California Democrats and Gov. Gavin Newsom have agreed to set aside $50 million to boost the state’s litigation fund and support local nonprofits and immigration centers as they prepare for legal attacks and mass deportations under President-elect Donald Trump.
“This funding agreement cements California’s readiness to serve as a bulwark against Trump’s extremist agenda,” said Senate Budget Chair Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, in a statement to Politico.
“Senate Democrats are particularly proud to provide funding for providers of legal aid services, which know our communities’ needs best and are best positioned to defend at scale the millions of individuals and families that will be impacted by the incoming Administration’s extreme agenda.”
After establishing his new Trump litigation fund on November 7, Newsom last month asked local lawmakers to increase the state’s legal defenses by $25 million. He then issued a proclamation convening a special session of the California Legislature “to safeguard California values and fundamental rights in the face of an incoming Trump administration,” according to his office, in conjunction with a Democratic package.
According to Politico, the $50 million agreement is expected to be voted on by the Senate sometime this week.
“At a time when California should be laser focused on responding to the devastating wildfires in LA, Democrat lawmakers’ priority is creating a $50 million slush fund to hire government lawyers for hypothetical fights against the federal government and to defend criminal illegal immigrants from being returned to their home countries,” Assembly Minority Leader James Gallagher, R-Yuba City, said an email Monday.
Politico reports that the new funding agreement includes $25 million for Newsom and the state Department of Justice to fight the Trump administration. The remaining $25 million will reportedly go to legal nonprofits and immigration support centers to protect immigrants from deportation, detention, and wage theft.
“The Governor is working with lawmakers to establish a litigation fund to bolster the state’s legal resources in response to the incoming federal administration’s signaled policy proposals that would harm the state,” Newsom’s office announced in a press release on Dec. 2. “Working with the Legislature, the Governor is proposing a new litigation fund of up to $25 million for the California Department of Justice and state agencies to defend California from unconstitutional federal overreach, challenge illegal federal actions in court, and take administrative actions to reduce potential harm.”
Last month, Wiener’s office introduced a budget bill that included $25 million for the state’s Justice Department and an additional $10 million to help county and city attorneys defend against policy challenges.
“We’re in the calm before the storm, and we know the incoming federal administration will bring hurricane-force winds,” said Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire in a statement. “It’s time to get prepared and batten down the hatches.”
Newsom has expressed concern that Trump will target the state’s positions on abortion, environmental protections, and federal disaster response funding, among other issues, following repeated threats from the former and future presidents to do so.
Between 2017 and 2021, California allegedly filed over 120 lawsuits challenging Trump’s authority on issues such as health care, gun control, civil rights, and immigration.
“The Governor’s proposed legal investment has the potential to yield significant returns for California families and protect billions of dollars in state funding,” according to Newsom’s office in December. He claimed that California’s freedoms were “under attack” and promised not to “sit idle.”
“We are prepared, and we will do everything necessary to ensure Californians have the support and resources they need to thrive,” the governor said in a statement.
Law&Crime attempted to contact the governor’s office for comment on the $50 million deal, but were unsuccessful.
