Shawn Z. Tarrant facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Shawn Z. Tarrant
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| Member of the Maryland House of Delegates from the 40th district |
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| In office January 10, 2007 – January 14, 2015 |
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| Preceded by | Catherine Pugh |
| Succeeded by | Antonio Hayes |
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 30, 1965 Freeport, New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Children | 2 |
| Residences | Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. |
| Education | Norfolk State University (BA) |
Shawn Z. Tarrant was a politician from the United States. He was born on July 30, 1965. He served as a representative for the 40th district in the Maryland House of Delegates. This is a part of the state government in Maryland. He was a member of the Democratic Party. He represented parts of Baltimore, Maryland, from January 2007 to January 2015. During his time as a delegate, he worked on the House Health and Government Operations Committee. He was also the secretary of the Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland.
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Shawn Tarrant's Early Life and Education
Shawn Tarrant finished his studies at Norfolk State University in 1989. He earned a degree in finance and marketing. After college, he worked at Bristol Myers Squibb Company for 17 years. He became a director there. His job was to help patients with Medicaid get the medicines they needed. Medicaid is a program that helps people with low incomes pay for healthcare. He also helped cities set up programs to test for and teach about serious health issues.
Tarrant is a proud member of the NSU Prince Georges Alumni Association Chapter. He joined the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity in 1985. He is a lifelong member of both the NSU National Alumni Association and Kappa Alpha Psi.
Community Work Before Politics
Before he became a politician, Shawn Tarrant was very active in his community. From 1994 to 1999, he was the president of the Ashburton Area Association. This group worked to make his neighborhood better. He started several programs that are still running today. He also helped change the zoning rules for Ashburton. Zoning rules decide what kind of buildings can be built in an area. He made sure only single-family homes could be built there.
Tarrant often speaks about how to improve housing and zoning rules. He also cares a lot about public schools. He served six terms on the Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) board. He was also the vice president of the PTO at his children's elementary school.
Time in the Maryland House of Delegates
Shawn Tarrant started his first term in the Maryland House of Delegates in 2007. He served for eight years in the Maryland General Assembly. During this time, he helped pass more than 30 new laws. One important law he supported increased taxes on cheap, flavored cigars. These cigars were often marketed to young people in cities.
He also proposed a new law to protect student privacy. This law stopped university staff from asking students for their private usernames and passwords. This rule is now followed by all schools in the University of Maryland System.
Shawn Tarrant's Local Involvement in Baltimore
Shawn Tarrant was a leader in his neighborhood, the Ashburton community, for 12 years. He served as both president and vice president of his neighborhood association. He was also the vice president of the Mt. Washington Elementary School PTO for five years. In addition to his community work, he is a deacon at Union Baptist Church in Baltimore.
How Shawn Tarrant Became a Delegate
Before the 2006 election, there were three open spots for delegates in Tarrant's district. Two delegates had passed away while in office. This meant many people wanted to run for these open seats. Shawn Tarrant was one of the candidates.
In the 2006 election, voters chose three people to represent their district. Shawn Tarrant won one of these spots. He served for eight years. However, he was not re-elected in the 2014 Maryland Democratic primary election.
Important Laws Shawn Tarrant Supported
Shawn Tarrant supported several important laws during his time as a delegate:
- He helped create the Baltimore City Public Schools Construction and Revitalization Act of 2013. This law approved 1.1 billion dollars to build new schools in Baltimore City. The governor signed it into law in May 2013.
- He voted for the Clean Indoor Air Act of 2007. This law helped make public places smoke-free.
- He voted to stop "ground rents" in 2007. Ground rent is when someone owns a house but pays rent for the land it sits on.
- He voted to increase the sales tax as part of the Tax Reform Act of 2007.
- He voted in favor of allowing undocumented immigrants to pay in-state tuition at colleges in 2007. This means they could pay the same lower tuition as other Maryland residents.
