SACRAMENTO, CA- California Attorney General’s Office is expected to receive $25 million in funds in anticipation of legal fights between the state and the incoming Trump administration, but the state attorneys union has questions.
The Sacramento Bee reported the attorney general’s hiring of a private law firm for the fight against big oil companies saw the union raise fears the state might continue to hire private counsel to handle high-profile cases against Trump.
The union firmly stated it would challenge all attempts by the Justice Department to contract with private firms in the Trump cases.
The Bee wrote that CA Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office has refused to disclose legal strategies regarding how the $25 million was to be spent.
To accommodate a surge in cases between California and the federal government during Trump’s previous term (2017-2021), the state increased the attorney general’s office’s budget, an annual $6.5 million budget increase.
The Sacramento Bee reports the Justice Department continued receiving this same amount for several years until 2023, when the annual increase was cut nearly in half.
The office of the attorney general asserted the funding was well spent in the state’s battles against the Trump administration.
The Sacramento Bee reports the AG office’s challenge to the Trump administration’s attempt to withhold public safety funding over California sanctuary cities, an action that resulted in close to $60 million in reimbursements for federal grants.
The California attorney general anticipates Trump’s upcoming term to be just as contentious for the state as the first term of the Trump administration, added the Bee, noting Stephen Miller- leader of the conservative nonprofit America First Legal- will serve as Trump’s deputy chief of staff for policy and homeland security officer.
The Sacramento Bee reports Miller sent letters to California officials (including Attorney General Bonta), warning them of a possibility of being held “criminally liable” for interfering with federal immigration enforcement.
The promise of the Trump administration for the mass deportation of undocumented immigrants has set the stage for a legal battle between progressive leaders in California and the Republican federal administration.
Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel of Encino has proposed the allocation of $25 million to the Justice Department in preparation for legal action, writes the Bee, adding the money is to go to defend California from and filing cases against the actions of the federal government.
The bill does not necessarily prohibit the Justice Department from using the funds to appoint private firms to work on the state’s behalf.
California Governor Gavin Newsom’s office has yet to respond to how the Justice Department might use the funds proposed.
According to The Sacramento Bee, the attorney general’s office has declared it is ready to take action to hold President-elect Trump accountable if he breaks the law.
Though there is no technical deadline to allocate the funding, lawmakers are facing pressure to pass the bill before Trump’s inauguration Jan. 20.
