The Latest: California bars travel to protest anti-gay laws

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The Latest on action by California Gov. Jerry Brown (all times local):

4 p.m.

California will limit publicly funded travel to states that have laws restricting the rights of gay and transgender people under legislation signed by Gov. Jerry Brown.

The Democratic governor said Tuesday he’s approving AB1887.

The bill by Democratic Assemblyman Evan Low of Campbell bars non-essential travel to states with laws that sanction or require discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.

It also blocks California state agencies from requiring their employees to travel to those states. The bill applies to state agencies and the University of California and California State University systems.

The attorney general will come up with a list of states to which travel is restricted.

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3:45 p.m.

California will allow terminally ill patients to use experimental drugs under legislation Gov. Jerry Brown is approving.

Beginning in January, Californians with only months to live can seek medicine that does not have full regulatory approval when other treatment options have been exhausted.

The Democratic governor announced Tuesday he signed AB1668. It authorizes but does not require health plans to cover investigational drugs and protects physicians from disciplinary action if they recommend it.

Brown vetoed the same bill by Democratic Assemblyman Ian Calderon of Whittier last year.

He said then that California should wait while the Food and Drug Administration streamlined its compassionate use program. The FDA revised the application in June.

But Calderon says the process is still too long for people with weeks or months to live.

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3:35 p.m.

California’s governor is approving stricter safety standards for charter and school buses following high-profile incidents.

Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown announced Tuesday that he signed three bus-safety bills.

One enacts National Transportation Safety Board charter bus safety recommendations that Congress has not adopted. Democratic Sen. Ricardo Lara of Bell Gardens introduced the change after a bus carrying high school students to Humboldt State University collided with a tractor-trailer, killing eight bus passengers and both drivers.

Brown also signed a bill by Democratic Sen. Tony Mendoza of Artesia requiring new safety equipment on school buses to prevent children from being left unattended.

A third bill gives the California Highway Patrol stronger authority to inspect charter-bus terminals and order potentially dangerous buses out of service.

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2:35 p.m.

Gov. Jerry Brown is rejecting legislation that would have required people caught paying for sex to spend at least 24 hours behind bars.

The Democratic governor said in a veto message Tuesday that existing law provides enough flexibility to appropriately punish so-called “johns.”

On top of the mandatory jail time, AB1708 would have required a fine of $250 to $1,000. The fine would be $1,000 to $10,000 for people who solicit sex from minors.

The Assembly and Senate approved the bill unanimously last month. It was written by Democratic Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez of San Diego. She said the Legislature should go after people who contribute to demand for prostitution.

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2:15 p.m.

Gov. Jerry Brown has vetoed a bill that would have required counties to offer in-person visitation for jail inmates.

The Democratic governor said Tuesday that SB1157 created a strict mandate and did not provide enough flexibility.

Some county officials were concerned they’d have to modify their facilities or hire additional jail staff.

Democratic Sen. Holly Mitchell of Los Angeles wrote the bill in response to the rising popularity of video conferences in place of in-person visitation. Mitchell said her bill would help reduce recidivism because inmates with strong connections to their families are less likely to commit new crimes.

In a veto message to lawmakers, Brown says he shares the concern and is directing a state agency to consider other ways to address the issue.