Mills vetoes bill requiring developers of clean energy projects to work with unions [Video]

Gov. Janet Mills vetoed a bill on Friday that would have required companies leasing state land for clean energy projects to work with unions hoping to represent their workers.

The bill, L.D. 373, is aimed at the offshore wind power terminal and manufacturing facility the Mills administration aims to build in Searsport. Mills said she vetoed the bill because it contained ambiguous language and was too far-reaching in its scope.

In her veto letter, she wrote that it was unclear whether the bill, An Act to Ensure Employer and Employee Harmony in Clean Energy Development Projects, applied only to construction work or extended to all types of clean energy projects. She said it could have far-reaching consequences for the state’s efforts to reduce its carbon emissions.

“The language of the bill – while appearing to be targeted specifically towards an offshore wind port – could apply to the operation of any clean energy project, including biomass, hydroelectric, solar, …