New Year, New Laws

As 2025 begins, California residents will see new laws, from business regulations to criminal justice reform.

The new year brings regulations for fair business practices and stronger consumer protections across sectors like online marketplaces, automotive sales, subscription services and employment.

Cracking Down on Organized Retail Theft

California has enacted laws to combat organized retail theft where law enforcement can use better tools to investigate and prosecute these crimes.

Combining Property Values: Law enforcement can aggregate the value of stolen merchandise from multiple victims or counties to reach the felony grand theft threshold of $950, making it easier to prosecute large-scale theft operations.

Possession of Stolen Goods: A new felony offense has been established for individuals possessing over $950 worth of stolen goods intending to sell, exchange, or return them. Prosecutors no longer need to prove the defendant’s knowledge of the goods’ stolen nature.

Probable Cause Arrests: Police officers can now arrest a shoplifting suspect based on probable cause, even if the theft did not occur in their presence.

Extended Probation: The maximum probation period for shoplifting and petty theft convictions has been doubled to two years, providing more opportunities for rehabilitation and supervision of offenders, particularly those under 25.

Retail Theft Restraining Orders: Courts have the authority to issue “retail theft restraining orders,” prohibiting individuals convicted of organized retail theft, shoplifting, theft, vandalism, or assault of a retail employee from entering specified retail establishments for up to two years.

Online Marketplace Accountability

Seller Information Collection: Online marketplaces such as eBay and Facebook Marketplace must collect information on high-volume, third-party sellers, which can be shared with law enforcement agencies upon request to combat organized retail theft.

Automotive Sales & Lemon Law

Lemon Law Lawsuit Timeframe: The statute of limitations for filing a lemon law lawsuit for used cars has been reduced.

Mandatory Manufacturer Notification: Used car owners must notify the manufacturer about any vehicle defects before filing a warranty violation lawsuit.

Subscription Services

Simplified “Click to Cancel” Option: Businesses must provide a clear and straightforward “click to cancel” option for subscription services, making it easier to opt out of recurring payments.

Explicit Consent for Automatic Renewal: Companies must obtain express consent from consumers for automatic renewal or continuous service subscriptions for contracts entered, amended, or extended after July 1, 2025.

Annual Renewal Reminders: Businesses are required to send annual reminders to consumers about automatic subscription renewals, including details about the charges and instructions on how to cancel the service.

Employment Practices

Driver’s License Requirements: Employers can no longer require a driver’s license as part of the application process unless the position necessitates driving or cannot be efficiently performed using alternative transportation.

California has new laws focused on student well-being, mental health and inclusive learning environments.

LGBTQIA+ Students

The Safety Act: AB-1955, known as the Safety Act, reinforces existing protections for LGBTQ+ students by explicitly prohibiting educators from disclosing a student’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or expression without their consent unless mandated by law. This law gives students privacy and autonomy regarding their identities.

Historical Discrimination & Hardships

Native American History: Public school curricula must accurately depict the treatment of Native Americans during the Spanish colonization of California and in the Gold Rush.

Mendez v. Westminster: Public schools are now required to teach about Mendez v. Westminster, a pivotal case that challenged school segregation and paved the way for desegregation efforts nationwide. This inclusion in the curriculum highlights the struggle for educational equity and the importance of fighting discrimination.

Student Mental Health:

Suicide Crisis Lifeline on Student IDs: Schools with students in grades 7-12 must print the 988 Suicide Crisis Lifeline number on student identification cards.

Mental Health QR Codes: Schools are encouraged to place QR codes on student IDs linking to mental health services and resources, providing students with easy access to support.

Reporting Racial Discrimination in Sports

Online Reporting Form: The California Department of Education must establish an online form for reporting racial discrimination, harassment and ridicule at school sporting events.

Transparency in Teen Treatment Facilities

Public Reporting of Restraints & Seclusion: Largely advocated by Paris Hilton, short-term residential therapeutic programs for minors must publicly disclose all restraint or seclusion use online.

Online Dashboard for Incident Reports: An online dashboard will provide public access to reports on restraint and seclusion use in teen treatment facilities, giving parents and guardians information to make informed decisions about their children’s care.

Private Universities & Colleges

Legacy & Donor Admissions Prohibited: Private universities and colleges are prohibited from making admissions decisions based on an applicant’s relationship to a donor or alums. This law aims to prevent legacy admissions, which give preferential treatment to applicants related to alums or donors.

The new legislation includes child protection, protections for human trafficking victims and combating discrimination.

Combatting Child Exploitation & Trafficking

Felony Charge for Solicitation of Minors: Soliciting or purchasing sex from a child 15 years or younger is now a felony offense.

Prosecutorial Discretion for Older Minors: Prosecutors retain discretion in charging individuals who purchase sex from 16 or 17-year-olds, considering the specific circumstances of each case.

Notice on Ticket Purchase Receipts: Primary ticket sellers must include a notice about commercial sex and labor trafficking on electronic ticket purchase confirmations, raising awareness about this issue and providing contact information for support organizations. This would apply to events with a capacity of over 15,000 people, such as racetracks, stadiums, arenas and other places, but it does not apply to an amusement park or fairground.

Lawsuits Against Social Media Platforms: Child sex exploitation survivors gain the right to sue social media platforms for features that contributed to their harm.

Mandatory Reporting of Child Labor: Employers who voluntarily conduct social compliance audits must publicly post a report summarizing their findings, including any instances of child labor identified.

Protecting Doxing Victims

Doxing Victims: Victims of doxing, the act of publicly revealing someone’s private information online with malicious intent, can now sue and seek damages from perpetrators.

Hair Discrimination

Expanded CROWN Act: The CROWN Act, which prohibits hair discrimination in schools and workplaces, has been extended to sports, ensuring that individuals are not discriminated against based on their hair texture or hairstyles.

Supporting Healthcare Workers

Increased Penalties for Assault: Penalties have been increased for individuals who assault healthcare workers in emergency rooms, punishable by a maximum of one year in county jail and/or a maximum fine of $2,000.

Preventing Book Bans in Public Libraries

Book Selection Policies: Public libraries must establish clear policies for book selection to prevent arbitrary book bans and ensure access to diverse materials.

Notice of Grocery Store & Pharmacy Closures

Mandatory 45-Day Notice: Grocery stores and pharmacies are required to provide workers and the community with at least 45 days’ notice before closing.

California’s approach to regulated substances continues to evolve, with new laws addressing cannabis, tobacco and alcohol sales and consumption.

Cannabis

Legalization of “Amsterdam-style” Cannabis Cafes: Cities and counties can now authorize cannabis cafes, allowing for the on-site consumption of cannabis alongside the sale of non-cannabis food, drinks and merchandise.

Live Performances in Cannabis Cafes: Cannabis retailers can host live performances.

Tobacco

Enhanced Enforcement of Flavored Tobacco Ban: California’s existing ban on flavored tobacco sales has been extended to reduce youth tobacco use and protect public health. This comes after the state’s ban on all flavored tobacco sales in 2022, excluding some cigars and hookah.

Alcohol

Extended Alcohol Sales in Designated Entertainment Zones: Cities and counties can create “entertainment zones” where alcohol sales for on-site consumption are permitted in designated public areas, including streets, sidewalks and public rights-of-way.

Extended Alcohol Sales at LA Clippers Arena: Legislation allows alcohol sales until 4 a.m. in the VIP suite of the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, pending local government approval.

California’s criminal justice landscape undergoes changes with the implementation of new laws aimed at deterring repeat offenses, tackling specific criminal activities and promoting rehabilitation.

Repeat Offenses

Proposition 36 (Voter-Approved Measure): Repeat thieves and drug offenders must now be charged with a felony on their third offense. Offenders have the option to complete drug treatment instead of incarceration, but failure to complete treatment could result in a prison sentence of up to three years.

Alexandra’s Law (Part of Proposition 36): Convicted fentanyl dealers will receive a warning similar to the DUI “Watson Advisement,” informing them that future fentanyl sales resulting in a fatality could lead to murder charges.

Street Takeovers

Sideshows & Illegal Street Racing: A package of laws addresses the dangerous trend of sideshows, or street takeovers, which involve reckless driving and often attract large gatherings of spectators.

Impoundment of Vehicles: Law enforcement can impound vehicles used in sideshows, illegal street racing, or to create barricades for these activities.

Clarified Language for Impoundment Laws: Legislation clarifies that vehicles participating in sideshows or illegal street racing are subject to existing impoundment laws, even if not on a designated roadway.

Official Recognition of “Street Takeover” Terminology: Sideshows are officially recognized as “street takeovers” in California law.

Reforming Criminal Justice Practices

Eliminating the “Locked Door” Loophole for Auto Burglaries: Prosecuting auto burglary no longer requires proof that a vehicle’s doors were locked, making it easier to hold offenders accountable.

Extending Statute of Limitations for Domestic Violence: The statute of limitations for prosecuting domestic violence cases involving trauma has been extended to seven years, providing survivors with more time to seek justice.

Increased Penalties for Fires During Retail Theft: Harsher penalties are imposed on individuals who start fires during retail theft incidents.

California has new laws focused on fertility treatments, medical debt and minimum wage increases for healthcare workers.

Fertility Treatment Coverage

Mandatory Insurance Coverage: Certain large group health care service plans are now required to cover fertility treatments, including in vitro fertilization (IVF), removing financial barriers for individuals and families seeking these services.

Medical Debt Relief

Ban on Credit Reporting of Medical Debt: Certain medical debt can no longer be reported to credit reporting agencies, preventing this debt from negatively impacting individuals’ credit scores and financial opportunities.

Supporting Healthcare Workers:

Minimum Wage Increase for County Healthcare Workers: Covered healthcare facilities owned, affiliated with, or operated by counties must increase the minimum wage for healthcare workers, recognizing their essential contributions and promoting fair compensation.

For any inquiries or further information, please contact Jose Cervantes at JoseC.Press@pm.me