The New California Laws You Need to Know

The Santa Barbara Independent republishes stories from CalMatters.org on state and local issues impacting readers in Santa Barbara County.

Monday marked the day many new California laws went into effect, including the state’s new concealed firearm restrictions that, until Saturday, had been blocked by a federal judge. 

The law bans Californians from carrying firearms in various public places such as parks, stadiums and places of worship. It was passed in response to a 2022 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that reduced limitations on who can receive concealed carry permits.

Describing it as “repugnant to the Second Amendment,” federal Judge Cormac Carney temporarily blocked the law in late December. But on Saturday, a federal appeals court panel put a temporary hold on Carney’s ruling as the case makes its way through the courts.

In response, Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement that “Californians overwhelmingly support efforts to ensure that places… remain safe and free from guns.” He also reiterated his proposal to amend the U.S. Constitution with gun control measures including raising the minimum age to own a gun and mandating universal background checks, posting Monday on X (formerly Twitter) that the amendment would “save lives across the country.” 

To learn more about other notable laws that took effect Monday, check out our compilation of summaries written by the CalMatters staff:

Consumer protection

• Requires insurance companies to negotiate and settle payments with ambulance companies for out-of-network charges, and limits ambulance bills for uninsured people to the Medi-Cal or Medicare rate.
• Establishes a state restitution fund for consumers who fall victim to false advertising.

Criminal justice 

• Establishes a pilot program in six cities for speeding cameras.
• Lifts a statewide ban on cruising and undoes a ban on modifying vehicles to a certain low height.
• Adds three years to the sentence for dealing more than one kilogram of fentanyl.
• Increases penalties for human sex trafficking of a minor by classifying it as a “serious felony.”
• Establishes “Ebony Alerts” for missing Black youth and women ages 12 to 25.

Education

• Streamlines the process for undocumented college students to apply for state financial aid.

Health care

• Expands Medi-Cal to eligible undocumented immigrants of all ages.
• Requires private health insurance plans to cover birth control products for women without prescriptions or co-pays at in-network pharmacies, and bans out-of-pocket costs for vasectomies for men with private insurance.
• Requires nursing homes to offer residents copies of any information that explains reasons for their eviction.

Housing

• Makes it easier for religious institutions and non-profit colleges to develop affordable housing.
• Gives developers permission to build denser, taller buildings if they set aside additional units for middle-income earners.
• Makes it easier for courts to slap down “frivolous” environmental lawsuits.

Workplace

• Increases guaranteed paid sick leave from three days a year to five.
• Bans employers from using hair or urine test results for marijuana in their decisions to fire or penalize workers, and bars employers from asking job applicants about prior cannabis use (workers in the construction industry and positions that require federal background checks are not included).