By Angelikka Factor and Jenny Zhao
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – In July 2025, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 137 into law, giving California new powers to prevent federal immigration authorities from using closed state prison sites for immigration detention, according to a press release by Californians United for a Responsible Budget (CURB).
The new bill comes amid continued advocacy by groups such as CURB, who have urged state leaders to limit the expansion of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and reduce spending on closed prison facilities.
According to CURB, AB 137 provides California with the right to sell, lease, or otherwise dispose of prison properties once the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation declares them surplus to state needs. The law also prohibits these sites from being repurposed for any future carceral or federal detention use.
The legislation was drafted in response to growing concerns that closed state prisons could become targets for ICE expansion, such as Chuckawalla Valley State Prison, which closed in 2024.
“This bill reflects the kind of principled, proactive governance Californians expect,” CURB stated in a press release following the bill’s passage. “Governor Newsom’s decision to sign it sends a clear message that our state will not be complicit in federal detention expansion.”
CURB emphasized that AB 137 is not only a legislative milestone but a tool of practicality the governor must use. The law will take immediate effect, starting with Chuckawalla Valley State Prison, which is currently being considered for use by ICE.
In its July 1 press release, CURB urged state leaders to act quickly, stating, “Immediately placing former prison sites like CVSP into the AB 137 process would reduce costs while locking out ICE.”
CURB also revealed that more than $300 million was spent maintaining unused prisons, even as California faces a $28 billion structural budget deficit.
Beyond CVSP, CURB warned that ICE could target other vulnerable sites, including federally owned or previously leased facilities such as California City Correctional Facility and FCI Dublin.
CURB called on state leaders to remain vigilant and committed to ensuring that no facility in California is reopened for detention.
“It will take sustained leadership to ensure that no facility in this state, under any jurisdiction, is reopened to cage our neighbors and loved ones,” the group stated.
