As Massachusetts residents kick off the new year, some changes will begin to affect their everyday lives that go beyond simply having to write a different date on paperwork or deal with larger crowds at the gym.
Drivers, smokers and low-wage workers will feel the impact of three new laws that take effect in 2020.
Hands-free driving
The days of fiddling with your phone behind the wheel will soon be gone, as a hands-free driving law will take effect on Feb. 23, which prohibits drivers from even touching an electronic device except for a single swipe to activate hands-free mode. Phone calls are also forbidden unless drivers are utilizing technology like Bluetooth.
Gov. Charlie Baker signed the measure into law at the end of November in an attempt to crack down on distracted driving and reduce traffic collisions across the state.
Punishment for violating the hands-free law includes a $100 fine for a first offense, $250 fine for a second offense and $500 fine for a third or subsequent offense. After a first offense, drivers will be forced to go through an educational course about distracted driving prevention.
However, Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack said police will issue warnings until the end of March to help people acclimate to the new rules.
Minimum wage increase
The minimum wage in Massachusetts jumps from $12 to $12.75 an hour.
The 6.25% increase is the latest annual hike as the state minimum wage phases up to $15 an hour in 2023, as mandated by a law passed in June 2018.
Additionally, the lower wage for tipped employees rose to $4.95 from $4.35 an hour, on its way up to $6.75 an hour in 2023. That’s provided that their tips bring them up to at least $12.75 per hour; if not, the employer must make up the difference.
While many low-wage workers have lauded the increases, business advocates have argued that the steady increases could backfire when the economy inevitably stops growing. Members of the Retailers Association of Massachusetts have warned that overall costs will rise and that small businesses will have to cut staff, trim hours and perhaps turn to automation.
Nicotine crackdown
New restrictions on flavored tobacco and nicotine vape products effectively ban sales at convenience stores and other locations.
The new law, which takes effect on June 1, limits the sale of flavored tobacco, including menthol cigarettes and chew, as well as nicotine vaping products, to licensed smoking bars where they may only be smoked on-site. The law will also impose an excise tax on e-cigarettes at a rate of 75% of the wholesale price.
While business owners and vape manufacturers condemned the law’s passing and even launched lawsuits against Baker, advocates argue that the new restrictions will help prevent children and teenagers from becoming addicted to nicotine.