Calif. lawmakers take up tough anti-sweatshop bill

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2010/03/21/state/n090010D85.DTL&type=business

By ROBIN HINDERY, Associated Press Writer

Sunday, March 21, 2010

Sacramento, Calif. (AP) --

Businesses hoping to secure state contracts in California may soon face a daunting task: guaranteeing that their entire supply chain is untainted by abusive labor practices.

A bill scheduled to be heard this week in the state Senate would expand California's current anti-sweatshop policy to encompass all raw materials that go into goods provided to the state. The policy also would apply to public works contracts when the cost of building materials exceeds $20,000.

The measure would modify the California Public Contract Code, which currently prohibits the use of forced labor by contractors and subcontractors but makes no mention of their supply chains.

The bill's author, Democratic Sen. Ellen Corbett of San Leandro, said she hopes to help make California a national leader in socially responsible procurement and purchasing standards.

Tougher standards would reaffirm "the state's long-standing policy that human rights violations should not be subsidized with taxpayer dollars," she wrote in an e-mail.

Corbett's bill does not specify how a contractor would prove that the material it uses was not made using abusive practices, which are defined as any type of forced labor, including the exploitation of children, sweatshop labor and convict labor.

Kathy Banuelos, a spokeswoman for the Senate Judiciary Committee, said businesses would be expected to evaluate their subcontractors' practices before entering into a contract with the state.

FULL story at link.

Associated Press Writers Don Thompson and Cathy Bussewitz contributed to this report.

[endless october]

1. shut down Walmart in the state.

problem solved.