Politics & Government

Gov. Brown OKs Bill Easing SunEdison Move to Belmont

The legislation, written by Assemblyman Jerry Hill, D-San Mateo, was signed Monday night by Gov. Jerry Brown.

Gov. Jerry Brown has approved legislation that eliminates the greatest barrier in SunEdison’s corporate relocation to Belmont.

Assemblyman Jerry Hill, D-San Mateo, who authored the bill, said provisions in ABX1 15 “clarify the types of mechanisms that can be used as incentives for solar installations on homes and businesses in California.”

In other words, ABX1 15 spells out existing law to allow solar projects in California to continue to receive the tax assessment exclusion first adopted by voters in 1980 with Proposition 7.

Find out what's happening in Belmontwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

SunEdison, currently based in Maryland, is considering moving its new headquarters to the partially occupied commercial office building at 600 Clipper Drive, within the Island Parkway Redevelopment Area.

The building is already partially occupied by Volkswagon of America, which is undergoing tenant improvements. Should SunEdison’s move to Belmont take place, the company said it intended to complete the tenant improvements for the existing office space, valued at about $8 million.

Find out what's happening in Belmontwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

On Feb. 8, the Belmont City Council, acting as the Redevelopment Agency, passed a resolution waiving $106,400 in construction and building permit fees for SunEdison.

City staff wrote in a recent staff report that SunEdison’s move to Belmont would be beneficial in that it would further Belmont’s economic development strategy to attract new businesses, as well as support sustainable initiatives.

In addition, SunEdison would hire more than 400 new employees as well as transfer about 100 staff from Maryland and San Francisco.

The bill helps SunEdison move one step closer to relocating to Belmont, according to Hill.

“As a result of this legislation, California and the city of Belmont are one step closer to recruiting SunEdison, one of the world’s largest solar firms,” Hill said in a statement. 

Hill said the ABX1 15 will not only help SunEdison and Belmont, but many more projects and companies as well.

“This bill is critical to the thousands of solar projects and companies in the state that need tax certainty as they decide to grow their businesses and create jobs,” Hill said in the statement.

SunEdison first contacted Hill in 2010 about the potential move. Hill has since worked with the company, as well as state and Belmont officials to coordinate the move.

Click on the attached PDF to view the staff report from the Feb. 8 meeting.


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