Corporate Crime Bill Vetoed by Wilson : Legislation: Measure was intended to toughen sentencing for environmental and other offenses.

Gov. Pete Wilson, while insisting that corporate lawbreakers “must be dealt with firmly,” Monday announced his veto of a bill designed to toughen penalties for businesses found guilty of environmental and other crimes by authorizing probation.

As he moved to clear his desk of about 350 bills by the midnight deadline, Wilson signed consumer protection legislation to prohibit new car dealers from advertising vehicles at or below “invoice” prices. He vetoed a bill that would have allowed child molestation victims to hold their assailants’ homeowners insurance companies liable for the crime.

In something of a surprise, Wilson also rejected the Legislature’s hastily fashioned $48-million bill to locate parks and other recreational facilities in the home districts of many lawmakers. Wilson said Administration officials were unable to review each project before the bill passed Sept. 14, the final day of the regular legislative session.

In rejecting the bill that would put businesses on probation for certain offenses, Wilson said that if existing penalties for corporate entities are inadequate, the Legislature should enact stiffer punishments.

Sen. Gary K. Hart (D-Santa Barbara), the author, argued during the bill’s journey through the Legislature that if an individual commits a serious crime, jail often is the consequence. “Corporate offenders are usually just required to pay a fine, which too often is treated as a cost of doing business,” Hart said.

Wilson agreed that businesses convicted of “criminal violations must be firmly dealt with.” But he noted that judges already have the discretion to impose probation on corporations without specifying environmental, labor and financial service offenses as proposed by Hart.

He asserted that the Hart proposal, without proof, presumes a “judicial timidity” in cases involving corporate violations in the fields of conservation protection, industrial relations and financial investments.

The governor said California jurists do not need directives from the Legislature “prescribing in minute detail the exercise of what is peculiarly a judicial function.”

The bill, a similar version of which was vetoed last year by Gov. George Deukmejian, was opposed by business interests, including the California Manufacturers Assn. and the California Chamber of Commerce. It was supported by Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Ira Reiner and Consumers Union.

Here are highlights of the governor’s actions Monday, which culminated four weeks of work on legislation approved during the final days of the 1991 regular session of the Legislature:

Invoice--Signed a bill by Assemblyman Byron D. Sher (D-Palo Alto) that will prohibit the practice by dealers of new automobile who advertise their vehicles at or below “invoice” prices. Sher maintained that the term invoice misleads some customers into believing that the advertised invoice price is the price the dealer paid for the car, when it may bear no connection to the dealer’s cost.

Molest--Vetoed a measure by Sen. Lucy Killea (I-San Diego) that would have had the effect of holding a convicted child molester’s homeowner insurance company liable for civil recovery of damages by the victim. Wilson deplored child molestation as “willful, deliberate and horrible,” but said the bill would overturn the longstanding doctrine that people cannot insure themselves “against the consequences of their own wrongful acts.”

Credit--Signed a bill by Assemblywoman Jackie Speier (D-South San Francisco) requiring credit reporting agencies to provide a free copy of the report to the consumer when the agencies issue a credit history to prospective employers. This will give job-seekers an opportunity to correct inaccurate information.

Employees--Vetoed a measure by Sen. Milton Marks (D-San Francisco) that would have prohibited the use of consumer credit reports for purposes of evaluating a worker for employment, promotion, retention or reassignment.

License--Signed a bill by Sen. Frank Hill (R-Whittier) authorizing the issuance of special license plates displaying the name, logotype, motto or other design of colleges participating in a proposed fund-raising mechanism. Any net revenues from the $50 fee for such plates would be evenly split between a college’s alumni scholarship program and a newly created state natural resources preservation fund.