Editorial: A look at some new state laws

Everyone has a favorite New Year’s Day tradition. For some, it’s watching floats of giant balloon cartoon characters parade across the TV screen; others it’s nursing a headache with a noontime Bloody Mary.

And then there are the upstanding among us who see the turn of the calendar as a chance to brush up on a year’s worth of state legislation and its many new laws that typically take effect the first of the year.

In 2016, the New Year Baby has to deal with about 800 new policies in California – far too many to ruminate upon in this column space. So, for brevity’s sake, here are xx that are worth a second look:

Legal use of hoverboards in bike lanes. First of all, they’re not “hoverboards” – at least not in the Marty McFly sense we all want them to be. They’re really a “self-balancing electric scooter” for those who think kids are getting a tad too much exercise and should take it easier. Should they be allowed where bikes can ride? Maybe they should be allowed where scooters and skateboards can ride. Bikes? Hoverboards are going to look pretty silly on the Annadel “big loop.”

Eligible voters will be automatically registered to vote at the DMV upon getting their driver’s license. This will largely bring more Latinos into the voting fold, a big draw for Democrats – which could have an impact in GOP controlled swing districts. Stay tuned.

Beer tastings can now be held at farmers markets. Just when you thought the Tuesday and Friday farmers markets in Sonoma couldn’t get better.

California community colleges can take disciplinary action in sexual-assault cases that happen off campus. One of several bills that were put forth to curb the increase in sexual violence among students – erasing the blurry line as to where campus life begins and where it ends.

State minimum wage goes from $9 to $10 an hour. It’s not much, but it’s a start. Prevailing thought, however, is that for workers in the North Bay it takes $13 to $15 at least.

Short-term vacation rental websites must alert users who are renters that the “cozy cottage” they list on the site could violate their terms of lease. The fact that AirBnB has to tell them this is an insult to dodgy renters everywhere.

Cost for filing papers to launch a state-initiative drive rises from $200 to $2,000. The state initiative system has often been a mockery of the democratic process, with all sorts of joke propositions advancing toward the ballot in recent years. This will help ensure that the truly ludicrous initiatives are now ludicrous but well-funded.

Concealed weapons now banned on college campuses. We know what you’re thinking: They weren’t already?? Nope. Truth is, that cute redhead in your environmental science class at SRJC had a Glock 26 in her handbag the whole time.

The word “alien” will be removed from state labor code to describe people not born in United States. However, males native to the southern-most borough of Butler County, Pennsylvania, will still be referred to as “men from Mars.”

No more personal-belief exemptions for entering schools without vaccinations. The debate over parental rights vs. sound science is now moot, as far as school districts are concerned.

Assisted suicide legal. The California law will permit physicians to provide lethal prescriptions to mentally competent adults who have been diagnosed with a terminal illness and have been given a life-expectancy of less than six months. In signing the bill into law, Gov. Brown said he doesn’t know what he would do if faced with an excruciating end of life situation, but observed: “It would be a comfort to be able to consider the options afforded by this bill. And I wouldn’t deny that right to others.”

Schools must provide areas for nursing mothers to breastfeed or breast pump. And the times they are a-changing, indeed.

Email jason.walsh@sonomanews.com.