tenced for stealing, vandalizing or ….
tenced for stealing, vandalizing or assaulting an employee at that store.
Assembly Bill 1779: Sweeping Up Crime AB 1779 allows California district attorneys to coordinate with other DAs to consolidate charges for suspects in retail theft crimes that occur across multiple counties.
Assembly Bill 1960: Sentencing Criminals
AB 1960 creates sentencing enhancements for taking, damaging, or destroying property while committing a felony if the property value exceeds $50,000.
Senate Bill 1107: Better Accident Insurance
SB 1107 increases minimum insurance liability limits for when someone is hurt or killed in a crash, or if they suffer property damage.
This means if someone gets into an accident, and he was not at fault, the amount of insurance he’d be entitled to doubles, even if the person has the minimum policy limit.
The bill increases the amount of liability insurance coverage an owner or operator of a motor vehicle is required to maintain.
Before Jan. 1, the payout limits were:
• $15,000 per person for bodily injury or death
• $30,000 per accident for bodily injury or death
• $5,000 for property damage Starting in 2025, the limits will be:
• $30,000 per person for bodily injury or death
• $60,000 per accident for bodily injury or death
• $15,000 for property damage Assembly Bill 2602: Digital Likeness AB 2602 makes it illegal to use artificial intelligence to replicate an actor’s voice or likeness without permission.
It requires informed consent by performers in film, music and other entertainment sectors if studios want to use their digital replicas created through artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
Assembly Bill 2455: Whistleblower Protections AB 2455 modernizes the California Whistleblower Protection Act (CWPA) and whistleblower hotline laws. Proposed changes include expanding both the CWPA and whistleblower hotline laws to capture misconduct involving state grant funds, contractors and subcontractors, and allowing local governments to authorize additional individuals to administer the whistleblower hotlines.
This bill was sponsored by the County of Los Angeles.
Assembly Bill 2499: Time Off Expanded for Victims AB 2499 expands the definition of paid sick leave to include when an employee’s family member is a victim of violence or the threat of violence, allowing employees to use sick leave to help family members obtain a restraining order or seek out services related to domestic violence or assault.
Miscellaneous
• Gov. Gavin Newom signed legislation giving the state three new official state symbols: the banana slug (state slug), Dungeness crab (state crustacean) and black abalone (state seashell).
• Social Security benefits and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments for more than 72.5 million Americans will increase 2.5% in 2025. On average, Social Security retirement benefits will increase by about $50 per month starting in January. Over the last decade the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) increase has averaged about 2.6%.
The COLA was 3.2% in 2024.
• California voters rejected Proposition 32, which would have increased the state minimum wage to $18 an hour for large and medium-sized employers and $17 an hour for small employers with 25 or fewer employees.
But the minimum wage will still increase based on the consumer price index.
Beginning in 2025, the new state minimum wage will increase to $16.50 an hour.
