KINGSTON – Mayor Steven Noble has vetoed a Kingston Common Council vote to eliminate a city requirement that any city construction project of over $100,000 have three apprentice graduates a year.
The requirement that the programs have a graduation rate of at least 30 percent and be certified by the State Department of Labor was left intact.
The mayor vetoed the change saying he was not opposed to changing the language of the apprenticeship policy, (but) that the council needed to have a more thorough discussion before repealing the rule, the Kingston Wire reports.
Supporters of the new standard requiring at least a 30 percent graduation rate said it is needed to prevent contractors from using bogus apprenticeship programs to qualify for city bids.
Opponents said it effectively freezes smaller non-union contractors out of the bidding process for city contracts.
With the council vote of 8 to 1 to repeal the provision, it is likely that the lawmakers will override the mayor’s veto.
