"Why everybody isn't hands-free now, I have no idea," he said. Consistent with state actions in favor of human rights that began in the 1980s, Schwarzenegger also signed a bill banning state contract bids from companies that do business with the government of the African nation of Sudan.
That nation has been widely condemned for conducting a genocidal campaign against people living in its Darfur region. The conflict has killed an estimated 400,000 people and displaced more than 2.5 million, the governor said.
In signing AB 498 by Assemblyman Ed Hernandez (D-West Covina), Schwarzenegger said, "We are continuing to send a message that California will not condone nor enable economic gain at the expense of innocent people."
It is not clear how many companies might be affected by the law.
Schwarzenegger also signed a bill sought by the Los Angeles Unified School District to allow it to continue tapping state construction funds even as it withdraws from a program to fund multitrack, year-round schools.
The $90 million remaining in the multitrack program will be shifted over five years to charter schools serving low-income children under SB 658 by Sen. Gloria Romero (D-Los Angeles).
Schwarzenegger vetoed a similar bill last year because it did not shift the money to charter schools, which are public schools freed from some restrictions imposed by state education laws and local school districts.
L.A. Unified director of governmental affairs Santiago Jackson said the district is working to put all of its schools on a two-semester schedule, rather than a multitrack, year-round schedule in which four separate groups of students use the same school with staggered start dates.
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nancy.vogel@latimes.com
michael.rothfeld@latimes.com
Times staff writer Marc Lifsher contributed to this report.
