New State Laws Take Effect In The US As We Ring In The New Year 

This year, many states have enacted new laws beginning on January 1st, bringing in the new year with a focus on wages, social media, privacy, gender-affirming care, AI regulation, and more. 2026 has already become a year of change, and the laws shifting in the US have proven just that. 

In California, for example, rideshare drivers now have the right and ability to unionize. The state has over 800,000 drivers, and starting on January 1st, they can take advantage of a deal brokered between Governor Gavin Newsom, organized labor, and major rideshare companies such as Uber, according to NPR. 

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The companies specifically supported the decision to collective bargaining rights for their drivers in exchange for lawmakers agreeing to cut the companies’ insurance costs for underinsured drivers, according to Laura Fitzgerald of CapRadio. 

Fitzgerald also pointed out that California became the second state to extend these rights to rideshare drivers following Massachusetts, who voted for the same thing in 2024. 

Colorado will give new parents of babies in the NICU more paid leave in 2026 and beyond. Colorado already had paid family leave that gave workers up to 12 weeks off from work to care for their new baby, and for serious family health or personal issues. 

Now, families who have babies that require time in neonatal intensive care can apply for an additional 12 weeks of paid leave to acknowledge the extra strain families go under when their babies are in the NICU. 

Democratic State Senator Jeff Bridges was one of the main sponsors of this new bill who cited his own personal experiences when hailing support for the additional paid leave. He had his own newborn be placed in intensive care which he described as “terrifying and consuming.”

In Virginia, a new law regarding social media is already being combated over claims that it violates the first amendment. According to Brad Kutner of WVTF, the new law is designed to limit social media use by those under the age of 16 to one hour a day unless a parent agrees to give their kids a longer period. 

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NetChoice is the group representing social media services that are challenging the law and stating that it violates the First Amendment. 

Attorneys for NetChoice call the law the “latest attempt in a long line of government efforts to restrict new forms of constitutionally protected expression based on concerns about their potential effects on minors.”

More widely, eighteen states have restricted SNAP money for the purchase of candy, sodas, energy drinks, or other items as well. 

These states include South Carolina, Florida, Texas, Hawaii, and Virginia. All of the states received waivers from the US Department of Agriculture in 2025 allowing them to restrict Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program dollars for items that the states deem to be non-nutritious. 

South Carolina specifically will be banning the purchase of candy, energy drinks, soft drinks, and other sweetened beverages using SNAP dollars citing adult and childhood obesity statistics. South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster stated in December that the waiver will ideally give the population healthier options and lives. 

With AI growing and developing at a rapid pace in recent years, many states and federal bodies are trying to figure out ways to regulate the technology. In Illinois, employers are now prohibited from using AI when it comes to making employment decisions. More specifically, making new hires, promotions, discipline, and using the technology to look into demographic information like a person’s race or ZIP code. 

This new prohibition is an amendment to the state’s Human Rights Act. 

“This (AI) is an unchecked technology. We just have to get in front of it and do the best we can,” Democratic State Senator Javier Cervantes, who sponsored the measure, stated.