Governor Newsom signs bills to crack down on corruption, including meme coins by public officials
SACRAMENTO:- As Donald Trump enriches himself at the American people’s expense, Governor Gavin Newsom today signed legislation to combat corruption by public officials, protect consumers, and hold crypto fraudsters accountable.
Governor Gavin Newsom said, “While the scam that is Donald Trump continues to hurt American families, California is fighting to make our economy work for people, not the powerful. No official should profit off their office — and we’re putting stronger protections in place to ensure it doesn’t happen in our state.”
Preventing any California public officials from issuing meme coins, along with preventing companies from listing any meme coin that uses the likeness or image of a public official. A meme coin is a type of cryptocurrency built around an internet joke, celebrity, or trend. Its price is usually driven by hype and speculation rather than an underlying business or practical use. President Trump launched his own meme coin in 2025. Recent reporting shows that the nearly 1 million people who bought Trump’s meme coin have lost more than $3 billion, while the sitting President walked away with a profit of roughly $636 million.
Targeting crypto fraud and money laundering. Helps people get their money back if they were a victim of a crypto crime — establishes clear guidelines to ensure restitution for victims of crypto scams and frauds.
Establishing a clear legal process for seizing crypto assets from transnational criminal networks. Protects Californians who use cryptocurrency by supporting enforcement against bad actors and putting guardrails in place to keep people’s money in their pockets.
Requiring full refunds for canceled, postponed, or rescheduled events and banning speculative tickets sales. Protects Californians from predatory price markups of tickets, updates regulations on bot sales, and places restrictions on deceptive websites and advertising practices.
Prohibiting unauthorized third parties from selling restaurant and tee time reservations for a profit. Protects consumers from exploitation of online reservation systems and ensures a fair, transparent reservation process for all.
Strengthens consumer control of their online data and personal information. Expands consumers’ right to delete their personal information, prohibits operating systems or apps from undoing a user’s configuration of a privacy setting without their consent, and establishes new rules for how insurers and related companies collect, process, retain, and share personal information.
