Californians welcomed 725 – yes, 725 – new laws on January 1. Here’s a glance at some of the laws that took effect when the new year rang in:
■AB 119 prevents insurance companies from charging different rates for men and women for identical coverage.
■SB 782 prevents landlords from evicting tenants who are victims of domestic or other abuse or stalking.
■AB 1844-informally known as Chelsea’s Law and authored by local Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher-will increase penalties, parole provisions and oversight of offenders, including a “one-strike, life-without-parole penalty” for some.
■AB 1871 allows people to lease out their cars when they are not being used-alleviating the need to purchase additional insurance.
■AB 537 will make food stamps an acceptable form of payment at farmers markets through an EBT process.
■SB 1411 makes it a misdemeanor to maliciously impersonate someone via a social media outlet or through e-mails.
■SB 1317 allows the state to slap parents with a $2,000 fine if their K-8 child misses more than 10 percent of the school year without a valid excuse. It also allows the state to punish parents with up to a year in prison for the misdemeanor.
■AB 715 makes a change to the California Green Building Standards code. The change will require new California buildings to be energy efficient.
■SB 1449 makes the possession of up to one ounce of marijuana an infraction with a penalty of a $100 fine.
■AB 12 allows foster youth to acquire state services until the age of 21.
■SB 1399 allows California to medically parole state prison inmates with physical incapacitating conditions and ultimately shifts some of the cost of care to the federal government.
■AB 97 bans the use of trans-fats in food facilities.
{LaMesaPatch/Matzav.com}
