Friday, April 24, 2026

Why New Ruling on CA’s ICE Limits Spells Trouble for Resistance Bills

By Lynn La, CALMATTERS

A federal immigration agent outside the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles on Aug. 14, 2025. Photo by Carlin Stiehl, Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

A federal appeals court struck down one of California’s signature laws challenging the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, and the ruling does not bode well for future measures.

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday upheld an injunction prohibiting the state from requiring federal immigration agents to readily identify themselves, a law that Democrats passed last year to rein in the masked federal officers who carried out detentions around California.

The law was destined to face critical scrutiny from federal judges, and President Donald Trump’s administration sued to block it almost immediately after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed it. An 1890 Supreme Court case states that a state cannot prosecute federal law enforcement officers acting in the course of their duties, reports CalMatters’ Nigel Duara.

And the law ran headlong into the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution, which holds that states may not regulate the operations of the federal government.

• Mark J. Bennett, 9th Circuit Judge, in the ruling: “If a state law directly regulates the conduct of the United States, it is void irrespective of whether the regulated activities are essential to federal functions or operations, and irrespective of the degree to which the state law interferes with federal functions or operations.”

Democrats this year are advancing more bills targeting the administration’s immigration agents, including proposals that would bar them from employment in California law enforcement agencies and a measure that would make it easier for people to sue federal agents over civil rights violations.

But the court’s ruling suggests trouble ahead for these proposals, since they also attempt to supersede state law over federal policy. It was a potentiality that some legislators pointed out during a committee hearing Tuesday as they weighed in on a bill that would disqualify immigration agents from being hired as California police.

• Sen. Dave Cortese, San Jose Democrat: “I’m not sure there aren’t some constitutional issues. … I want to acknowledge that downstream I wouldn’t be surprised if there are some issues that are presented legally at some point.”

CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.