5 New CA Laws That May Change Your Life In 2019

It's that time again. A new year. And that means a new series of laws that will go to effect here in California. Gov. Jerry Brown signed thousands bills into law over the course of his time in office, so it can be difficult to keep track of everything. To recap, we've gathered a handful of the laws that may impact residents the most in the Golden State come 2019.

Minimum Wage Rising

California's minimum wage will again rise as of Jan. 1. As part of Senate Bill 3, minimum wage will increase to $11 an hour for those who work at a company with 25 employees or less. For those who work for businesses that employ 26 or more people, minimum wage will be $12.

It's all part of a gradual increase in wages that will help California reach its goal of a $15 an hour minimum wage for all employees by the year 2023.

Plastic Straw Ban

Starting in the New Year, servers at sit-down restaurants will no longer automatically hand you a plastic straw with your beverage. Rather, you must specifically request the item. (Yes, they are still allowed to hand them out if you ask for one.)

Assembly Bill 1884 only applies to "full service restaurants" and does not apply to fast food restaurants. What's more, the law does not apply to straws made from other materials like paper, pasta, sugar cane, wood, or bamboo.

If a restaurant is found to be in violation of the law, they can face fines of $25 a day. However, there's a maximum annual fine total of $300.

Mandated Female Board Members

In the year of #MeToo, California's governor took pen to paper in an effort to reduce gender discrimination in the workplace. In September, he signed Senate Bill 826 into law, which mandates that publicly-owned companies based in California have at least one woman on the board of directors by the end 2019. Then, but the end of 2121, companies are required to have at least two female directors if the corporation has 5 directors or 3 if the corporation has 6 or more directors.

"There have been numerous objections to this bill and serious legal concerns have been raised,"Jerry Brown said in his signing statement. "I don't minimize the potential flaws that indeed may prove fatal to its ultimate implementation... Given all the special privileges that corporations have enjoyed for so long, it's high time corporate boards include the people who constitute more than half the 'persons' in America."

Ignition Interlock Devices

Starting Jan. 1, 2019, repeat DUI offenders and first-timer offenders involved in injury crashes will be required to install an ignition interlock device in their vehicles. The program has been in a pilot stage for the last eight years in four counties across California. Now, it expands statewide.

"The technology, better known as an IID, measures blood alcohol concentration after an individual blows into the device and prevents a car from starting if the driver is not sober," according to the office of State Sen. Jerry Hill, who authored Senate Bill 1046.

Here are some more specifics of the bill, via Hill's office:

• A first DUI involving no injuries may choose to have an IID installed in their cars for six months and retain full driving privileges. Or, they may forgo an IID and opt for a one-year restricted license that permits them only to drive to and from work and to and from a treatment program. Judges retain discretion to require IIDs for these first offenders.
• A first DUI involving an injury results in mandatory IID installation for one year.
• A second DUI also results in mandatory IID installation for one year.
• A third DUI results in a mandatory IID installation for two years.
• A fourth DUI and subsequent convictions result in mandatory IID installation for three years.

Patients' 'Right to Know'

Though this law doesn't go into effect until July 1, it will still have an affect on Californians in 2019. Called the "Patient's Right to Know Act," Senate Bill 1448 will mandate that "physicians who are disciplined by their regulatory board for the following four categories of misconduct to notify their patients prior to their visit:

• Sexual misconduct with a patient
• Drug abuse that can harm patients
• Criminal conviction involving harm to patients
• Inappropriate prescribing resulting in patient harm and five or more years of probation"

That's according to the office of State Sen. Jerry Hill, who also authored this bill. Hill says that the law will also apply to surgeons, osteopaths, naturopathic doctors, chiropractors, podiatrists and acupuncturists who are placed on administrative probation by regulators on or after July 1.

Until this law came along, doctors were only obligated to notify their injurer and hospital or clinic about their probation status — but patients were in the dark.

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Patch file photo by Renee Schiavone