California Governor Gavin Newsom on Saturday approved a package of laws designed to limit federal immigration operations inside the state. The legislation, passed in the midst of President Trump’s aggressive immigration crackdown, specifically targets how agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) can operate at schools, hospitals, and other public institutions.
The new measures will prevent schools and daycares from admitting ICE agents without the proper paperwork, such as a warrant. In addition, school officials will be required to notify families whenever federal immigration officers show up on campus. Hospitals and health care facilities will also be shielded under the law, which prohibits the sharing of sensitive patient information and blocks immigration agents from entering emergency rooms without judicial approval.
Perhaps the most far-reaching piece of the package is California’s first-of-its-kind ban on masked law enforcement. Starting in January 2026, officers at the local, state, and even federal level will no longer be allowed to cover their faces while operating in California, except when undercover or wearing protective gear. The law also mandates that officers clearly identify themselves with a badge number or name. Newsom said the change is about transparency and preventing what he called “secret police tactics.”
Speaking at a high school in Los Angeles, Newsom described the actions of immigration officers in recent months—raids at job sites, courtrooms, and even political rallies—as reminiscent of a “dystopian sci-fi movie.” He criticized the practice of using unmarked cars and masked agents to detain people, warning that it erodes due process and public trust. “If you’re here to enforce the law, then show us who you are,” he said.
Federal officials, however, sharply condemned the legislation. Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security Tricia McLaughlin issued a statement calling the new laws “despicable” and accused Newsom of endangering officers who, she said, already face serious threats from violent gangs such as MS-13. DHS also argued that masks are necessary to protect agents and their families from retaliation. “Our men and women risk their lives daily to protect the public from dangerous criminals,” McLaughlin wrote, “and these laws only make their jobs harder.
Newsom countered that DHS has offered no data to support claims of rising assaults against immigration agents and argued that if officer safety is a legitimate concern, Congress should pass a formal solution rather than relying on secrecy. He noted that the legislation had backing from California’s Latino and Asian American Pacific Islander caucuses, as well as from former ICE chief of staff Jason Houser.
California’s decision comes at a time of mounting legal fights with the federal government. Earlier this year, the Trump administration attempted to seize control of the state’s National Guard and even deployed Marines to quell anti-deportation demonstrations, a move a judge later ruled illegal. The Supreme Court has also recently given immigration agents broader leeway to conduct arrests based on ethnicity, language, or job site.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass praised the state’s move as an act of “legislative resistance” against what she described as efforts to normalize military intervention and the targeting of Latino communities. “California has to protect itself,” Bass said. “We should not have to fight our own government just to defend our residents.”
Do you also want me to create a short, news-style version of this (like 3–4 tight paragraphs) for quicker reading?
