LAKE COUNTY >> More than 900 state laws will be implemented in 2015, most of which take effect Thursday.
Among the 931 total laws set to be established, is a plastic bag ban, which is planned to begin on July 1. Similar laws have been passed on a local level in more than 100 California cities.
The law will ban supermarkets, pharmacies and convenience stores from distributing single-use plastic bags and encourage the use of re-useable cloth bags. However, customers will be able to purchase paper bags, at a minimum cost of ten cents.
Although the implementation of the law is still in question, as the plastics industry has sponsored a referendum asking voters to overturn the law.
The law would be suspended until November 2016 if the referendum qualifies for the ballot.
Under AB60, which was passed in 2013, the California Department of Motor Vehicle (DMV) will begin issuing driver’s licenses to people living in the U.S. without documentation.
The DMV will also be required, under AB1733, to provided identification cards free-of-charge to people who can verify they are homeless. An affidavit from a homeless services provider will need to be provided by the homeless person.
Additionally, the new state holiday of Native American Day will be observed on the fourth Friday of September beginning in 2015.
On the educational front, schools will be required to report any use of pesticides to the California Department of Pesticide Regulation. High schools will also be required to electronically submit the Grade Point Average of graduating seniors to the Cal Grant Student Aid Commission, in order to increase the number grants offered to students.
Furthermore, schools districts will be required to limit information obtained from students’ social media profile to that pertaining to school or student safety. Districts must also provide the information to the student and give them the option to correct it.
The firing process for teachers charged with serious misconduct, including child abuse, sexual abuse and certain drug offenses, will be streamlined with the implementation of AB215. Districts will be required to hold a hearing within six months of an educator making a request, which must be concluded within seven months.
The hearings will take place in front of the Commission on Professional Competence, which includes an administrative law judge and two educators.
Audrie’s Law, SB838, will increase penalties, as well as decrease privacy protections for teens convicted of sexual abuse on someone incapable of giving consent because of being passed out from drugs or alcohol.
Colleges will be required under SB967 to develop student manuals and instructions regarding affirmative consent of both parties in sexual activities. Furthermore, campuses will be required to offer programs to counsel victims of sexual assault.
People will be able to file suit against anyone who intentionally or recklessly distributes sexually explicit material of them without their consent under AB2643.
Local governments with critically overused water aquifers will be required to create agencies to develop sustainability plans under SB1168 and AB1739. Should the obligation not be fulfilled, the state will be allowed to intervene.
Groundwater accounts for more than half of the state’s water resources during droughts. However, a comprehensive program has never been implemented to monitor and manage groundwater.
Contact J. W. Burch, IV at 900-2022.
