California state lawmakers have passed a bill that would establish new training for law enforcement on recognizing and responding to transnational repression within the state.

Senate Bill 509 would require the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services to develop training guidelines by Jan. 1, 2027, to “provide law enforcement with unbiased information on transnational repression, including trends and guidance from federal authorities.”

The bill overwhelmingly cleared the state Assembly on Sept. 10 and was unanimously approved by the state Senate on Sept. 11.

Co-authored by state Sen. Anna Caballero and Assemblymembers Jasmeet Bains and Esmeralda Soria, all Democrats, SB 509 describes transnational repression as “a human rights violation that seeks to stifle dissent and enhance control over exile, activist, emigrant, and diaspora communities.”

Transnational repression may include acts such as “extrajudicial killings, physical assaults, unexplained disappearances, physical or online surveillance or stalking, intimidation, digital threats such as cyberattacks, targeted surveillance and spyware, and online harassment” and can also include harassment of or threats of harm to immigrants’ families in the United States or abroad, the bill states.

Currently, there are no federal laws defining transnational repression, but three bills—H.R. 2116, H.R. 2158, and H.R. 2139—are pending in Congress that are aimed at defining the term, along with increasing public awareness, improving monitoring, and developing training materials, according to a July 14 bill analysis from the California Assembly Committee on Emergency Management.

SB 509 would be first-of-its-kind legislation in California addressing human rights issues related to foreign threats.

“Transnational repression ... is designed to intimidate, silence, coerce, harass, or harm the chosen targets of foreign governments,” Bains said during the Sept. 10 Assembly floor hearing. “SB 509 represents a very historic first step to help law enforcement recognize transnational repression when it occurs and be provided the training they need to protect the freedoms of all Californians.”

However, the bill notes that rights to free speech and other First Amendment rights will not be affected.

“SB 509 will ensure that California remains a safe haven for free speech and dissent,” Soria said. “No Californian should have to live in fear that exercising their First Amendment right will result in harassment and threats to their safety.”

Soria said that in her district, members of the Sikh community in Fresno County have faced “threats from hostile foreign governments” but that law enforcement currently does not have the tools to address these incidents.

While SB 509 does not identify any specific foreign governments in its text, the bill analysis cited examples of transnational repression from regimes such as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Two foreign nationals in the United States, one from China and the other from the UK, were charged in May with “allegedly plotting to harass and interfere with an individual who criticized the actions of the People’s Republic of China,” according to the analysis.

In April, a former New York City police sergeant was given an 18-month prison sentence and a fine of $11,000 for interstate stalking and “acting as an illegal agent of the government of the People’s Republic of China.”

The CCP has escalated its overseas threats in recent years, including against New York state-based classical Chinese dance company Shen Yun Performing Arts. In the past year and a half, multiple theaters across the country reported false bomb threats before a Shen Yun performance.

Shen Yun stated that it believes that the threats were part of a CCP-directed campaign, as the organization has previously experienced other disruption efforts linked to the Chinese regime.

Lawmakers also highlighted in their bill analysis a March case in which an Iranian citizen and a Georgian citizen were convicted of murder-for-hire, as well as an October 2024 case in which charges were filed against an Indian citizen for allegedly directing an “attempted assassination” of another Indian national in the United States for criticizing the Indian government.

During the legislative process, SB 509 received pushback primarily from various Hindu organizations.

“We are concerned that this bill can cause immense harm to immigrant communities of minority faiths in the State, such as Hindu Americans,” the Coalition of Hindus of North America wrote to lawmakers. “With SB 509, Hindu Americans asking for justice against the actions of self-declared ‘dissidents’ can be dismissed as ‘proxies’ of the Indian government.”

The coalition also expressed concern over the lack of detail on who will work with the state to design and implement the new training.

The California Senate Committee on Appropriations estimates that approximately $905,000 from the state’s General Fund would be needed to implement the bill. The fiscal impact includes the initial and ongoing costs of researching, developing, and implementing the new training.

SB 509 now awaits California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s review for his signature or veto.