Jonathan Griffin

I am a proud parent to three young children under the age of 7. Both my wife and I have full-time jobs, and I have also worked nights and weekends for the last eight years to help support our family. Professionally, I’m a licensed Engineer with over 14 years of experience, predominately with the Agency of Transportation.  My experience includes the design and project management of bridges within the State of Vermont. This requires working closely with communities, regulators, property owners, and other stakeholders. I also have 8 years of experience supporting Vermont’s Manufactured Housing industry to include assisting home buyers to comply with FHA, VA, or USDA loan requirements. Many of the individuals I have worked with are first-time home buyers and it’s a tremendously rewarding experience to serve them.

I am naturally curious and inquisitive, I enjoy learning about new things and trying to solve problems. In my experience, to successfully solve problems, you need to understand how variables influence each other before you can propose solutions. If elected, I promise to listen to constituents, industry professionals and experts in order to inform data driven policy decisions. I am committed to looking at all of the potential impacts of proposed legislation to avoid the consequence of increasing the cost of living.

I am running for representative because I am motivated by Vermont’s affordability crisis. I’m deeply concerned for our future based on how unaffordable Vermont is to live. Since 2019 the State of Vermont’s budget has increased by almost 50%. This is not sustainable.

If elected to represent our district the number one issue I would like to focus on is housing. I believe that reducing the total cost of housing will have the greatest impact on our State across the widest number of metrics. Until we have adequate capacity, I do not believe it will be possible for us to take care of our most vulnerable populations. This requires immediate action to reduce the total cost of housing. We can start by working on H.687 the ACT 250 land use reform, or H.289 Renewable Energy Standard slated to increase utility rates hundreds of millions of dollars, the Global Warming Solutions Act, and Act 18 the Affordable Heat Act scheduled for a vote in January which will cost Vermont BILLIONS of dollars.

I believe that Vermonters need a reprieve from NEW or ADDITIONAL financial pressures, and I will not support any legislation which adds additional financial burdens to families including property taxes, utilities, and home heating expenses. I would love the opportunity to represent our district and to serve our community in such a way that Vermonters aren’t financially driven out of Vermont.

I’m a native Vermonter who loves our State. I understand why our Legislature wants to take meaningful action against climate change. However the legislative war on carbon comes at a cost and that is inflation on the cost of living. Each tax, fee, or credit imposed by our lawmakers makes it more expensive to live here. These fees are not absorbed by industries, businesses, or utilities. Instead, they result in increased utility rates, increased fuel costs, increased groceries, and increased prices across the board. I believe that we need to lead by example in Vermont but in a way that allows families and businesses to partake as they are able and choose to do, not because they are required to do so by law. We need to get back to being good stewards of the tax dollar so that our constituents can continue to be good stewards of the land.

I look forward to providing you with a choice in November.

Thank you,

Jonathan Griffin