Tarlau was born and raised in New York City. He attended Princeton University, where he worked to "radicalize" the institution. He was suspended for protesting a visit from Nixon's Interior Secretary Walter J. Hickel in March 1970. He graduated with an A.B. in history the same year after completing a 158-page long senior thesis titled "Postwar Reaction and the Foreign Policy of the American Labor Movement" but the suspension prevented him from participating in graduation ceremonies with his class. After stints driving trucks and a cab, Tarlau earned a master's degree in computer science from Villanova University and another master's degree in Labor Relations from Rutgers University. He raised his family in New Jersey and worked to effect political change through union organizing. In 2000 he moved to Maryland, where he served eight years on the Mount Rainier, Maryland City Council and worked as assistant to the vice president of the Communication Workers of America. After winning the Democratic primary for a seat in District 47A of the Maryland House of Delegates, Tarlau retired from his union job.
Politics
, Congresswoman Donna Edwards, Maryland Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Brown, Maryland State Sen. Joanne Benson and Maryland Del. Doyle Niemann endorsed Tarlau's campaign for the House. He ran on a progressive platform, including:
Mandating the Geographic Cost of Education Index as a part of the state aid for education formula
Changing the tax code so companies headquartered in other states have to pay taxes on their Maryland revenue
When a Comcast lobbyist made news by saying publicly that the incoming class of legislators was "more anti-business" than their outgoing colleagues, Tarlau was one of 17 newly elected members of the House who signed a letter disputing the characterization.
Legislative career
Tarlau was appointed to the Ways and Means Committeeat the beginning of his first term in the House. His first legislative action was to introduce bill PG 417-15, which would require counties to reveal the criteria they use to calculate each municipality's tax differential.
