, a retired union organizer, and a member of the Democratic Party. He was elected to represent District 47A in the

Maryland House of Delegates The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the Maryland General Assembly, legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland. It consists of 141 delegates elected from 47 districts. The House of Delegates Chamber is in the Maryland State House ...

in 2014 and served one term.

Background

Tarlau was born and raised in New York City. He attended

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

, where he worked to "radicalize" the institution. He was suspended for protesting a visit from Nixon's Interior Secretary

Wally Hickel Walter Joseph Hickel (August 18, 1919 – May 7, 2010) was an American businessman, real estate developer, and politician who served as the second governor of Alaska from 1966 to 1969 and 1990 to 1994, as well as U.S. Secretary of the Interior ...

in March 1970. He graduated with an A.B. in history the same year after completing a 158-page long senior thesis titled "Postwar Reaction and the Foreign Policy of the American Labor Movement" but the suspension prevented him from participating in graduation ceremonies with his class. After stints driving trucks and a cab, Tarlau earned a master's degree in computer science from

Villanova University Villanova University is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded by the Order of Saint Augustine in 1842 and named after Thomas of Villanova, Saint Thom ...

and another master's degree in Labor Relations from

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

. He raised his family in New Jersey and worked to effect political change through union organizing. In 2000 he moved to Maryland, where he served eight years on the

Mount Rainier, Maryland Mount Rainier () is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, bordering Washington D.C. The population was 8,333 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Mount Rainier is contained between the Northwest Branch Anacostia Ri ...

City Council and worked as assistant to the vice president of the

Communications Workers of America The Communications Workers of America (CWA) is the largest communications and media labor union in the United States, representing about 700,000 members in both the private and public sectors (also in Canada and Puerto Rico). The union has 27 loc ...

. After winning the Democratic primary for a seat in District 47A of the Maryland House of Delegates, Tarlau retired from his union job.

Politics

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'', Congresswoman Donna Edwards, Maryland Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown, Maryland State Sen. Joanne Benson and Maryland Del. Doyle Niemann endorsed Tarlau's campaign for the House. He ran on a progressive platform, including: * Mandating the Geographic Cost of Education Index as a part of the state aid for education formula * Promotion of clean energy job projects * Passing a $15 minimum wage * Changing the tax code so companies headquartered in other states have to pay taxes on their Maryland revenue (combined tax reporting) When a

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lobbyist made news by saying publicly that the incoming class of legislators was "more anti-business" than their outgoing colleagues, Tarlau was one of 17 newly elected members of the House who signed a letter disputing the characterization.

Legislative career

Tarlau was appointed to the Ways and Means Committee at the beginning of his first term in the House. His first legislative action was to introduce bill PG 417-15, which would require counties to reveal the criteria they use to calculate each municipality's tax differential.

Election results

*2014 Democratic primary election for the House of Delegates, District 47A. ::Voters to choose two: : *2014 general election for the House of Delegates, District 47A. Retrieved on 2015-01-14 ::Voters to choose two: :

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tarlau, Jimmy 1948 births Living people Politicians from New York City Democratic Party members of the Maryland House of Delegates Princeton University alumni Politicians from Prince George's County, Maryland 21st-century members of the Maryland General Assembly