Schwarzenegger mulls solar roof bill veto due to union wage row

San Francisco (Platts)--31Aug2005

California Gov Arnold Schwarzenegger on Wednesday signaled that he may
not sign "Million Solar Roofs" legislation, his top energy legislative
priority, because of recent labor amendments.
     SB 1, sponsored by state Sens Kevin Murray and Lloyd Levine, aims to
boost California's solar capacity from about 93 MW to 3,000 MW by 2018 by
installing a million photovoltaic systems on residential and commercial sites.
     The bill was amended Aug 25 in the Assembly Appropriations committee to
require "prevailing wages" to be paid to union employees completing
non-residential photovoltaic installations. Some solar proponents fear that
this new amendment will push up costs for the new systems and put them out of
reach for many. Schwarzenegger agrees.
     "SB 1 abruptly lost its bi-partisan support when union-sponsored
amendments were added that would drive up costs of solar installations. The
governor does not support the recent amendments," said a spokesman.
     The spokesman declined to say whether Schwarzenegger would veto the bill
he championed. SB 1 is due to head to the state Assembly floor vote before
Sept 9, when the current legislative session ends.

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