[JURIST] The California Senate [official website] has approved legislation banning state agencies' production of news releases designed to look like objective reports. Senators approved SB 740 [bill summary] by a 21-11 vote. The legislation mirrors a court ruling made last month in which a Superior Court judge ruled that the administration of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger [official website] had to remove state-produced news reports from state websites. The Schwarzenegger administration used such reports to support two proposals to loosen employment laws. Under the legislation, any information provided by the state in video news releases must be "fair and impartial." The federal Government Accountability Office [official website] has previously concluded that similar tactics by the Bush administration with respect to education policies and Medicare [JURIST reports] were illegal. AP has more.