New Laws Take Effect July 1, Led Locally by a Pasadena Wage Hike

A wave of new state and local laws takes effect Wednesday, July 1, changing rules on wages, restaurant menus, school cellphones, housing and handgun sales — and in Pasadena, the most immediate change is the one in many workers’ paychecks.

The city’s minimum wage rises that day to $18.57 an hour, up from $18.04, a 53-cent increase driven by the Consumer Price Index, according to a City of Pasadena statement issued May 4. The rate applies to all employers regardless of size and, the city says, will exceed the City of Los Angeles minimum of $18.42 and the Los Angeles County rate of $18.47, both also effective July 1. The increase makes Pasadena’s one of the highest general minimum wages in the San Gabriel Valley. The state minimum is $16.90.

One exception remains: national fast-food chain employees in Pasadena already earn a $20 hourly minimum under a statewide rule from April 1, 2024. The ordinance is administered by the city’s Code Compliance Division, and violations can carry back-wage orders, reinstatement and criminal prosecution, according to city documents.

A separate wage state law steps up the same day. Under SB 525, California’s healthcare worker minimum reaches $25 an hour for the largest hospitals and dialysis clinics; most other covered facilities move to $23.

Several statewide consumer laws also kick in. SB 68 requires food facilities with 20 or more locations nationwide under one brand to disclose nine major allergens — milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, wheat, soy and sesame — for each menu item, with a non-digital option available even where a QR code is used. AB 660 bans consumer-facing “sell-by” dates, requiring only “BEST if Used By” and “USE by” labels; eggs and infant formula are exempt. SB 576 bars streaming services from running ads louder than their programs. “We heard Californians loud and clear,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement at signing. Author Sen. Thomas Umberg, D-Santa Ana, said the bill “brings some much-needed peace and quiet to California households.”

For families, the Phone-Free Schools Act, AB 3216, requires every district — Pasadena Unified included — to have adopted a policy limiting student smartphone use, with exemptions for emergencies, medical needs and individualized education programs. “AB 3216 is a major victory for protecting and improving the mental health and academic outcomes of students across California,” Assemblymember Josh Hoover, an author, said in a statement.

Housing rules shift under SB 79, by Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, which overrides local zoning to allow denser housing within a half-mile of major transit stops, including Pasadena’s Metro rail and Bus Rapid Transit stops. Projects of 10 or more units must set aside units for lower-income households, and the law bars demolition of certain rent-stabilized and recently tenanted housing.

Two public-safety measures round out the day. AB 1777 lets police cite autonomous-vehicle companies for traffic violations. AB 1127, by Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel, bars licensed dealers from selling “machinegun-convertible pistols,” covering most Glock-style handguns; it does not affect possession or private sales. The Firearms Policy Coalition said it has “been preparing a challenge to AB 1127 for months.”

Other laws require an all-gender restroom at every K–12 school (SB 760), the Trevor Project’s crisis line — 1-866-488-7386 — on student IDs (AB 727), expanded mandated-reporter training (SB 848), and a rural maternity-care pilot in Humboldt and Plumas counties (SB 669).

For most Pasadena workers, the change arrives first in a paycheck: 53 cents more an hour, beginning July 1, with the next adjustment set for July 2027.