New laws passed in the first half of the year. Three bills of interest to California businesses passed the legislature and were signed by the governor.
The first was discussed in a previous issue of Boss Law: the Legislature took eight days to pass a new minimum wage bill raising minimum wage to $15 by 2022 (or 2023).
In a rare “win” for California businesses, urgency legislation (effective immediately when signed) should discourage some of the “drive-by” ADA violation shakedowns all too familiar to small businesses. The new law allows a “safe harbor” to correct technical ADA violations without penalty. The new rules are a bit complicated so you may want to read them or consult counsel if you think this affects you.
Twin “smoking” bills now outlaw most of the workplace exceptions to the indoor smoking ban making virtually every workplace “smoke free” and raise the smoking age (with a few exceptions) to 21 years old. Those take effect January 1, 2017.
Stay tuned for more developments affecting your business this year.
