California billionaire Tom Steyer is pouring money into a campaign in Arizona to raise the state’s renewable energy standards to 50 percent by 2030. Now, a new study released by that campaign’s backers found that if the initiative passes, Arizona’s solar industry could add 16,000 new jobs by 2030. And it would boost the state’s economy by $2.2 billion.
Many disagree with that assessment — and The Show heard from both sides.
Dylan Sullivan is a senior scientist with the Natural Resources Defense Council and policy director for Clean Energy for a Healthy Arizona campaign. He explains why he thinks this initiative will lead to that kind of job growth.
But some economists are questioning the results of the NRDC study, and Jim Rounds is one of them. He's president of Rounds Consulting, and discusses why.
