Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a new law aimed at cracking down on the underground market fueling the surge in copper wire theft that has left many communities, including Boyle Heights, in the dark.
AB 476, authored by State Assemblymember Mark González and signed on Monday, is set to take effect on Jan. 1, 2026.
What the law will do:
- Increase penalties to better reflect the high costs of damage and replacement of infrastructure
- Mandate junk dealers and recyclers to collect and maintain detailed records, including verification of sellers’ identities and lawful ownership
- Expand restrictions on certain types of scrap metal from being sold, such as metals from traffic signals, plaques or streetlights
Enforcement relies on public reports
While there are no current plans for public education on the new regulations, a district representative said enforcement will primarily depend on reports submitted by the public to identify violations in the junk metal market.
In Eastside neighborhoods like Boyle Heights, junk metal collection is part of an informal economy, where buyers collect scrap metal to sell to recycling groups or junkyards. It’s unclear how the legislation will affect those who rely on this work for income.
LA City Council approves local repair team
In a separate local effort, the LA City Council on Tuesday approved a motion by Councilmember Ysabel Jurado to establish a dedicated streetlight repair crew within Council District 14, which includes Boyle Heights. The crew would address widespread outages caused by copper wire theft and aging infrastructure — issues that have left major corridors like the 6th Street Bridge in the dark for nearly two years.
Boyle Heights among the first to get repairs
Under the motion, $1.07 million in discretionary funds will be directed to the Department of Public Works’ Bureau of Street Lighting to form the repair team, which will specialize in maintaining, repairing and upgrading streetlights across the district for the rest of the fiscal year.
The neighborhoods of downtown, Boyle Heights and El Sereno will be the first areas to get repairs due to the high number of streetlight outages, a CD 14 spokesperson said.
According to Jurado’s motion, Boyle Heights alone has reported nearly 2,000 service requests in the last year due to aging infrastructure, copper wire theft and delayed repairs.
Both the state and the local motion underscore the need to remedy the citywide issue. Residents across CD 14 have long fought for street light repairs and have repeatedly cited the issue as a top safety concern.