UPDATE: Gov. Jerry Brown signs mandatory vaccination bill.

Gov. Jerry Brown has signed SB 277, the contentious bill requiring nearly all children in California to be immunized to state standards.

The state Senate first passed the bill in May, the Assembly approved it last Thursday with bipartisan support, and the Senate yesterday approved minor amendments to the bill.

"The science is clear that vaccines dramatically protect children against a number of infectious and dangerous diseases," reads the statement Brown's office issued this morning. "While it's true that no medical intervention is without risk, the evidence shows that immunization powerfully benefits and protects the community." 

SB 277 will require children enrolling in K-12 schools or daycare to meet California Department of Public Health standards for shots. Medical exemptions for children with issues such as immune-system deficiencies are still permitted.

Current law allows parents to opt out of their children's vaccinations based on their personal or religious beliefs. SB 277 removes that option, leaving home-schooling or similar off-campus arrangements as the only alternatives for parents who refuse to vaccinate their children.

As the Weekly first reported, a group opposing mandatory vaccinations has initiated efforts to recall SB 277 supporters Sen. Bill Monning, D-Carmel, and Richard Pan, D-Sacramento, the bill's author.