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Another year, another laundry list of new laws across the United States.  Many address serious matters such as public safety, healthcare, education, and consumer protection.  But every year, a handful of new laws stand out not because they are controversial or sweeping, but because they are downright strange when reduced to a headline.  We are going to share some of the craziest ones below.

California leads the nation in laws that sound bizarre out of context.

  • Fortified Tortillas (AB 1264): Commercially sold corn masa flour (used for tortillas and tamales) must now be fortified with folic acid to reduce birth defects.
  • Cat Declawing Ban (AB 867): It is now illegal to declaw a cat statewide except for rare medical necessities.  To animal welfare advocates, it’s a long overdue protection against an inhumane practice.  To casual observers skimming a list of new laws, it reads like the government suddenly decided it needed to intervene in household pet grooming.
  • Rental Refrigerator Mandate (AB 628): In Los Angeles and across California, landlords are now legally required to provide and maintain a working refrigerator and stove in rental units, ending a long-standing L.A. tradition where renters often had to buy their own.
  • AI Disclosure: Large platforms must now explicitly disclose when a user is interacting with an AI chatbot.
  • Smartphone Restrictions: Public schools must adopt policies to limit or ban student smartphone use on campus by July 2026.

Utah, ID for Everyone

  • Mandatory ID Checks: In an effort to curb drunk driving, all customers in Utah restaurants and bars must now show identification before being served alcohol, regardless of their age.
  • "No Alcohol Sale" IDs: Individuals convicted of "extreme DUI" (BAC of 0.16%+) must surrender their standard licenses for a replacement with a prominent red stripe and the words "No Alcohol Sale."

Georgia, Patriotic Plates

  • "America First" License Plates: Georgia has introduced a new specialty license plate featuring the American flag and the words "America First."  It costs $90 for the first year.

Hawaii, the Earth Tax

  • Climate Change Tourism Tax: Hawaii is the first state to implement a "Green Fee," a 0.75% daily room rate tax on tourist lodging specifically to fund climate resilience projects like beach replenishment.

Texas, Parental Consent for App Stores

  • In this state, new regulations surrounding age verification and parental consent for app stores have sparked intense debate.  Critics say the law sounds like a dystopian overreach, while supporters frame it as child protection in a digital age.  Either way, the idea of the government monitoring who can download apps has generated more than a few raised eyebrows.

Washington, Minimum Wage

  • Washington's minimum wage rose to $17.13 per hour, becoming the first state to exceed the $17 threshold.

Illinois, Job Protection

  • New parents with newborns in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) now have expanded job-protected leave.

Maine, Subscription Law

  • Maine now requires that canceling a subscription must be as easy as signing up for it.

Additionally, nine U.S. states have shopping cart laws in place, with hefty fees for breaking them.  Shopping carts are a hot commodity according to statistics, with a shocking two million carts stolen on an annual basis.  This costs U.S. retailers roughly $175 million in annual replacement and repair costs.  With one shopping cart stolen every 90 seconds, according to Supermarket News, the widespread issue burdens stores with both financial and operational challenges.  Consumers who steal shopping carts are often driven by factors such as personal use, convenience, resale and homelessness.  They don’t always walk away unscathed, however, as three actions constitute illegal cart use and are subject to civil and criminal charges.

The rise of silly-sounding laws reflect how deeply government now reaches into daily life.  As society becomes more complex, regulation follows.  Lawmakers are no longer just setting tax rates and criminal penalties; they’re navigating food science, algorithms, consumer psychology, and cultural pluralism.  That complexity makes modern lawmaking easier to parody and harder to explain.

Now, more than ever, Americans need to stay informed about and protected from our legal system, particularly with orders of magnitude more laws being introduced than repealed.  One of the best ways to stay informed about  is to read a copy of our book, Stack the Legal Odds in Your Favor, available in libraries nationwide, on Kindle Unlimited, and for purchase on our website.  We've said for a long time that for every new law that gets added, more than one needs to be removed until the number of laws on the books is reduced to a reasonable number at which time it can be a one-for-one exchange of new laws coming in with those going out.  As it is, there is significant overlap with innumerable laws in this country.