Health masks: right to wear.

With Assembly Member Ahrens and coauthors Becker and Rubio guiding the policy, the measure frames a rights-based approach to masking by establishing a public-health right to wear a health mask in public spaces. It would create a new chapter in California’s Health and Safety Code that defines a health mask as a surgical mask or an N95/KN95 respirator and designates a broad set of public places where the right may be exercised, for purposes related to communicable disease, air quality, or other health factors, subject to the limitations described in the chapter.

Key mechanisms include a general right to wear a health mask in public places and a defined set of nine public-place categories—encompassing places of business open to the public, other public accommodations, governmental or public buildings, outdoor spaces, public transportation, health facilities, educational settings, employment settings, and any other location open to the general public. The bill sets forth carve-outs that limit the right in specific contexts: temporary removal for identification in security procedures; ensuring masks do not obstruct vision while operating a vehicle; allowance for removal to perform essential workplace functions (with “essential functions” defined consistent with existing Government Code standards and not to justify prolonged removal); a conditional cross-reference to labor regulations if certain related measures are enacted; removal for emergency health care procedures; and references to other safety or criminal statutes. It also preserves nondiscrimination protections for people with disabilities or medical conditions.

Enforcement and implementation considerations are notably muted in the text: there are no explicit penalties, civil remedies, or new regulatory procedures specified, and funding or appropriations are not provided. Instead, enforcement would rely on existing nondiscrimination protections under federal and state law and on applicable health and safety and labor statutes. The enactment appears with final status in September 2025, but the operative date is not specified in the excerpt, leaving the timing of effect to future guidance or chaptered provisions. The measure thereby creates a framework that requires regulatory interpretation to resolve ambiguities about scope in private spaces, time-limited removal standards, and coordination with existing security, health, and employment regulations.