California’s "monumental problem" with rampant fraud is about to get significantly worse, according to Republican state Assemblyman Carl DeMaio, after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill that he warns will crack down on people investigating scammers.
Officially titled "Privacy for immigration support services providers," the new law creates privacy protections for immigration support service providers, employees and volunteers, including shielding their addresses and imposing penalties on those who publish their images on social media. DeMaio told Fox News Digital the bill amounts to criminalizing investigative journalism and works to "silence citizen journalists and shield taxpayer-funded organizations from public scrutiny."
"What does the Stop Nick Shirley Act do? It basically makes it illegal for a citizen journalist to document fraud of taxpayer money and post that on the internet in the form of an internet video," he said.
Newsom signed the bill into law last week, and it is set to take effect Oct. 1. DeMaio told Fox News Digital that he and a "coalition of civil liberty protectors" are prepared to file a lawsuit challenging the law.
DEMS RIPPED FOR 'STOP NICK SHIRLEY ACT' THAT COULD 'SHIELD' FRAUD AND ABUSE IN CALIFORNIA
(Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)
"We have a plaintiff and are putting together the legal briefs," he said, adding, "It is a matter of time before we're going to get before a judge to stop this act."
"It is our hope," he continued, "that the U.S....
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