A bill to dissolve the industrial city of Vernon handily passed the state Assembly on Thursday, despite fierce opposition from Vernon businesses and labor groups.

The bill, AB 46 by Assembly Speaker John Perez, D-Los Angeles, whose district includes Vernon, passed on a bipartisan 62 to 7 vote.

Perez introduced the bill late last year to address exorbitant salaries and pensions of top Vernon officials and the indictment last fall of a former city administrator on conflict of interest charges. Perez has said that because Vernon has only about 90 residents, the only way to rid the city of corruption is to dissolve it and have the area administered by the county or a neighboring city.

“No real protections or accountability exist in Vernon,” Perez said in a press release after Thursday’s Assembly vote. “Sixty years of corruption have eaten away at the city’s foundation, creating a real threat to the stability of the jobs and businesses that have located there.”

But Vernon businesses have vigorously opposed the disincorporation bill, saying they would lose their low utility rates and that public safety services would deteriorate. Currently, Vernon businesses enjoy power and gas rates up to 40 percent lower than businesses in surrounding cities.

Marisa Olguin, president of the Vernon Chamber of Commerce, said Vernon businesses were disappointed by the bill’s passage and criticized Perez for “ramrodding through legislation to disincorporate the city while ignoring business leaders’ request to work with them to implement meaningful reforms.”

The bill now heads to the state Senate, where officials with Speaker Perez’s office say amendments will be introduced this summer to address cost concerns raised by Vernon businesses.