Clean heat proposal draws dark money into Vermont political races

Dark money from outside groups is flowing into local House and Senate races that could decide the fate of a unique energy policy that would transform Vermont’s heating fuel market.

Earlier this year, Americans for Prosperity spent more than $60,000 on an advertising campaign designed to excite voters about the “clean heat standard” to be voted on in Vermont’s next legislative session in 2025.

Meanwhile, over the past two months, a national group called the Green Advocacy Project has donated $180,000 to a Vermont-based super PAC that is using the money to promote candidates it believes will support the Clean Heat standard support.

Given Vermont’s small population and relatively small fuel market, the economic impact of Vermont’s energy policy will not be far-reaching on its own. But with larger states like Maryland and Massachusetts considering similar measures, it’s not surprising that outside groups would take such interest in what’s happening in Vermont, according to Washington County Sen. Andrew Perchlik.

“I mean, that’s the value of Vermont doing some of these things,” Perchlik, a Democrat who supports a clean heat standard, told Vermont Public. “Sometimes people say, ‘What’s the point? Vermont is so small.’ Well, we can have an outsized impact if we do it right, and other states say, ‘Oh, that’s pretty smart.’ We can do that too.’”

The Green Advocacy Project, which donated $180,000 to the Vermont Conservation Voters Action Fund, did not return an email request for an interview. Tax returns show the group has given five- and six-figure donations to numerous environmental and campaign organizations across the country.

Justin Marsh of the VCV Action Fund describes the Green Advocacy Project as a “pro-climate and pro-environment” group that supports candidates who champion clean energy policies in state and local governments.

“They are very interested in supporting campaigns because their focus is on clean energy and environmentally friendly policies,” Marsh said. “And so they really appreciate the importance of state policy in making this happen.”

Marsh said the Green Advocacy Project is particularly interested in the clean heat standard, which Vermont’s next legislative session will decide on implementing. And the results of Vermont’s upcoming election will be crucial to the future of this policy.

That’s because Republican Gov. Phil Scott, who opposes the clean heat standard, will almost certainly veto the bill as it leaves the Statehouse. And Marsh said the Vermont Conversation Voters Action Fund is using the $180,000 to support Democratic candidates in close races this year, hoping to secure the votes needed to override that potential veto.

“We definitely take a strategic look at the political landscape during elections and make those decisions based on where we put our focus and efforts,” Marsh said.

VCV Action Fund spending on down-bot competitions was significant by Vermont standards. The group has spent more than $10,000 supporting Democrat Andy Julow in the Grand Isle Senate race and nearly $10,000 supporting Democrat Amanda Cochrane in the Caledonia County Senate race.

The PAC hopes that even smaller expenditures, like the nearly $2,000 in support of Rep. Bobby Farlice-Rubio, a Democrat from Barnet, have the potential to make a difference. So far he has only raised about $3,200 for his own campaign. His Republican opponent, Debbie Powers, raised about $9,300, most of which came from herself or immediate family members, according to campaign finance disclosures.

Farlice-Rubio told Vermont Public that he had no idea he had been the recipient of outside spending until a friend sent him a picture of the mailer that the VCV Action Fund sent out to local voters. As someone who believes dark money from outside groups is generally bad for democracy, Farlice-Rubio said he is concerned.

“It was kind of a shock. “I’m one of those people who thinks there’s way too much money in politics,” he said. “And at first I thought…this is strange and unfortunate.”

But Farlice-Rubio said he was the target of false claims and negative attack ads from his opponent and outside groups that accused him of raising the cost of heating oil and making the state unaffordable for Vermonters.

Farlice-Rubio said he supports legislation that would create a proposed clean heat standard for lawmakers to consider next year. But he said if this plan would negatively impact his constituents, he would not vote for it.

“And I feel like if this group that wants to support me uses factual information to get the vote, then I welcome that, even if I didn’t ask for it,” he said.

It is unclear where the Green Advocacy Project gets its funding. The U.S. Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United ruling created a new legal framework that allows organizations involved in election campaigns to hide the identities of their donors unless they coordinate directly with candidates.

Marsh said the VCV Action Fund supports campaign finance reforms that would make it obsolete. Until then, they said, they cannot afford not to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the post-Citizens United environment.

“It’s unfortunate that we are a super PAC. We would like to see campaign finance reform. But yeah, technically we’re a super PAC and that’s the situation we’re in, so that’s what we can play with,” Marsh said. “We saw big oil money coming in, and we just knew we had to counter the narrative somehow so that Vermonters could understand both sides of the story.”

The Big Oil money Marsh is referring to came in the form of an advertising campaign by Americans for Prosperity that encouraged Vermonters to oppose the clean heat standard. The group, known for its ties to the Koch brothers and major fossil fuel interests, has spent hundreds of millions of dollars nationwide over the years to influence elections and move public opinion.

Americans for Prosperity’s advertising spending prompted a complaint from Jim Dandeneau, executive director of the Vermont Democratic Party, who said the organization failed to properly register with the state.

Dandeneau said in his complaint to Attorney General Charity Clark that the group’s activities in Vermont were part of a “pattern of deception.”

“This … is part of the practices carried out by the multi-millionaire AFP and its affiliates in the billionaire-funded Koch Brothers network across the country wherever elected officials seek to push back and take action against fossil fuel corporations .” “Slow the devastating and costly global overheating that the fossil fuel industry’s products and activities are causing in places like Vermont,” Dandeneau wrote last month.

Matt Cota is director of government affairs for the Vermont Fuel Dealers Association, which has raised concerns about the impact of the Clean Heat Standard on heating fuel delivery companies in Vermont. Cota said Americans for Prosperity’s action in Vermont did a disservice to small businesses whose solvency is at stake as elected officials consider the future of energy policy.

“I can’t speculate on why they did what they did,” he said. “All I can tell you is that it wasn’t helpful. It’s pretty annoying. And it doesn’t help move the conversation forward.”

Fuel retailers have formed their own super PAC in the state called Vermonters for Affordable Heat, which is making its own attempt to influence voting results in November. The group has raised about $38,000 and is funded primarily by in-state fuel retailers like Judy Taranovich, owner of Proctor Gas.

If fuel retailers and their customers had a fair chance in Montpelier next year, they would have to participate in local elections for the House and Senate, she said.

“I think we need some balance up there, right?” Taranovich said. “I don’t think everyone has to think like me either… But with seven out of 30 Republican senators and 37 out of 150 representatives, we don’t have a voice up there.”

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