Lawsuit seeks to block new laws that require visible identification for law enforcement
The Trump Administration filed a lawsuit against the State of California over two new laws—Senate Bill 627, the No Secret Police Act, and Senate Bill 805, the No Vigilantes Act. Both bills were signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom on September 20, 2025, and go into effect on January 1, 2026.
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SB 627, which goes into effect on January 1, 2026, requires most law enforcement to show visible ID, wear name or badge numbers, and prohibit face coverings except in narrowly defined situations. SB 805 requires ICE, Border Patrol, and Homeland Security agents operating in California to clearly display their agency name and an officer’s name or badge number while conducting operations in the state.
The new laws “came in the wake of the Trump administration’s immigration raids in California, when masked, unidentified federal officers jumped out of vehicles this summer as part of the president’s mass deportation program,” according to a Los Angeles Times report. Both measures were introduced as a response to the aggressive immigration raids that are often conducted by masked agents in plain clothes and unmarked cars, the report stated.
The U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit, filed Monday in federal court in Los Angeles, contends that the laws violate the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause by attempting to regulate the activities of federal officials.
The lawsuit, which names the state of California, Governor Gavin Newsom, and State Attorney General Rob Bonta as defendants, contends that only the federal government has the authority to control its agents and any requirements about their uniforms. It further argues that federal agents need to conceal their identities at times due to the nature of their work.
The Los Angeles Times report quotes U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi as saying, “California’s anti-law enforcement policies discriminate against the federal government and are designed to create risk for our agents.” The lawsuit states that federal agents will not comply with either law.
Yet the FBI issued a special bulletin early in November, warning that criminals are impersonating ICE agents to commit violent crimes and urging actual ICE agents to clearly identify themselves, according to an ABC News report.
State Senator Jesse Arreguín, a co-author of SB 627, issued this statement in response to the Department of Justice lawsuit against California’s new laws: “It’s deeply concerning that the Trump Administration is suing California for requiring precisely what the FBI is urging.” Arreguín added that the new laws protect both the public and legitimate officers.
“When armed operatives walk into our communities obscuring their face, badge, and name, the public’s trust is broken—and that poses a risk to everyone,” he said. “That risk is significantly heightened when there are known impersonators exploiting ICE’s propensity to withhold their identity.”
The lawsuit asserts that SB 627 and SB 805, “are invalid under the Supremacy Clause and their application to the Federal Government should be preliminarily and permanently enjoined.”
SB 627 co-author Scott Wiener responded to the lawsuit with this comment: “Despite what these would-be authoritarians claim, no one is above the law. We’ll see you in court.”
Newsom previously said it was unacceptable for “secret police” to grab people off the streets, and that the new laws were needed to help the public differentiate between imposters and legitimate federal law officers. However, according to the Times report, he acknowledged that the legislation could use more clarifications about safety gear and other exemptions, and directed lawmakers to work on a follow-up bill next year.