VPIRG Votes Endorsement
What more can the Attorney General do in the fight against climate change?
Global warming is the existential crisis of our time, and its impacts will be felt forever. As Attorney General, I will do everything I can to address climate change. After four years as Chief of Staff at the Attorney General’s Office, I know how to leverage the Office for the best results. Here is what I would do.
First, the next Attorney General must be an enthusiastic partner in compliance with the climate goals set forth in the Vermont Climate Action Plan. As the Attorney General’s Chief of Staff, I fought for the passage of the Global Warming Solutions Act in 2020 and defended its constitutionality when challenged by the governor. As Attorney General, I will stand up to any administration that blocks or challenges forward progress on the issue of global warming. I will also provide support to the Legislature, including providing the kind of bold leadership needed to meet this moment in the history of our planet. I will advocate for the passage of a clean heat standard legislation, and collaborate with the Legislature to ensure that any legislation passes constitutional muster. And if that legislation should be challenged in court, I will zealously defend it.
As Attorney General, I will also hold companies accountable for their roles in harming the environment--whether through consumer deception or in violation of Vermont’s environmental laws. As Chief of Staff, I was a member of the leadership team that used the Vermont Consumer Protection Act to sue the fossil fuel company for deceptive marketing and greenwashing. This moment needs an experienced leader willing to take bold steps.
Nationally, I will fight rollbacks of federal environmental protections in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision restricting the EPA's ability to mandate carbon emission reductions. As Chief of Staff, I saw firsthand the power of joining forces with like-minded states to create a force multiplier in national environmental lawsuits. As Attorney General, I will make sure Vermont’s voice is heard on the national scale.
In addition, I will safeguard Vermont’s natural resources and be a proponent of conservation. I am an outdoorswoman and a Long Trail End-to-Ender. I believe passionately in the importance of preserving Vermont’s beautiful natural environment – the soul of Vermont – and facilitating access to our natural environment.
Finally, I will use my voice as Attorney General to draw attention to the fact low-income Vermonters and communities of color are disproportionately impacted by hazardous waste, pollution, and climate disasters. If elected, I will work to ensure that the laws are followed to prevent further harm to our communities.
How do you envision using the power of the Attorney General's Office to advance the public interest in the areas of consumer protection, environmental issues and public health?
I served in the Attorney General’s Office for eight years, during which time I spent four years as Chief of Staff overseeing the Consumer Assistance Program and nearly four years as an Assistant Attorney General in the Consumer Protection Unit. Based on this experience, I know how to leverage the Office to get the best results for Vermont. As Attorney General, I plan to use existing consumer laws to advance environmental issues and public health, while also advocating for legislation to expand consumer protections, including comprehensive data privacy. From my years of experience working in this space, I have already built the necessary relationships and possess a deep understanding of the issues that will help me accomplish these goals. For example, I have already worked on and testified in the Legislature on bills related to PFAS, the Clean Heat Standard, data privacy, consumer protections for small businesses, robocalls, home improvement contractor registry, and others.
As Attorney General, I will use the Consumer Protection Act to create a safe harbor for people seeking abortion care. I will protect the data privacy of people seeking abortions in Vermont, create a pharmacy certification program for those seeking abortion medicine, and I will institute a no-tolerance policy on deception and misinformation about abortion medicine and access to abortion providers.
I will continue to use environmental and consumer protection laws to hold companies accountable for their roles in profiting from environmental harm, as I did as Chief of Staff when we announced Vermont’s lawsuit against Exxon, Shell, Sunoco, and CITGO for misleading consumers about fossil fuels and climate change. I am passionate about preserving and protecting Vermont’s natural environment. As Attorney General, I will continue to use creative solutions to address climate change. I will use my experience leading at the Attorney General’s Office to guide Vermont when environmental challenges, like PCBs in schools, arise.
In recent years, several states, including California, Colorado, Virginia and Utah have enacted comprehensive consumer data privacy laws. Would you support Vermont enacting a comprehensive data privacy law that includes a strong data minimization standard?
Yes. Businesses should collect only the data they require to carry out business transactions with customers, use this data for only the purpose for which it was obtained, and destroy it when that purpose expires. Indeed, during the most recent legislative session, I co-authored a memo of recommendations to the House Commerce and Senate Economic Development Committees, which included this recommendation, based on the California Consumer Privacy Act. Leadership of that committee already intends to take up my ideas in January. Data privacy is a Vermont value and a cornerstone of my campaign.
As Chief of Staff of the Attorney General’s Office, I successfully advocated to change Vermont’s law concerning data privacy protections for children; provided leadership on the lawsuit against Clearview AI; hosted forums around the state for stakeholders on issues of data privacy, at which VPIRG was an essential voice; and advocated for comprehensive privacy protections that would protect Vermonters while respecting the need for businesses to innovate and prosper.
As Attorney General, data privacy will be a top priority and I will support the points outlined in my memo, including:
data minimization provisions like those in the California Consumer Privacy Act;
limiting secondary uses of data by requiring third parties that acquire data to comply with the original consent and notice of which data was collected;
exploring “do not track” designation;
expanding the Data Broker Law to create additional protections for consumers; and
establishing biometric privacy protections.