With the New Year comes new laws that will go into effect in California. Nearly 800 bills were passed by the state legislature and signed by the governor in 2025, many of which went into effect on January 1, 2026. Some noteworthy laws of interest to Coronado residents address the environment, education, health, and technology.

You may recall that in 2025, Coronado adopted new rules around plastic and polystyrene use by businesses and restaurants as part of an effort to curb the prevalence of single-use plastics. Part of that discussion by the City Council and formulation of the updated municipal code included consideration for upcoming state laws that similarly address plastics. Senate Bill (SB) 1053 is the newest to go into effect, which now bans any type of plastic bags (including the thicker plastic bags) from being used as checkout bags by retailers.

Retailers across the state not already using reusable bags, as defined by the state, will need to transition to paper carryout bags that are accepted by curbside recycling programs. The bill also sets a timeline for these bags to be made with a minimum of 50 percent post-consumer recycled materials by 2028.

There are also some bills passed in 2023 that have requirements for large companies going into effect this year. With SB 253, any company with total annual revenues in excess of one billion dollars that does business in California will now be required to publicly disclose its greenhouse gas emissions on an annual basis.

Students may be interested to know that the California State University automatic admittance pilot program that saw success in Riverside County is now being rolled out statewide with SB 640. During the pilot, high school seniors who met California State University requirements and were eligible to submit an application were notified by the University of their provisional acceptance to a Cal State campus, given they maintained their grades and submitted an application to at least one campus.

Sixteen of the 22 University campuses will now be a part of the program as it expands to all California students, and more information is expected to be available regarding the expansion and rollout of this process for students in February on the California State University website.

Additional education and school-related bills going into effect this year include a focus on removing ultra-processed foods from being served at public schools; providing educators and students with greater access to literary tools to help improve students’ reading capabilities; and improving mental health services.

Regarding housing, SB 79 has taken effect, which relates to transit-oriented housing development across the state. As part of the bill, the zoning restriction for housing development projects in specific areas targets high-transit areas of major cities to address the California housing shortage. Readers may recall, however, that the potential “Tier 3” zones initially considered for inclusion in the bill that would have included Coronado were removed before SB 79 was passed.

One notable health-related bill now in effect is SB 40. Large state-related health insurers will now have to cap insulin copays at $35 for a 20-day supply. A CalRx state-branded insulin program is also being introduced, wherein CalRx biosimilar insulin glargine pens will be available at a capped rate of $55 per five-pack of 3 mL insulin pens to patients (a single unit cost of $11) as part of the state’s efforts to lower prescription drug prices.

California also passed a slew of artificial intelligence (AI) related laws that have gone into effect. Many of these are targeted at increasing transparency and mitigating exploitation, such as a law to prohibit AI chatbots from posing as licensed professionals, required disclaimers that AI chatbots are not real people when used by minors, and disclosures when AI tools are used by law enforcement agencies to draft official reports.

For more information on California’s newest laws, visit https://www.gov.ca.gov/2025/12/31/new-in-2026-california-laws-taking-effect-in-the-new-year/.

VOL. 116, NO. 1 – Jan. 7, 2026