Biography
I was born and raised in St. Albans, went to elementary school at St. Albans City School, high school at Bellows Free Academy, and received my degree from Castleton in Secondary Education and History in 2009. Over the years I have coached local youth sports around St. Albans, most recently coaching my two sons in soccer and baseball.
I have served in the House of Representatives since 2018 and sit on the House Committee on Education as Ranking Member and on the House Rules Committee. I am also the Assistant Minority Leader and the co-chair of the Vermont Future Caucus. In 2023 I received two national awards. The first was from Future Caucus where I won the Cherisse Eatmon Collective Impact Award that “recognizes an outstanding state caucus for their future-focused leadership and political bridge-building. Nominees are selected based on their efforts promoting political collaboration within their state.” I was also recognized by ALEC as one of the Top 50 Legislators Under 50 award.
I am married to my wife Haley and I have two sons who currently attend St. Albans Town Educational Center and play a lot of sports. I have served as the chair of the St. Albans Town Planning Commission and I am on the Board of Directors for Northwest Counseling and Support Services. I work for Handy Toyota in St. Albans and I run my own consulting company Toof Consulting, LLC. You can learn more at www.caseytoof.com.
Candidate occupation
Customer Relations Manager at Handy Toyota & I run my own consulting business: Toof Consulting, LLC
Why are you running for office?
I am running for office because Vermont needs more balance and Vermonters deserve better than what they have received from Montpelier. The last two years alone over a half a billion dollars in new taxes and fees were passed including a $100 million payroll tax, 20% increase in DMV fees, and most recently a 13.8% increase in property tax bills. All of this while the legislature overrode the Governor’s vetoes to impose these new taxes and fees.
I have always tried to vote for what is right for St. Albans. This is the community that built me, raised me, taught me to do what is right, and gave me so much. Now is my turn to give back and fight for what is right for St. Albans, not my political party.
Over the last six years I have proven my leadership with my peers being elected as the Assistant Minority Leader and being placed as Ranking Member on the House Committee on Education. I have reached across the aisle in both committee and on the Floor working for the people of St. Albans. I have won two national awards for leadership and bipartisan work. I feel like we have more work to do to help make Vermont a great place to live, work, and raise a family.
Issues in brief
Do you believe Vermonters are better off now than they were 10 years ago?
No
Do you believe Vermont needs a new education funding formula?
Yes
Do you support imposing new taxes on the wealthiest Vermonters?
No
Do you support the establishment of overdose prevention centers?
No
Do you support a ban on flavored tobacco products?
No
Do you support increasing penalties for property crimes such as shoplifting?
Yes
Do you believe Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election?
Yes
Issues in depth
What would you do to help grow Vermont’s economy?
Vermont has had an economic problem that has stemmed over the last 20+ years. We have seen a significant drop in our student population, a decrease in our workforce, and all the while the cost of living has increased significantly. We need to make Vermont a place where people want to come and work and raise families.
How can we do that? We can first start by building new homes. Building housing in Vermont solves our biggest issues facing the state. It first helps by decreasing the burden of our historic double-digit property tax increase coming this fall. Building our grand list would lessen the burden on each individual household, each business and each rental property. Building housing would also solve our workforce issue. It would allow Vermont to open its doors to working professionals looking to buy a home and settle here.
We could also work on policies don’t make it harder for Vermonters to work and build businesses here. This includes new taxes implemented on business this last legislative session like the cloud tax and the $100 million payroll tax that businesses are paying 75% of.
What changes, if any, would you make to the way Vermont funds its schools?
This is the $2.37 billion question. We have a system in place that incentivizes districts to spend more or miss out. We all want a strong education system in Vermont that builds our future workforce and givEs our students the best opportunities possible. The problem is we have a system of spend or be left behind.
A good example of this is when a district votes down its budgets on Town Meeting Day. School boards only have a say in about 10% of its spending so when they go to make cuts it’s usually to cut programs, positions, or to defer maintenance. The problem is that after they make cuts the district will still likely see an increase in their property tax bills because we have a statewide funding system.
We have a Constitutional obligation to make sure each student is given the same opportunities across the state. We need a funding system that reflects that.
Is Vermont doing enough, too much or not enough to address climate change? Please explain.
Climate change is affecting Vermonters more than we have ever seen. We have seen increased severe weather and it has taken its toll on our local communities. That being said, I do believe we can’t tax Vermonters into fixing the crisis we currently face.
The Clean Heat Standard will cost Vermonters millions of dollars each year in home heating fuels. The Renewable Energy Standard will cost Vermonters millions of dollars each year in higher electric rates. The new law passed this year allowing us to hold oil companies responsible for climate change will cost Vermonters millions of dollars in legals fees.
The taxes and fees pile up and make it more difficult for Vermonters to afford to live here. We need some more buy in from other states before we implement a new tax or fee. We don’t always have to be the first state to pass a law. We can work collaboratively with other states to fix this problem.
Is Vermont doing enough, too much or not enough to regulate gun ownership? Please explain.
Vermont’s gun laws are sufficient and I wouldn’t argue that any more laws are needed at this point.
What would you do to help ease Vermont’s housing crisis?
I would repeal H.867 from this last legislative session and I would implement H.706 – the tripartisan housing bill that was supported by 100+ legislators from all political parties and heavily supported by Governor Phil Scott and his administration.
We are facing a housing crisis and only allowing growth in 3% of the state is not only irresponsible, it makes it so only the rich have a place to build outside our designated downtowns. We need housing now and housing will solve so many problems facing Vermonters from high property taxes to workforce development. We still have time to do what is right with a new legislature next biennium.
How would you address rising homelessness in Vermont?
Housing. The simple answer would be to build more housing. This would make housing in Vermont more affordable and provide more place to home the homeless population.
What would you do to increase access to health care services for Vermonters?
No answer
Financial disclosure
Candidates for state and legislative offices are required to submit a financial disclosure when filing to run. These disclosures include each source, but not the amount, of personal income of each candidate, and of their spouse or domestic partner, that singly or jointly totals more than $5,000 for the previous 12 months. The information provided is an opportunity for voters to learn about candidates’ potential conflicts of interest.
You can find Toof’s financial disclosure here.
Disclaimer
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