The 53-foot-tall White Fir tree has 2,400 ornaments made by developmentally challenged kids.
During the ceremony, Schwarzenegger talked about the importance of giving back this holiday season.
“Especially in this economic difficult time, there are so many people that are in need of food, in need of clothes and stuff like that, in need of love, in need of attention, or as my wife says ‘to be seen.’ So I think that all of this we can do during the holiday.”
The ceremony also included an appearance by skateboarding legend Tony Hawk and performances by Grammy winning singers Brian McKnight and Thelma Houston.
The tree will be taken down the second week of January and recycled into mulch for landscaping at the Capitol.