Newsom Vetoes Eminent Domain Reparations Bill

California Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill Sept. 25 that would have created a process for Californians to apply for compensation or the return of property that was taken from a former owner or their family member through actions that were racially motivated.

Senate Bill 1050—introduced by Sen. Steven Bradford—would have allowed dispossessed owners, or their direct descendants, to apply for consideration by the state to have their land returned or to be fairly compensated through payment or other property if the land is no longer controlled by the agency that seized it.

The governor highlighted the lack of a state agency to follow through on the bill’s mandates.

“I thank the author for his commitment to redressing past racial injustices,” Newsom said in his veto letter. “However, this bill tasks a nonexistent state agency to carry out its various provisions and requirements, making it impossible to implement.”

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