New State Laws Aim to Keep ICE Out of California Schools

Governor Gavin Newsom signed two bills into law last weekend aimed at shielding immigrant families from federal enforcement operations on school campuses — a direct response to what state officials have called “reckless” behavior by ICE and other federal agents in recent months.

Assembly Bill 49 prohibits school employees from allowing immigration authorities to enter nonpublic areas of a school without a judicial warrant. Senate Bill 98 requires schools and higher education institutions to notify students, staff, and families when immigration enforcement is present on campus. Both laws were co-sponsored by State Superintendent Tony Thurmond and take effect immediately, with updated local enforcement policies due to the California Department of Education by March 1, 2026.

Thurmond said the laws are necessary after reports that federal agents had urinated on school playgrounds, detonated flashbangs near campus, and attempted to contact children without a warrant. “I am proud to have supported the passage of AB 49 and SB 98 to keep ICE … away from our school campuses,” he said in a statement. “The reckless actions of the Trump administration have sown fear and trauma throughout California school communities.”

At Santa Barbara Unified School District, Superintendent Hilda Maldonado welcomed the legislation but acknowledged the frightening national shift it represents. 

“This bill signals an incredible amount of care and concern for the sanctity of families and children,” she said. “We are grateful to have strong leadership that puts the humanity of people at the center of decisions — which is how we’ve always operated at Santa Barbara Unified.”

As for what this bill is supposed to protect our children from, Maldonado says that is far darker. 

“I can’t think of a worse thing than being taken away by somebody who has not identified themselves, who’s wearing a face mask, and who I cannot verify is a real law enforcement person,” she said, referencing a related bill Newsom signed that bans unidentifiable officers from wearing face coverings in most situations.

Maldonado recalled an incident involving a Santa Barbara High student who was approached by a stranger in a car and told to get in. “Thankfully, she ran back to school and got help,” she said. “But I can’t even imagine being a teenager in a society where someone can just come up to you without identifying themselves and take you away.”

There was a response via X by the Department of Homeland Security stating that they will not comply with the mask ban. As for the string of other bills, there is only hope that federal agents comply. If ICE does not, the digital toolkit released by the California Department of Education states, “If you are approached by an immigration officer, remain calm and tell a school administrator.” 

Maldonado noted that while laws can hopefully create sanctuary zones inside schools, they don’t follow students once they leave campus. “We worry,” Maldonado said. “And we stay committed to protecting immigrant families, LGBTQ+ families, and children who are being targeted in the most inhumane and cruel ways.”

Alongside the concern over the bills’ effectiveness, there is also the acknowledgement that these bills are needed at all, which signals to a shifting America. 

As a young educator, Maldonado visited the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles and was struck by an exhibit about pre-Holocaust Germany — ordinary citizens dismissing early warning signs.

“That stuck with me,” she said. “We never treat anybody inhumanely. Because when we do … that’s when horrible things start to happen.”