What is even more amazing is the source of the article. The Sacramento Bee is Californian...
My interpretation is that the EU is setting up for some very contentious times.
Locally, look at how similar legislation in California is trending.
Then look at how people are responding. A link in point is:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-01-06/americans-couldnt-wait-ditch-these-10-states-2016DO NOTE that we, here in Nevada, are receiving incoming residents AND that California has a roughly equal number of inbound and outbound. Guess where some of those outbound ex-Cal people are going? It's a short hop over the mountain.
If you're not in Nevada, you can still see the population trend as it effects your area of the US.
I've lived in both Oregon and Washington, and cannot recommend either, partly due to the years long (since the 1970's) influx of ex-Californians. Their politics have been changing "as the wind blows".
Keep your eyes open...