From required gender-neutral toy sections in department stores, to tightened restrictions on tear gas in the hands of law enforcement and requiring ethnic studies courses upon graduation, hundreds of new California laws are taking effect at the start of the new year. 

The Office of Governor Gavin Newsom released a cumulative list of the final actions from the 2021 Legislative Session– in which hundreds of laws are taking effect in 2022. 

“In a time when the state and country are more divided than ever, this legislative session reminds us what we can accomplish together,” said Governor Newsom. “I am thankful for our partners in the state Legislature who furthered our efforts to tackle the state’s most persistent challenges – together, we took action to address those challenges head-on, implementing historic legislation and the California Comeback Plan to hit fast forward on our state’s recovery.”

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The following is a list of ten of the hundreds of laws going into effect in 2022: 

Senate Bill No. 654: Child Custody 

Approved by Newsom in October, SB 654 prohibits a child from addressing the court regarding custody or visitation in the presence of their parental parties, unless the court deems doing so is in the best interest of the child and states their reasons on record, according to SB 654. 

“Existing law requires the court to consider, and give due weight to, the wishes of the child in making an order granting or modifying custody or visitation if the child is of sufficient age and capacity to reason so as to form an intelligent preference as to custody or visitation,” read the bill. 

For more information on SB 654, click here. 

Proposition 12: The “Bacon” Law

Effective Jan. 1, 2022, pork sales from operations that confine mother pigs in crates and egg-laying hens in cages are considered illegal operations, whether the products were produced in or out of state, according to Cage Free Laws. 

“Retailers, distributors, restaurants, and food service companies operating in these states must be prepared to comply with the requirements of these laws to avoid criminal animal cruelty charges, civil fines, and in some cases jail time,” read a statement from Cage Free Laws.

In 2018, California law required that egg-laying hens be given adequate space, housed with a minimum of 144-square-inches per hen, while calves raised to be sold as veal must be dedicated at least 43-square-feet per calf, according to Prop. 12. 

The second part of the law, which requires egg-laying hens to be cage free and breeding pigs to be allotted 24-square-feet per pig, goes into effect at the start of the new year, according to Prop 12. 

Assembly Bill No. 1084: Gender Neutral Toy Sections

Beginning Jan. 1, 2022, department stores with 500 or more employees are required by law to provide a gender-neutral toy aisle, according to AB 1084. 

“Existing law, the Unruh Civil Rights Act, specifies that all persons within the jurisdiction of the state are free and equal, and no matter their sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, citizenship, primary language, or immigration status, are entitled to the full and equal accommodations, advantages, facilities, privileges, or services in all business establishments of every kind,” read AB 1084. 

For stores who fail to comply, fines start at $250 and increase to $500 for each following offense, according to AB 1084. 

Senate Bill No. 389: Cocktails To-Go

Laws allowing restaurants to sell cocktails and other alcoholic beverages to go amid the pandemic are here to stay in 2022, according to SB 389. 

The existing law, allowing restaurants to sell to-go beverages due to the positive effect on businesses, is being continued until December 31, 2026. 

“The bill would authorize the licensee to sell distilled spirits for off-sale consumption for which their license permits on-sale consumption if the beverages are in manufacturer-prepackaged containers, and are ordered and picked up by the consumer,” according to SB 389. 

Further requirements to sell to-go alcoholic beverages can be found here.

Assembly Bill No. 367: Free Menstrual Products on Campus

All California public schools are required to provide an adequate supply of free menstrual products in women’s and gender neutral bathrooms and in at least one men’s restroom on campus prior to the start of the 2022-2023 school year, according to AB 367. 

For more information on AB367, click here. 

Senate Bill No. 1383: Composting and Organics Recycling

In efforts to reduce greenhouse gases generated from decomposed organic materials in landfills, SB 1383 calls for California businesses and residents to reduce the amount of trash loading up landfills, according to SB 1383. 

Residents are being asked to separate kitchen scraps and organic waste from the rest of the garbage, while businesses are being asked to begin donating edible food that had been intended to be thrown out, according to SB 1383. 

Senate Bill No. 224: Mental Health in Schools

In middle and high schools that already have a health education course, part of the curriculum must now be dedicated to mental health, according to SB 224. 

The bill would require the State Department of Education to develop a plan to expand mental health instruction “to educate pupils about all aspects of mental health” on or before Jan. 1, 2024, according to SB 224. 

Assembly Bill No. 101: Ethnic Studies

Beginning with the graduating class of 2024 to 2025, high school students and college students enrolled in the California State University system are required to complete a 3-unit ethnic studies course in order to receive their graduating diploma, according to AB 101. 

“This bill would add the completion of a one-semester course in ethnic studies, meeting specified requirements, to the graduation requirements commencing with pupils graduating in the 2029–30 school year, including for pupils enrolled in a charter school,” read AB 101. 

Senate Bill No. 2: Police Reform

Signed into law by Newsom in 2021, SB 2 has been passed to prevent law enforcement officers from transferring to other departments if found guilty of committing misconduct, according to SB 2.

“This bill would prohibit a person who has been convicted of a felony, as specified, from regaining eligibility for peace officer employment based upon any later order of the court setting aside, vacating, withdrawing, expunging or otherwise dismissing or reversing the conviction, unless the court finds the person to be factually innocent of the crime for which they were convicted at the time of entry of the order,” read SB 2. 

Additional police reform bills have been signed into law, making it illegal for officers to use rubber bullets or tear gas unless the crowd is informed and crowd control methods have failed to stabilize the group, according to AB 48. 

“The bill would make these provisions inapplicable within a county jail or state prison facility,” according to AB 48. 

For more bills signed into law during 2021, click here.

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