THE sign of GKN Aerospace where a tank overheated in Garden Grove, Calif., Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)

In response to the Garden Grove chemical incident that forced the evacuation of 50,000 people over the Memorial Day weekend, Gov. Gavin Newsom this week signed a law tightening building rules for locations that store chemicals which are potentially explosive.

However, the new law does not cover the chemical tank at GKN Aerospace on Western Avenue in West Garden Grove. Going forward, the new law bans building such facilities near homes, and schools and requires backup cooling systems.

Additionally, it eliminates an exemption from environmental review previously in place for factories that store methyl methacrylate, the potentially explosive chemical that prompted the GKN crisis.

The law’s restrictions on locations is not retroactive as it applies only to new facilities.