'Pro-jobs' measures signed by Wilson to create 500,000 jobs.

The Governor's Office of Planning and Research has estimated that "pro-jobs" legislation, passed in the California Legislature this year and signed by Gov. Pete Wilson, will create at least 500,000 jobs over the next five years.

In addition to widely publicized tax reform legislation, Gov. Pete Wilson signed bills on defense conversion, workers' compensation reform and permit process streamlining.

Some of the lesser known business-related bills approved by Wilson early this month, in the final days of bill signing, included:

* Assembly Bill 1611, expanding the California Export Finance Office's loan guarantee program;

* AB 57, allowing tax credits for businesses in enterprise or revitalization zones that hire unemployed workers or buy manufacturing equipment;

* AB 1239, exempting business owners whose property was damaged in the 1992 riots from interest or penalties on delinquent property tax payments;

* AB 1259, providing funds for the state's Small Business Expansion Fund;

* AB 1977, allowing the Trade and Commerce Agency to use bond funds to finance rural infrastructure projects, which are expected to attract employers to rural communities;

* Senate Bill 852, increasing the number of businesses that can be served by the Small Business Loan Guarantee Program, authorizing direct lending to farmers, and extending the life of a hazardous waste reduction loan program.

In the area of family leave, the governor signed AB 1460, which brings California law in line with federal law.

Under previous state law, employees facing certain emergency situations were allowed up to 16 weeks of unpaid leave over a two-year period, eight weeks more than permitted under federal law.

In some cases, state laws that were more generous than federal laws remain on the books, and may take precedence over federal law, sources said.

For example, under state law, employees are allowed up to four months of unpaid leave for a troubled pregnancy. The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 requires that employees be allowed up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave after the birth or adoption of a child or to care for a spouse, parent or child during a serious illness.

It also mandates leave for an employee's own medical problems. Businesses that provide health insurance are required to continue health benefits during the worker's leave.

Meanwhile, employers with 15 to 24 employees must comply with the provisions of the federal Americans With Disabilities Act beginning July 26, 1994.

Under the act, a person is defined as having a disability if he or she has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity.

Employers are required to provide "reasonable accommodation" to a disabled worker. This includes flexible scheduling, modifying equipment, job restructuring and providing interpreters, as long as the accommodation does not cause "undue hardship."

On the legal reform front, Wilson signed AB 208, which prohibits lawyer advertising that contains "any false, misleading or deceptive statement."

It also bans lawyer ads that:

* make guarantees regarding the outcome of a lawsuit;

* state that the lawyer can "generally obtain immediate cash or quick settlements;"

* feature impersonations of clients or dramatization without disclosure;

* or state that the lawyer takes cases on a contingency basis, without full disclosure of costs incurred if no recovery is made.

It also requires that ads for lawyer referral services disclose whether the attorneys listed by the service pay to be included on the service's system.

Other bills related to legal reform, signed by the governor, include:

* Senate Bill 645, which continues a test program in Riverside County that imposes sanctions on people filing "frivolous" legal actions and documents, until 1998;

* Senate Bills 252 and 401, which are designed to increase the use of arbitration options;

* Senate Bill 9, which makes the award of attorney's fees and costs mandatory when the court finds a special motion to be "frivolous" in certain sorts of cases.

In the area of redevelopment reform, Wilson signed SB 1290.

This bill was opposed by local redevelopment opponents, who said it "improperly" loosens the definition of blight, necessary to qualify an area for redevelopment funds.