California Governor Gavin Newsom must decide whether to sign a sweeping package of State immigration bills that would significantly expand local oversight of ICE’s activities and potentially clash with the Trump administration. The laws would increase his control of federal detention facilities, create new legal avenues for claims against government officers and impose new restrictions on the infrastructure supporting federal immigration enforcement in California. The decisions could also carry political implications beyond Sacramento.
Newsom, who is widely viewed as a potential contender in the 2028 presidential election, could face scrutiny from both sides of the aisle over how aggressively California should confront the Trump administration on immigration. The Legislature approved the measures during the final weeks of its 2025-26 session. Collectively, they would expand oversight of immigration detention facilities, strengthen protections for civil immigration detainees, increase transparency around detention operations, impose new requirements on detention-related land-use decisions and create additional legal and financial constraints on parts of California's detention infrastructure.
Newsom signed dozens of other bills on September 14, according to the governor's office, but none of the major immigration-enforcement measures were included. The package represents one of the state's most significant efforts this year to increase oversight of immigration detention and place new constraints around how federal immigration enforcement operates within California. Newsweek has contacted Newsom's office and the Department of Homeland Security for comment.
Among the major measures awaiting Newsom’s decision is CA SB 957, the Protecting Vulnerable Immigrant Detainees Act, which would require the California Attorney General to develop a health and safety oversight plan for people held in private civil immigration detention facilities. SB 423, the Detention Facility Transparency Act, would require certain records involving 911 calls from privately operated immigration detention facilities to be made available, increasing public visibility into emergencies and other incidents at the facilities. SB 942, the Civil Detainees’ Bill of Rights, would establish protections for people held in civil immigration detention, including standards covering medical and mental health care, sanitation, food, privacy, and treatment while in custody.
SB 747, the No Kings Act, would create a pathway in state court for people to bring certain claims against federal, state, or local officers accused of violating constitutional rights, potentially expanding legal avenues for people who allege misconduct by immigration officers. The Get the Feds Out Act would restrict certain state and local government employment for people who participated in specified federal immigration-enforcement activities during a defined period. AB 1896 could affect eligibility for public-sector positions, including some law-enforcement jobs.
Several other measures target the business and local-government infrastructure surrounding immigration detention. AB 1633, the Private Detention Facility Tax Act, would impose a tax on income earned by private immigration detention facility operators in California. AB 1801, the Detention Facility Permitting Act, would establish additional requirements for local governments considering land-use decisions involving private detention facilities, including public notice and hearing requirements.
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