California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed a bill into law that mandates large retailers have a gender-neutral toy aisle.
The law, signed Saturday, requires stores with at least 500 employees to keep a gender-neutral section of children’s items and toys, regardless of whether those items have previously been marketed toward boys or girls. Children's clothes will be excluded from this mandate.
The legislation was introduced by Assemblyman Evan Low (D) and will not ban items that have traditionally been marketed for either boys or girls. Stores that violate the new law once it goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2024 will face a civil penalty of as much as $250 for the first violation and $500 for any subsequent violations.
Low said he was "incredibly grateful" that Newsom signed the bill. The state Legislature's previous attempts to pass similar legislation were unsuccessful in 2019 and 2020.
"We need to stop stigmatizing what’s acceptable for certain genders and just let kids be kids," Low told The Associated Press. "My hope is this bill encourages more businesses across California and the U.S. to avoid reinforcing harmful and outdated stereotypes."
But the law has drawn sharp criticism from conservatives, who say that the government should not dictate how parents shop for their children.
The initiative was the third time that Democrats in the state Legislature have tried to pass this law, with similar bills failing in 2019 and 2020.
California is the first state in the country to enact a law of this kind but some large department stores have already moved to more gender-neutral displays.
In 2015, Target Corp. announced that its 1,915 stores across the United States would no longer use some gender-based signs.