While the approval of new laws is a wintertime activity, their actual implementation doesn’t generally take place until the much-quieter days of summer. For 2019, that date arrives on Thursday this week.
This follows a constitutional requirement that says new laws take effect 90 days after the General Assembly completes its regular session. The only exceptions are if the law is an emergency or has a specific enactment date.
One law that I was especially glad to see pass will make our schools safer. The legislation takes a multi-pronged approach by expanding the number of trained school resource officers and guidance counselors and by standardizing and strengthening the best safety practices across the state. Legislative leaders have promised to boost funding for these programs when the next two-year budget is approved in 2020.
There were quite a few other bills to pass this year that I was proud to support. We passed a law to try to stop telemarketers from using local phone numbers to trick people into answering them, for example, and we strengthened the workplace rights of women who are pregnant or are new mothers. We also toughened the terroristic threatening law so those convicted of threatening churches or other public gatherings will face enhanced penalties.
One major change enacted this year is the effective repeal of the 23-year-old concealed-carry law, meaning those 21 and older who can legally possess firearms will be able to carry them concealed without needing a permit. The previous restrictions covering concealed weapons – barring them from courthouses, for example – are still in effect.
