President Donald Trump’s attempt to create U.S. jobs by taxing solar panel imports could backfire.
That’s according to the CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association trade group, who says it’s domestic workers that will feel the pain.
“We have been the fastest growing form of new energy...and this is putting the brakes on that crazy growth,” Abigail Ross Hopper told Cheddar in an interview. “These are not people who are looking for what nationality the company they work for is. They just want to feed their families and pay their mortgages. And those are the people whose jobs are at risk.”
Earlier this week President Trump signed a law that would impose a 30 percent tariff on imported solar panel and sells, a move the administration says will encourage domestic manufacturing.
But the SEIA says the vast majority of the 260,000 Americans employed in the industry work in peripheral industries like installation. Ross Hopper says the bill will result in 23,000 layoffs this year and delay or cancel billions of dollars of investment in the sector.
She also says it might dissuade U.S. consumers from going green.
“Most [businesses and consumers] want to choose solar because it saves them money,” she said. “This decision changes that calculus.”
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/solar-power-in-america).
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Friday, March 6, 2020.
U.S. Representative Pete Aguilar of California voted yes on an $8.3 billion coronavirus emergency package bill, a much higher figure than the $2.5 billion requested by the White House.
Stocks and bond yields fell sharply Thursday as fears about fallout from the virus outbreak sent more shudders through markets.
The Senate has passed an $8.3 billion measure to help tackle the coronavirus outbreak in hopes of reassuring a fearful public and accelerating the government's response.
Stocks are falling in midday trading on Wall Street, erasing 2 percent from major indexes, a day after they surged 4 percent as the mood swings back to fear about economic fallout from the virus outbreak.
Elizabeth Warren, who electrified progressives with her “plan for everything” and strong message of economic populism, dropped out of the Democratic presidential race on Thursday, according to a person familiar with her plans.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Thursday, March 5, 2020.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average soared more than 1,100 points, or 4.5%, Wednesday as governments and central banks around the globe took more aggressive measures to fight the virus outbreak and its effects on the economy.
Carolyn Dewitt, president of Rock the Vote, a non-profit focused on building the political power of the younger generation, told Cheddar Wednesday that the voting bloc has been flexing their civic muscles in some localities this primary season.
Stocks are rising sharply in morning trading on Wall Street, led by health care stocks after Joe Biden scored a number of Super Tuesday wins. Investors see him as a more business-friendly alternative to Bernie Sanders.
