California's 'Stop Nick Shirley' bill advances despite 1A objections from independent journalists

The California measure dubbed the “Stop Nick Shirley Act” has been referred to the Senate Appropriations Committee’s suspense file after unanimous approval from the committee, a procedural step typically reserved for legislation with significant fiscal impacts. The bill is expected to be considered later in the legislative session before advancing further.

Assembly Bill 2624, authored by Democratic Assemblymember Mia Bonta, the wife of California Attorney General Rob Bonta, previously passed the California State Assembly in May. On August 3, the Senate Appropriations Committee voted 7-0 to place the measure on the suspense file. The suspense hearing is scheduled for August 13, after which the bill could become eligible for a vote on the full Senate floor later in August.

The bill would expand California’s Safe At Home address confidentiality program to include people who work or volunteer in immigration support services. It would prohibit publicly posting or distributing on the internet personal information of a protected person with intent to incite harm. The bill defines personal information to broadly include items such as a person’s name, address, and telephone number. It also creates a private right of action allowing civil lawsuits in certain circumstances.

The legislation comes after right-wing independent journalist Nick Shirley went viral for videos in which he records outside non-profits suspected of committing fraud. The bill includes criminal penalties for certain violations, including jail time.

Critics have argued that the bill raises massive First Amendment concerns and could be used to unfairly target journalists. During committee testimony, independent journalist Max Bonilla urged lawmakers to reject the proposal, arguing that it could expose journalists to criminal prosecution and increase costs for California’s justice system.

“While the bill claims to expand a program that protects victims of domestic violence and protection to immigrant service providers, there would be significant enforcement costs for attempting to jail independent journalists,” Bonilla said. “While the state does not directly allocate a fixed appropriation for local prosecution, this enforcement will add a marginal case processing cost to local courts and law enforcement. And moreover, the average cost of incarcerating individuals in the state of California is anywhere between $127,800 to $132,860.”