New York Governor David Patterson yesterday approved a bill that will make ESRB video game ratings mandatory, require parental controls in consoles, and fund a study of the correlation between in-game and real-life acts of violence.

The state senate voted 61-1 in favor of the bill (A.11717 / S.6401-A) under the sponsorship of state senator Andrew Lanza (R).

The single assembly member who voted against the bill was Carl E. Heastie of the 83rd district, one of the youngest New York State legislators.

In addition to the mandatory ratings display on games sold in NY stores, the law calls for every new video game sold at retail to include "a mechanism, device, or control system that allows an owner, through the use of a personal identification number, password or similar technology, to prevent the display on such video game console of video games, or portions thereof, containing certain content or having certain ratings."

Civil penalties for violating this section of the law would range from $500 to $50,000.

Section 554 of the law calls for the creation of a sixteen-member advisory council on interactive media and youth violence, to be appointed by the governor. It would "Address the potential impact of interactive media and similar entertainment devices on minors, with particular attention focused on any relationship between the use of such devices and violent tendencies."

New York's Civil Liberties Union has voiced its concern of the constitutionality of the law, and groups of New York gamers have called it a potentially huge waste of taxpayer dollars.

In other states, similar laws were put forth and subsequently shot down as violations of the rights of video game manufacturers. Illinois, Michigan, Louisiana, andCalifornia all overturned similar laws for violating the first amendment. The Entertainment Software Association championed many of these appeals.

But legislators aren't giving up. California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appealed a court ruling that struck down a law preventing the sale or rental of "ultra-violent" video games to anyone under 18, and would have required clear labeling of such games. In May, bipartisan bill was introduced in the US House of Representatives aimed at forcing stores to card minors attempting to purchase video games rated "Adults Only" or "Mature."

Earlier in 2008, a similar law in Minnesota was blocked by a federal appeals court, stopping a law that would have fined minors $25 if they were caught attempting to purchase or rent video games with the "M" or "AO" rating.

Former presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Clinton (D - N.Y.) and Sen. Joe Lieberman (I - Conn.) have supported legislation both on the state and federal level, and worked with the ESRB for a nationwide television campaign to inform parents about violent video games in 2006.