Bureaucracy - California Style [RE-wrenches]

Mon Jan 6 20:50:52 PST 2003

Graham,

I have been listening long and hard to this continuing drama, but I still,
thick-headed as I can get sometimes, can't see how a project done for a
private party - by a private party (small business) could possibly be
construed as "public works". Our jobs are normally done on private property,
not public property. The monies supplied as incentive to promote their
implementation are collected by privately owned entities, from their
(private) customers.

If the electricity produced by these completed private facilities were to
somehow be distributed to the Public at large, not a private utility, I
could see a Public label being attached, but the whole premise is so totally
absurd, it sounds like something out of Gulliver's Travels.

Surely there must be a way to have the offending language removed from the
books. The State must see that leveling such a burdensome tariff will only
serve to make systems, even small ones, unaffordable to the general public,
the very people all of us are dependant on - particularly the State itself.
I think Matt L hit the nail on the head with his suspicions about the
pro-labor Democrats  and the utilities. Oh, this all gets so Complicated!
Guerrilla Solar sounds better all the time.

Matt T
----- Original Message -----
From: "Graham Owen" <graham at solarexpert.com>
To: <RE-wrenches at topica.com>
Sent: Monday, January 06, 2003 2:39 PM
Subject: RE: Bureaucracy - California Style [RE-wrenches]

> Matt Lafferty wrote:
>
> One of my thoughts for one direction we should consider is to propose a
> bill that "excludes" systems below a certain size from the Public Works
> requirements and the other burdensome issues.... end of snip.
>
>
>
> Below I am pasting part of the California Labor Code, which related to
> Public Works.  Paragraph 1771 states that prevailing wages have to be
> paid for all jobs that cost $1,000 or more. Paragraph 1771.5 makes
> holiday pay exceptions for jobs costing less than $25,000.  I think we
> could still have a viable residential PV market if lots of little jobs
> costing less than $25,000 could be installed without the public works
> baggage.
>
>
> 1771.  Except for public works projects of one thousand dollars
> ($1,000) or less, not less than the general prevailing rate of per
> diem wages for work of a similar character in the locality in which
> the public work is performed, and not less than the general
> prevailing rate of per diem wages for holiday and overtime work fixed
> as provided in this chapter, shall be paid to all workers employed
> on public works.
>    This section is applicable only to work performed under contract,
> and is not applicable to work carried out by a public agency with its
> own forces. This section is applicable to contracts let for
> maintenance work.
>
>
> 1771.2.  A joint labor-management committee established pursuant to
> the federal Labor Management Cooperation Act of 1978 (Section 175a of
> Title 29 of the United States Code) may bring an action in any court
> of competent jurisdiction against an employer that fails to pay the
> prevailing wage to its employees, as required by this article.  This
> action shall be commenced not later than 180 days after the filing of
> a valid notice of completion in the office of the county recorder in
> each county in which the public work or some part thereof was
> performed, or not later than 180 days after acceptance of the public
> work, whichever last occurs.
>
>
>
> 1771.5.  (a) Notwithstanding Section 1771, an awarding body shall
> not require the payment of the general prevailing rate of per diem
> wages or the general prevailing rate of per diem wages for holiday
> and overtime work for any public works project of twenty-five
> thousand dollars ($25,000) or less when the project is for
> construction work, or for any public works project of fifteen
> thousand dollars ($15,000) or less when the project is for
> alteration, demolition, repair, or maintenance work, if the awarding
> body elects to initiate and enforce a labor compliance program
> pursuant to subdivision (b) for every public works project under the
> authority of the awarding body.
>    (b) For the purposes of this section, a labor compliance program
> shall include, but not be limited to, the following requirements:
>    (1) All bid invitations and public works contracts shall contain
> appropriate language concerning the requirements of this chapter.
>    (2) A prejob conference shall be conducted with the contractor and
> subcontractors to discuss federal and state labor law requirements
> applicable to the contract.
>    (3) Project contractors and subcontractors shall maintain and
> furnish, at a designated time, a certified copy of each weekly
> payroll containing a statement of compliance signed under penalty of
> perjury.
>    (4) The awarding body shall review, and, if appropriate, audit
> payroll records to verify compliance with this chapter.
>    (5) The awarding body shall withhold contract payments when
> payroll records are delinquent or inadequate.
>    (6) The awarding body shall withhold contract payments equal to
> the amount of underpayment and applicable penalties when, after
> investigation, it is established that underpayment has occurred.
>
>
> Graham F. Owen
> GO Solar Company
> 12439 Magnolia Blvd. #132
> North Hollywood,  CA  91607
> phone 818.566.6870
> fax 818.566.6879
> email graham at solarexpert.com
>
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