California has once again found itself at the forefront of legislative action, with Governor Gavin Newsom signing a sprawling package of new laws on October 10, 2025. The measures, which touch on everything from slavery reparations and gun safety to artificial intelligence and consumer protections, represent one of the state’s most ambitious legislative efforts in recent years. The moves come amid mounting debates over civil rights, public safety, and the balance between regulation and personal freedom.
One of the headline-grabbing bills is Senate Bill 518, which creates the Bureau for Descendants of American Slavery within the California Department of Justice. This new agency is tasked with verifying eligibility, processing claims, and recommending forms of restitution for descendants of enslaved African Americans. In a state that has long grappled with its history of racial injustice, the law is seen by lawmakers as a vital step in addressing historical wrongs and laying the groundwork for future reparations policy. The law also opens a new path for Californians whose families lost property through racially motivated eminent domain, allowing them to seek compensation under the Government Claims Act. According to state officials, this dual approach aims to address both the legacy of slavery and more recent injustices tied to property dispossession.
But the legislative session wasn’t just about reparations. Gun safety, a perennial hot-button issue in California, saw a flurry of new regulations. Assembly Bill 1344, authored by Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin of Thousand Oaks, launches a pilot program in select counties. It allows district attorneys to petition for temporary emergency gun violence restraining orders, aiming to prevent potential tragedies before they occur. Assembly Bill 1078, from Assemblymember Marc Berman of Menlo Park, expands enforcement provisions related to firearm possession, while Assembly Bill 1127, authored by Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel of Encino, specifically targets so-called “converter pistols”—weapons that can be modified to bypass firearm classification laws.
Perhaps the most granular change comes via Senate Bill 704, introduced by Senator Jesse Arreguín of Berkeley. This new law, which takes effect July 1, 2027, requires all gun barrel sales in California to be conducted by licensed firearms dealers. The law mandates that dealers perform an eligibility check before selling a gun barrel, and a five-dollar fee is added to each sale to cover the cost. Buyers must provide a range of personal information, including their identification number, the make and model of the firearm, and their full address and date of birth. Dealers must record all this data on a form prescribed by the California Department of Justice. As reported by Breitbart News, this new layer of regulation is intended to address illegal weapon modifications, but critics argue it places a significant burden on law-abiding gun owners.
California’s approach to firearms has come under increased scrutiny at the national level. In late September 2025, U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi announced that the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division had filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. The suit alleges a pattern of infringing on Second Amendment rights by unreasonably delaying the issuance of concealed carry weapons (CCW) permits. A six-month federal investigation found that only two permits had been approved out of more than 8,000 applications, with some applicants waiting over two years just for an interview. “The Second Amendment protects the fundamental constitutional right of law-abiding citizens to bear arms,” Bondi said in a press release. “Los Angeles County may not like that right, but the Constitution does not allow them to infringe upon it. This Department of Justice will continue to fight for the Second Amendment.”
This lawsuit is being described as the first affirmative lawsuit in support of gun owners filed by the U.S. Department of Justice. Harmeet Kaur Dhillon, the new U.S. Assistant Attorney General and head of the Civil Rights Division, is spearheading the effort. “The Second Amendment is not a second-class right,” Dhillon declared. “This lawsuit seeks to stop Los Angeles County’s egregious pattern and practice of delaying law-abiding citizens from exercising their right to bear arms.” The DOJ’s Special Litigation Section, which began investigating the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department in March 2025, typically offers agencies a choice between a consent decree and a federal lawsuit to address civil rights abuses. In this case, Sheriff Robert G. Luna rejected the consent decree, resulting in the public lawsuit.
The implications could be far-reaching, with some advocates urging the DOJ to expand its investigations to other California law enforcement agencies that enforce what they see as unconstitutional gun laws. California’s gun restrictions are among the strictest in the nation, with laws banning a wide range of firearms, limiting magazine capacity to ten rounds, and restricting the sale and importation of many handguns. The Los Angeles Times and Breitbart News have both highlighted the tension between state and federal authorities over the scope of Second Amendment protections, with the DOJ’s intervention signaling a possible shift in how these rights are enforced.
Beyond guns and reparations, the legislative package signed by Governor Newsom includes other measures that could easily be overlooked but have tangible impacts on daily life. Assembly Bill 382, for instance, updates pedestrian safety rules by allowing cities to set lower speed limits in school zones and near crosswalks. Assembly Bill 439 requires local governments to include more detailed data in their coastal program reports, aiming to strengthen accountability in managing development and conservation along California’s iconic coastline. Senate Bill 602 revises rules for the veterinarian-client-patient relationship, allowing licensed veterinary technicians to provide certain services under indirect supervision—a response to veterinary workforce shortages. Senate Bill 586 updates off-highway vehicle regulations, formally including electric motorcycles within the state’s framework and clarifying registration standards for these increasingly popular vehicles.
The package also includes a host of bills covering topics like mobile telephony services, criminal threats, special education, insurance, alcohol permits, and more. Each law, while perhaps minor in isolation, reflects the state’s ongoing efforts to adapt its legal code to changing technologies, social realities, and public expectations.
With these sweeping changes, California continues to walk a fine line between innovation and regulation, civil rights and public safety. The state’s new laws are likely to spark ongoing debates—not just in Sacramento, but in courtrooms, city halls, and households across the state. Whether these measures will serve as a blueprint for other states or ignite further legal challenges remains to be seen, but for now, California is once again setting its own course.
