Mountain View News Saturday, January 3, 2026 

NEW IN 2026: 
California laws taking effect in the new year 

What you need to know: Starting January 1, a new set of California laws will take effect, impacting 
health care, housing, workplaces, schools, technology, and corporate disclosurerequirements. 

SACRAMENTO 

The new laws lower prescription drug costs, increase oversight of large corporations, strengthen consumer and worker 
protections, and protect California’s diverse communities. At a time when the Trump administration is attacking our state,
California is protecting its people. 

California is proving once again that progress isn’t something we talk about, it’s something we build. While some in Washington 
remain stuck debating yesterday’s problems, we’re focused on delivering real solutions for today’s families. Thesenew laws reflect who we are: a state that protects workers, respects students, puts people before politics, and isn’t afraidto hold powerful interests accountable. Governor Gavin Newsom 

Education 

Expanding mental health resources for LGBTQ youthAB 727 (Gonzalez): Requires that student ID cards issued by public middle and high schools, and public colleges/universities include a 24/7 hotline for the 
Trevor Project. The hotline provides crisis and suicide prevention support to LGBTQ youth. It ensures state education agencies publish and maintain resources 
for students who face discrimination or harassment based on sexual orientation, gender identity, or expression. 

Ban on ultra-processed foods in schools 

AB 1264 (Gabriel): California’s first-in-the-nation law will remove the most concerning ultra-processed foods from being served at public schools, giving students 
healthier, real-food meals to improve nutrition and overall health. 

Supporting student literacy 

AB 1454 (Rivas): Provides educators and school leaders greater access to the tools, training, and resources needed to help students become better readers. 

Streamlining college admissions

SB 640 (Cabaldon): Establishes a California State University (CSU) direct admissions process by notifying eligible high school students of automatic admission 
to participating CSU campuses. It also requires California Community Colleges to create programs that will support a smoother transfer for community college 
students to a four-year university. 

Health 

Alternative birth centers: licensing and Medi-Cal reimbursementAB 55 (Bonta): Ensures that licensure of alternative birth centers is more accessible to midwives in California by amending or deleting onerous and unnecessary 
requirements. 

State emergency food bank reserve program

AB 798 (Calderon): Expands the state emergency food bank program to include diapers and wipes for families with young children. 

Midwifery Workforce Training Act

AB 836 (Stefani): Requires the Department of Health Care Access and Information to administer funding for a statewide midwifery education. 

Capping insulin costs

SB 40 (Wahab and Wiener): Beginning January 1, 2026, large state-related health insurers must cap insulin copays at $35 for a 20-day supply, improvingaffordability for Californians who rely on insulin. 

Access to prenatal multivitamins

SB 646 (Weber-Pierson): Expands access to prenatal multivitamins to support healthy pregnancies and infant development. 

Perinatal services in rural hospitals

SB 669 (McGuire): Requires, by July 1, 2026, the establishment of a 10-year pilot project within up to 5 critical access hospitals on an application basis to 
establish standby perinatal services. 

Immigration

Students – know your rightsAB 419 (Connolly): Requires schools to post information about students’ rights regarding immigration enforcement in administrative offices and on school 
websites, helping families understand that all children have the right to a free public education. 

Family Preparedness Act

AB 495 (Rodriguez): Strengthens protections for parents and children by helping families in emergencies, protecting family privacy, and preventing child 
facilities from collecting immigration-related information, especially if a parent is detained or separated. 

Housing

Protecting rentersAB 628 (McKinnor): Requires landlords to provide working refrigerators in rental units beginning January 1, ensuring tenants have access to essential 
appliances. 

Transit-oriented housing development

SB 79 (Wiener): Requires each county and city to adopt a comprehensive, long-term general plan for the development of the county or city, and specifiedland outside its boundaries, that contains certain mandatory elements, including a housing element. 

Animal welfare 

Statewide ban on cat declawingAB 867 (Lee): Bans non-therapeutic cat declawing statewide. Only medically necessary procedures performed by a licensed veterinarian remain allowed. 

Addressing the puppy mill pipeline

AB 506 (Bennett): Holds pet sellers accountable, requiring them to disclose the pet’s origin and health information.
AB 519 (Berman): Prohibits third-party pet brokers, particularly online pet brokers, from selling cats, puppies, and rabbits bred by others for profit in California.
SB 312 (Umberg): requires dog importers to submit health certificates electronically to the California Department of Food & Agriculture (CDFA) within 10days of shipment, and requires CDFA to provide those certificates upon request. 

Workplace rights & protections

Supporting survivors of workplace sexual assault cover-upsAB 250 (Aguiar-Curry)- Temporarily lifts the statute of limitations for adult survivors of workplace-related sexual assault cover-ups. From January 1, 2026through December 21, 2027, survivors may file civil claims regardless of when the incident occurred. 

Strengthening equal pay enforcement

SB 642 (Limón): Expands California’s equal pay laws by broadening key definitions, extending the statute of limitations to three years (with recovery for upto six years), and clarifying categories of unlawful pay practices. 

Technology, AI safety & digital rights

Preventing AI from posing as licensed professionalsAB 489 (Bonta): Prohibits AI chatbots from presenting themselves as doctors, nurses, or other licensed professionals to increase transparency and preventmisrepresentation by AI chatbots. 

Addressing artificially generated pornography

AB 621 (Bauer-Kahan and Berman): Strengthens protections against digital sexual exploitation by targeting the creation and distribution of AI-generatedsexual content. 

Risk-mitigation requirements for large AI companies

SB 53 (Wiener): Requires large AI developers to maintain documented risk-mitigation strategies to improve safety and transparency in the deployment of 
emerging technologies. 

Safeguards for minors using AI chatbots

SB 243 (Padilla): Requires AI companies to include disclaimers that chatbots are not real people when used by minors and mandates safety protocols to 
prevent chatbots from encouraging self-harm. 

Transparency in police reports drafted with AI

SB 524 (Arreguin): Requires law enforcement agencies to disclose when AI tools are used to draft official police reports. 

Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com