It just got easier to sue an ICE officer under raft of immigration bills signed by Newsom

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed 21 bills into law on Tuesday that are a direct response to the Trump administration’s mass deportation crackdown, including legislation that will add a 25% tax on private detention centers, ban law enforcement’s use of shock gloves and masks, and make it easier for Californians to sue immigration agents. 

“Trump has put his political interests above the health, safety and livelihood of American families,” Newsom said in a statement. “California is taking action to strengthen transparency, accountability, and oversight around immigration enforcement in our state. This is about stepping up where the federal government has failed our communities.” 

The bills largely govern the conduct of Immigration and Customs and Enforcement officers, conditions in the state’s detention centers and ways the state can use financial levers to make it harder for ICE to operate or expand. 

“We will continue protecting our people, upholding the rule of law, and making clear that if the federal government operates in California, we will hold them accountable,” Newsom said. 

Sen. Scott Wiener’s “No Kings Act,” Senate Bill 747, creates a clearer legal pathway to sue any federal agent that violates a Californian’s civil rights. The bill took effect immediately upon its signing, allowing people in the last year who have alleged mistreatment at the hands of immigration agents to file lawsuits against the officers. 

“ICE and Border Patrol have terrorized California communities with impunity. That ends today,” Wiener said in a statement. “When federal agents act lawlessly, they should be held accountable the same as any other lawbreaker. But for too long, a loophole in the law has shielded them from accountability. The No Kings Act provides long overdue accountability to end the impunity powering ICE and Border Patrol’s terror campaign.”

New laws also added more layers of accountability for the conduct and conditions inside California’s ICE detention centers. SB423 requires the facilities to disclose 911 calls and emergency records, and SB957 directs the attorney general to create an oversight plan for privately operated detention centers. A “detainees’ bill of rights” — SB942 — establishes standards for conditions, including medical care, privacy, water and sanitation. 

The shock-glove law will ban use of the equipment, which can send 380 volts through someone on direct skin contact. ICE awarded a $16.7 million contract for 6,000 pairs of the gloves in late August. Other bills restrict the use of flash-bang grenades during immigration sweeps. ICE officers who committed misconduct will also be prohibited from becoming California officers or public employees under Assembly Bill 1896. 

The sweeping package of bills comes as ICE arrests have continued to rise across California, according to an August Chronicle analysis. At least 2,440 people have been arrested in San Francisco since President Donald Trump’s second term began, according to the analysis —  the fourth-highest number of arrests for any California city from Jan. 20, 2025, through July 31, 2026.