New laws in 2025: From gun reforms to cage-free eggs
From gun reform to agriculture, hundreds of laws and amendments will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2025. Here are a few to know.
As violent crime rates appear to be falling after a pandemic-related spike, gun violence continues to plague communities around the country.
In 2024, there have been nearly 500 mass shootings, according to a database maintained by Gun Violence America. The deadliest occurred in a Chicago suburb in January, killing eight people.
In light of the recent school shooting in Wisconsin, President Joe Biden spoke of his administration’s work aimed at reducing gun violence, including passing the most significant gun safety legislation in nearly 30 years.
“But more is needed,” he said.
States have also taken steps to pass their own gun regulations. Here is what advocates in gun policy had to say about the 2024 legislative year and a look at some laws coming into effect in the new year in California.
California gun safety regulations going into effect Jan. 1
In September, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a series of laws aimed at strengthening gun safety regulations. Those include requiring schools to implement safety programs and plans, and establishing an Office of Gun Violence Prevention, which have deadlines in the coming years.
Some of those laws go into effect on Jan. 1 including:
- AB 1483 strengthens a rule against applying for more than one handgun in a 30-day period. The bill removes an exemption for a private party transactions. However, the policy has been caught in court battles and the California Department of Justice does will not enforce it while a court injunction is in place, the California DOJ told USA TODAY on Dec. 27.
- AB 1598 requires firearm dealers to provide consumers with a pamphlet covering the reasons for and risks of firearm ownership, ”including the increased risk of death to someone in the household by suicide, homicide, or unintentional injury.”
- AB 2917 guides courts to expand considerations for a gun violence restraining order to include threats of violence, specifically hate-based threats.
“California won’t wait until the next school shooting or mass shooting to act,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a news release. “In the absence of congressional action, our state is once again leading the way by strengthening our nation-leading gun laws.”
How gun safety advocates and Second Amendment proponents responded to 2024 moves
By and large, the state laws related to gun safety taking effect in 2025 enforce gun safety, according to the gun violence prevention organization Everytown for Gun Safety.
“America’s gun violence epidemic is not inevitable, it is the logical outcome of lawmakers’ callous inaction in service to the gun lobby,” Monisha Henley, senior vice president for government affairs at Everytown for Gun Safety, told USA TODAY in a statement. “As we head into the New Year, not a single consequential law rolling back our progress on gun safety will go into effect, but countless laws making our communities safer will. As we head into 2025 one thing remains clear: gun safety isn’t just good policy, it’s good politics.”
But the National Rifle Association also trumpeted victories in 2024. John Commerford, Interim Executive Director of the NRA Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA) heralded the election of a “pro-gun president” and Republican majorities in the congressional chambers.
“Much to the dismay of gun control activists, Second Amendment rights were protected and expanded in a number of states in 2024,” Commerford said in a statement to USA TODAY.
The organization pointed to South Carolina and Louisiana, which passed and enacted legislation in 2024 allowing lawful gun owners to carry a firearm without a permit, and Colorado, Maine and New Mexico, where efforts to pass bans on certain types of firearms failed.
Contributing: Saman Shafiq, Michael Collins
Kinsey Crowley is a trending news reporter at USA TODAY. Reach her at kcrowley@gannett.com, and follow her on X and TikTok @kinseycrowley.