CERES, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 16: California Governor Gavin Newsom speaks during a news conference at Gemperle Orchard on April 16, 2025 in Ceres, California. Governor Gavin Newsom and California Attorney General Rob Bonta have filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging the Trump administration's use of emergency powers to enact sweeping tariffs that hurt states, consumers, and businesses. The tariffs have disrupted supply chains, increased costs for the state and Californians, and inflicted billions in damages on California’s economy, the fifth largest in the world. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Sacramento, California – As California prepares to argue its case in Newsom v. Trump, Governor Gavin Newsom is demanding the federal government disclose how much taxpayer money has been spent on what he calls an “unlawful deployment” of troops in Southern California.
It has now been 60 days since nearly 5,000 National Guard members were federalized and deployed to the Los Angeles area over the objections of state and local officials. While most have since demobilized, around 300 troops remain stationed at Joint Forces Training Base Los Alamitos. Newsom is asking why — and at what cost.
Through a federal Freedom of Information Act request, the Governor’s Office is seeking documentation from the Pentagon to clarify how much the deployment has cost taxpayers. Preliminary testimony from Department of Defense officials to Congress indicated a price tag of at least $134 million, but the full cost remains unknown.
The legal and political stakes are high. Next week, a federal court will hear arguments in Newsom v. Trump, where California is challenging the constitutionality of the troop deployment. The case has drawn national attention — and bipartisan concern — over the federal government’s decision to activate National Guard units without state consent.
Beyond the legal battle, the economic impact is already rippling through California. Private-sector attendance in affected areas has dropped 3.1%, a decline comparable to early pandemic lockdowns. Immigration raids tied to the deployment have further strained the state’s labor force, particularly in sectors such as construction, hospitality, and agriculture. According to a UCLA Anderson forecast, Trump’s immigration and tariff policies are expected to shrink California’s economy later this year.
The consequences are stark. State officials estimate that mass arrests and deportations could reduce California’s economic output by $275 billion and cut $23 billion in annual tax revenue. In 2022 alone, undocumented immigrants paid $8.5 billion in state and local taxes — a figure that economists say could have topped $10 billion if more had legal work status.
The deployment has also disrupted essential services. National Guard members pulled into the operation include law enforcement officers, firefighters, civil servants, teachers, and healthcare workers. Their absence has created what state leaders describe as a ripple effect across communities, leaving public safety and essential services understaffed.
A bipartisan coalition of 25 former governors, along with retired military leaders and veteran organizations, has filed briefs supporting California’s position. They argue that the forced federalization of state National Guard units undermines the balance of power and erodes state sovereignty.
For Newsom, the question is as much about precedent as it is about policy. “Americans deserve to know how much taxpayer money the President spent to orchestrate this political theater,” he said. As the court prepares to hear arguments, California’s standoff with the federal government has become a test of who gets to control the Guard — and at what cost.
