Bill Text

Bill Information


Bill PDF |Add To My Favorites |Track Bill | print page

AB-3027 Crime: transnational repression.(2023-2024)

SHARE THIS: share this bill in Facebook share this bill in Twitter
Date Published: 04/17/2024 09:00 PM
AB3027:v96#DOCUMENT

Amended  IN  Assembly  April 17, 2024
Amended  IN  Assembly  April 11, 2024
Amended  IN  Assembly  April 01, 2024

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 3027

Introduced by Assembly Member Bains

February 16, 2024

An act to add Section 8588.13 to the Government Code, relating to crime.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 3027, as amended, Bains. Crime: transnational repression.
Existing law provides that no person shall, whether or not acting under color of law, by force or threat of force, willfully injure, intimidate, interfere with, oppress, or threaten any other person in the free exercise or enjoyment of any right or privilege secured to them by the California Constitution or laws of this state or by the United States Constitution or laws of the United States because of the other person’s race, religion, national origin, disability, gender, or sexual orientation, or because they perceive that the other person has one or more of those characteristics.
This bill would state that it is the policy of the state to protect individuals and organizations against transnational repression and would define that term to mean the actions of a foreign government or agents of a foreign government involving the transgression of national borders in order to intimidate, silence, coerce, harass, or harm members of diaspora and exile communities or organizations that advocate for individuals in diaspora and exile communities in order to prevent their exercise of their human rights, as defined. The bill would specify that it is the policy of the state to pursue criminal prosecutions against those who engage in transnational repression and to provide support services to victims who are targeted by transnational repression, among other things.
Under existing law, the California Specialized Training Institute is overseen by the Office of Emergency Services and is required to assist the Governor in providing training to state agencies, cities, and counties in their planning and preparation for natural and man-made disasters. Existing law also establishes the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training to adopt and amend rules establishing and upholding minimum standards relating to training for peace officers.
This bill would require the Office of Emergency Services through the California Specialized Training Institute and in cooperation with the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training, on or before July 1, 2026, to develop a transnational repression recognition and response training that would include how to identify different tactics of transnational repression and best practices for appropriate local and state law enforcement prevention, reporting, and response tactics, among others.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of the following:
(a) Transnational repression against individuals and organizations that live outside their countries of origin, prominent or vocal antiregime figures, and persons who provide aid and support to dissidents and religious and ethnic minority communities is a human rights violation that seeks to stifle dissent and enhance control over exile, activist, emigrant, and diaspora communities.
(b) Transnational repression is any action taken by government officials, diplomatic personnel, and proxies through 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 coercion, such as harassment of, or threats of harm to, family and associates both in and outside the United States.
(c) Transnational repression is a threat to individuals, democratic institutions, the exercise of rights and freedoms, and national security and sovereignty.
(d) Governments, including, but not limited to, Russia, Iran, China, and India, increasingly rely on transnational repression as their consolidation of control at home pushes dissidents abroad.
(e) The spread of digital technologies provides new tools for censoring, surveilling, and targeting individuals deemed to be threats across international borders, especially dissidents pushed abroad who themselves rely on communications technology to amplify their messages, which can often lead to physical attacks and coercion by proxy, including individuals radicalized by state-sponsored propaganda or ideology that targets ethnic or religious minorities.
(f) Authoritarian actors routinely attempt to deter and silence the voices of dissident and exile communities at international fora, as documented by the United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights in the Secretary-General’s annual report on reprisals to the United Nations Human Rights Council.
(g) It is the policy of the State of California to do all of the following:
(1) Protect persons and organization in the state from transnational repression.
(2) Pursue criminal prosecutions, as appropriate, against those who engage in transnational repression.
(3) Provide support services for victims and communities that may credibly be targeted in transnational repression.
(4) Meaningfully hold accountable foreign governments engaged in transnational repression and limit their ability to influence state policy or public opinion.
(5) Coordinate actions to enhance and complement any federal laws or regulations related to transnational repression.

SEC. 2.

 Section 8588.13 is added to the Government Code, to read:

8588.13.
 (a) On or before July 1, 2026, the Office of Emergency Services, through its California Specialized Training Institute and in consultation with the Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training, shall develop a transnational repression recognition and response training. The training shall be regularly updated to address emerging threats and specific information on tactics used by specific foreign governments.
(b) The training shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:
(1) How to identify different tactics of transnational repression in physical and nonphysical forms.
(2) Those governments that are known to employ transnational repression, including not only those who use it most frequently, but also those who use it most egregiously, including, but not limited to, tools of digital surveillance and other cybertools frequently used to carry out transnational repression activities.
(3) Best practices for appropriate local and state law enforcement prevention, reporting, and response tactics.
(4) Information about communities targeted by transnational repression and misinformation that may be perpetuated by foreign governments, including, but not limited to, improper labeling of dissidents as terrorist threats and notice abuses effectuated through international law enforcement cooperatives, such as The International Criminal Police Organization -- Interpol.
(5) Any guidance, best practices, definitions, or identified trends or threats issued by federal authorities on national security and public safety.
(c) As used in this section, the following terms have the following meanings:
(1) “Human rights” means the free exercise or enjoyment of any right or privilege secured to an individual by the California Constitution or laws of this state or by the United States Constitution or laws of the United States, in whole or in part.
(2) “Transnational repression” means any action by a foreign government or an agent of a foreign government involving the transgression of national borders through physical, digital, or analog means in order to intimidate, silence, coerce, harass, or harm members of diaspora and exile communities, or organizations that advocate for individuals in diaspora and exile communities, in order to prevent the exercise of their human rights. “Transnational repression” includes gathering information about individuals in diaspora and exile communities, or organizations that advocate for individuals in diaspora and exile communities, on behalf of a foreign government with the intent to use that information to harass, intimidate, or harm an individual in order to prevent their exercise of their human rights.