New legislation looks at camping, cannabis, guns

New laws continue to flow out of Sacramento and into the hinterlands of California, including Inyo County.

This is the second installment of statutes, restrictions and regulations approved by the

INDEX QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Civilization began the first time an angry person cast a word instead of a rock.”

– Sigmund Freud

California Legislature and signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

For the most part, this batch of new laws will go into effect on Jan. 1 and there are more than a few changes that could impact everything from summer camping plans to buying kids’ toys.

Camping reservations The state has an impressive lineup of parks and campgrounds, but reserving a campsite has been complicated in recent years by folks who sign up online for lots of campsites on lots of days and then cancel the ones they don’t get to.

A new law is aimed at making campground reservation hogs pay for their overbooking. There will be no refund for reservation fees and the cost of the first night of camping when the reservation is cancelled two to six days before the arrival date depending on the campground.

Campers who cancel or are no-shows multiple times will only be allowed a limited number of reservations. The new system goes into effect Jan. 1, 2024, at ReserveCalifornia.

Cannabis Cannabis use is mostly legal, but workers can get busted by the boss for puffing, eating or slathering on an ever-expanding array of pot products.

To slow down the reefer madness caused by an employee having non-buzz pot products in their system, a new state law mandates an employer’s drug test must only check for THC levels, the stuff that gets folks high. A new bill also makes it illegal for a boss to discriminate against workers for past cannabis use, and another outlaws the boss for asking about an employee’s previous legal use of cannabis for recreational purposes.

What the new laws don’t change is an employer’s ability to penalize or fire anyone showing up to work stoned as a goat or high as a kite on pot.

Guns

A new gun law attempts to put California in line with a recent Supreme Court ruling that a person does not need to show a “need” for self-defense in order to get a permit to carry a con

cealed weapon.

The new state law increases the age for carrying a concealed weapon from 18 to 21. The controversial aspect of the law that has already drawn a legal challenge prohibits carrying concealed weapons in “sensitive places,” such as schools, parks, playgrounds and banks.

The law goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2024.

Mental illness Counties will be able to force people with severe mental illness into medical treatment or be put on a temporary psychiatric hold under a new law. The law expands the definition of “gravely disabled” to those whose mental illness or addictions limits their ability to keep themselves safe.

The proponents said the new law will allow counties to get a small but troubled group of homeless people off the streets and place them in conservatorships, which can include involuntary medical treatment.

The law goes into effect Jan. 1, 2024.

Fentanyl, trafficking

and toys

In a related move, the state will try to attack the crisis of opioid and fentanyl addiction by allowing mobile pharmacies that serve homeless people to dispense the opioid treatment drug buprenorphine.

People convicted of dealing more than a kilo of fentanyl will be subject to years of additional prison time, under a new bill.

People convicted of child sex trafficking will also see longer prison sentences and the convictions will also count as a

“strike” for the state’s “three strikes” law, which increases prison sentences for those convicted of a string of “serious” felonies.

Next year, folks shopping for kids’ toys will see a “gender-neutral” section in the toy section. Large retail stores (think chain stores) will have to create a section where toys are displayed together, regardless if they have been traditionally marketed for either boys or girls. Supporters said such a section will help break down boy/girl stereotypes and will also allow shoppers to see if similar toys have a different cost depending on which gender it is aimed at.