The Arizona Republic | azcentral.com is reporting 12 new laws that take effect Wednesday and that could affect you. Many are small changes to existing state statutes that most people won’t notice.
But these 12 could affect Arizonans' daily lives.
- Sunscreen at school
HB 2134 allows a school-age child attending a public district or charter school, a children's camp or a day care to have and use sunscreen without a note or prescription.
- Kids and pets in hot cars
HB 2494 protects from a civil lawsuit anyone who enters a locked, unattended vehicle to rescue a child or pet if the person believes the child or pet is “in imminent danger of physical injury or death.” The person must first call police or animal control and stay with the animal or child until they arrive.
- Private gun sales
SB 1122 prevents state, county and city governments from requiring background checks on private gun sales.
- Disability rights
SB 1406 amends the Arizonans with Disabilities Act to give businesses up to 90 days to correct structural accessibility violations before a lawsuit can be filed, and exempting websites from state accessibility requirements.
- Predatory moving
HB 2145 provides protections for people who hire a moving company for an in-state move. The law prevents movers from refusing to unload a person's goods if there is a disagreement over payment. It requires moving companies to provide a written contract and disclose all fees.
- End-of-life decisions
SB 1439 protects from discrimination individuals, such as doctors or nurses, and entire medical facilities that refuse to participate in any service or to provide any item that results in the death of an individual.
- Inhalers at school
HB 2208 allows a public district or charter school employee to administer a rescue inhaler to a student or an adult if the individual is showing signs of respiratory distress. It allows schools to apply for grants or accept donations to buy inhalers and spacers.
- Babies born alive during abortions
SB 1367 regulates how doctors must care for a fetus born alive during an abortion, including having neonatal emergency equipment and trained staff in the room for all abortions performed at or after 20 weeks of pregnancy. The bill does have some caveats for a fetus with a fatal condition.
- License-plate covers
SB 1073 makes it illegal to cover a license plate or use any electronic device or film that obscures the plate from any angle.
- Liquor serving age
HB 2047 reduces the age it is legal to manufacture, sell, serve or handle liquor to 18, down from 19.
- ADA-compliant bingo establishments
SB 1180 requires that bingo establishments must comply with the Americans With Disabilities Act. This includes providing players free technological aids that function as substitutes for bingo cards and allowing players to claim prizes by presenting a printout or other evidence of a winning card such as a visual or audio signal.
- Emergency prescription refills
SB 1269 allows a pharmacist to issue a one-time emergency refill of a non-controlled medication used to treat an ongoing medical condition, but only under specific circumstances. Among other things, the pharmacy must have a prior record of the patient taking the medicine.