Governor Gavin Newsom has a chance to make sure the people hired to protect California neighborhoods are people those neighborhoods can trust. All he has to do is sign Assembly Bill 1896.

Known as the Get the Feds Out (GTFO) Act, AB 1896 sets new rules for former federal immigration officers who want public jobs in California, including jobs in police and sheriff's departments. It covers people who personally carried out immigration enforcement, whether as sworn federal officers or as individual contractors. Applicants for police training must reveal that history on their applications, under penalty of perjury. Hiring agencies would then decide whether each applicant is suitable, and that review could weigh civil complaints, news coverage and verified social media posts.

On September 29, Governor Newsom signed more than 20 bills to protect immigrants in California. AB 1896 was not one of them, and he has not yet said what he will do with it.

Lawmakers backing the bill argue that when officers go straight from federal immigration work into jobs serving California communities, public trust is at risk. That trust matters. When families are afraid of local police, they may be less likely to report a crime or come forward as a witness, and that leaves whole neighborhoods less safe.

AB 1896 would not take effect until January 1, 2028, giving departments time to prepare. It asks for honesty and a fair review before someone is handed a badge in a California community.

Sign the petition to urge Governor Newsom to sign AB 1896 while the decision is still on his desk.