The bill, drafted by Sen. Leland Yee when he was an assembly member in 2005, would put restrictions on the sales of mature-themed videogames to minors.
"This is the same technology the armed forces use to help soldiers kill the enemy," Yee, a Democrat stated in a San Jose Mercury News report. "All we're saying is, 'Don't sell it to kids.'"
Courts have yet to recognize any studies that link virtual violence to real world violence, a stance which has been a thorn in the side of game legislators.
Similar laws in various states have been found by courts to infringe on First Amendment rights of game makers.
Leland's law would require a 2" x 2" government-issued label displaying the number "18" on the front of mature-rated games, and retailers would have to check IDs when making a sale. Violators would be charged up to $1,000 per incident.
The games industry has prided itself on self-regulation, using Entertainment Software Rating Board scores and descriptors as a way to alert parents of mature-themed content.
But Deputy Attorney General and rep for Schwarzenegger's administration Zackery Morazzini argued, "It defies logic to suggest that our founding fathers intended to adopt a First Amendment that would guarantee children the right to purchase a videogame wherein the player is rewarded for interactively causing a character to take out a shovel and bash the head of an image of a human being."