New Year, New Laws!

Happy New Year! Hope you all had a good holiday. I did. Wishing for you all of the great things you wish yourselves this year. “New Year, New Laws” reads one of  WSJ Legal posts. I love it. On a national level, here are new laws to be aware of. They are not necessarily related to fashion and entertainment but are important to know.

“On the federal front:

  • Among the most far-reaching pieces of legislation is the new federal health-care law which this year includes new taxes on drug makers, as well as lower prescription-drug costs for many seniors and restrictions on tax-free medical spending.
  • Another new federal law gives borrowers more specific information on the interest rates they pay on credit cards and other loans.
  • Federal regulations will begin requiring new and upgraded power plants, oil refiners and other large facilities to hold permits to release greenhouse gases.

But the bulk of the new-law activity is happening within the states. State legislators passed about 31,000 news laws in 2010, down slightly from the previous year.

Many of those laws reflect the potential misuse of computers. To wit:

  • Illinois lawmakers, for example, enacted a law aimed at catching people who use webcams to engage in virtual sex acts with children.
  • California made it illegal to intimidate, threaten or defraud someone using a website.

Another big area for new legislation: DWT, or driving-while-texting. Delaware, Kansas and Kentucky join more than two dozen other states in making it illegal to send text messages while driving.” WSJ has the full story.