Bill would protect immigrant services workers' information amid accusations of silencing journalists

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(The Center Square) – A new bill introduced in the California Legislature aims to protect the private information of immigration nonprofit employees after concerns that those workers are getting threats.

However, opponents say that the legislation exempts immigration records from public records law and would apply to any leftist organization that provided services to immigrants, whether here legally or not.

Assembly Bill 2624, authored by Assemblymember Mia Bonta, D-Oakland, would exempt records that include an employee’s name, address, employment history and other identifiable information from public records law to avoid those employees being doxxed or harassed, according to a legislative analysis.

Bonta was not available for an interview about the bill on Tuesday before press time.

The name of Nick Shirley, the influential right-wing social media figure who posted videos in recent months about alleged daycare fraud in Minnesota, was invoked by Assemblymember Carl DeMaio, R-San Diego, in his criticism of the bill.

“This bill is completely unconstitutional,” DeMaio told The Center Square on Tuesday morning. “It is clearly targeting citizen journalists who are uncovering the Democrat’s epic levels of fraud in these welfare programs, in these contracts and grants to left-wing NGOs. The Democrats clearly do not want people going around videotaping and uncovering what is happening with taxpayer funds.”

There is no provision in the bill that would make a distinction between independent citizen journalists, which DeMaio characterized Shirley as, and full-time journalists who work for established news media.

“There’s no differentiation,” DeMaio told The Center Square. “It says any individual who does this, any corporation, any business who posts a video, full stop. There’s no ‘Well, there’s an exemption for journalists.’”

In a recent bill hearing, DeMaio asked Bonta about the bill affording more privacy protections to certain organizations than even law enforcement agencies get. He also said that the law would keep journalists from investigating issues like hospice fraud, similar to what CBS News recently reported. Bonta said her bill would allow those who work in immigration services to be protected under the law.

“In your scenario, Assemblyman DeMaio, the folks who were investigating that, these were reporters, journalists,” Bonta said during the hearing. “They were not subjecting any particular organization to violence or threats of violence. That is the nature of this bill.”

She also said DeMaio was mischaracterizing her bill and that her legislation had nothing to do with law enforcement.

Applicants who apply for protections authorized under AB 2624 would have to prove that they were being threatened or harassed, Bonta added.

Shirley, the YouTube influencer, did not respond to The Center Square on Tuesday.

Assemblymember David Tangipa, R-Fresno, who posted on Facebook on Monday opposing the bill, did not respond to The Center Square on Tuesday. Several nonprofit immigrant services organizations did not respond to The Center Square. The American Civil Liberties Union, similarly, did not respond to The Center Square on Tuesday.

First Amendment Coalition, a nonprofit that advocates for a free press, declined to comment.