California truck drivers ask Gov. Newsom to sign job-saving bill as self-driving big rigs are tested

abcnews.go.com:

California lawmakers and union leaders are asking Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign a bill that would save jobs as large self-driving trucks are tested on public roads

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California lawmakers, union leaders and truck drivers are trying to steer Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom toward signing into law a proposal that could save jobs as self-driving trucks are tested for their safety on the roads.

The legislation would ban self-driving trucks weighing more than 10,000 pounds (4,536 kilograms) — which would include vehicles from UPS delivery trucks to massive semi-trucks — from operating on public roads unless a human driver is on board. Proponents of the bill say it would help address concerns about safety and losing truck driving jobs to automation in the future. Under the bill, the rules would be in effect until at least 2029.

Republican Assemblymember Tom Lackey, one of the bill's co-authors, said lawmakers aren't “against technology,” but they see the bill as a safer way for companies to test self-driving trucks.

“We want balance because we believe in people, and we believe in public safety,” Lackey said. “When surprises happen, physics is not your friend.”

The bill coasted through the Legislature with few lawmakers voting against it. It's part of ongoing debates about the potential risks of self-driving vehicles and how workforces adapt to a new era as companies deploy technologies to do work traditionally done by humans.

Newsom, who typically enjoys strong support from labor, is facing some pressure from within his administration not to sign it. He has until Oct. 14 to make a decision. His administration’s Department of Finance projected it would cost the state about $1 million annually to implement the bill’s