Assembly BillFailedGovernment
AB 1160: Military equipment.
What AB 1160 does, verified February 3, 2026
This bill would prohibit law enforcement agencies from purchasing certain unmanned vehicles unless they contain an option to turn off unnecessary data collection programs. The vehicles must also use an American data storage company to house all collected data, including video and photographic images. For vehicles purchased before 2027, law enforcement agencies would need to use an American data storage company starting from 2027. Existing vehicles would need to switch to an American data storage company when their current contract expires. The bill would also require the storage company to prohibit sharing the data with any other entity.
Bill journey
✓IntroducedComplete
2In CommitteeCurrent
3First Chamber FloorPending
4Second ChamberPending
5GovernorPending
6ChapteredPending
Last action: From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56. (2026-02-02)Alert me
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| Feb. 02, 2026 | From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56. |
| Jan. 31, 2026 | Died pursuant to Art. IV, Sec. 10(c) of the Constitution. |
| May. 23, 2025 | In committee: Held under submission. |
| May. 14, 2025 | In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file. |
| May. 06, 2025 | Re-referred to Com. on APPR. |
Latest bill textAmended version, May 5, 2025 · 723 words
| Amended IN Assembly May 05, 2025 |
| Amended IN Assembly March 24, 2025 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION
Assembly Bill
No. 1160
| Introduced by Assembly Member Wilson |
February 20, 2025 |
An act to add Section 7073.5 to the Government Code, relating to law enforcement.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1160, as amended, Wilson. Military equipment.
Existing law requires a law enforcement agency, as defined, to obtain specific approval of a governing body prior to acquiring military equipment, as specified. Existing law defines “military equipment” to include an unmanned, remotely piloted, powered aerial or ground vehicle.
This bill would prohibit a law enforcement agency from purchasing, on or after January 1, 2027, an unmanned, uncrewed, remotely piloted, powered aerial or ground vehicle unless the vehicle contains an option to turn off any data collection programs that are not necessary for the vehicle to function or and the law enforcement agency uses an American data storage company, as defined, to house all data collected, including, but not limited to, video and photographic images, as specified, or both. For uncrewed, remotely piloted, powered aerial or ground vehicles purchased on or after January 1, 2026, and before January 1, 2027, the bill would require a law enforcement agency to use an American data storage company. For uncrewed aerial or ground vehicles owned or possessed by a law enforcement agency prior to January 1, 2026, the bill would require the law enforcement agency to use an American data storage company after the current contract to house the data expires. The bill would require contracts entered into pursuant to these provisions with an American data storage company to prohibit the American data storage company from using, selling, renting, trading, or otherwise sharing this data with any other entity.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 7073.5 is added to the Government Code, to read:7073.5.
(a) (1) A law enforcement agency shall not purchase an(1)
(A)
The vehicle contains an option to turn off any data collection programs that are not necessary for the vehicle to function.(2)
(B)
The law enforcement agency uses an American data storage company to house all data collected, including, but not limited to, video and photographic images.(b)
(2)
The restriction and conditions pursuant to(b) For uncrewed, remotely piloted, powered aerial or ground vehicles purchased by a law enforcement agency on or after January 1, 2026, and before January 1, 2027, the law enforcement agency shall use an American data storage company to house all data collected, including, but not limited to, video and photographic images.
(c) A law enforcement agency that maintains ownership or possession of an uncrewed, remotely piloted, powered aerial or ground vehicle prior to January 1, 2026, shall exclusively use an American data storage company to house all data collected, including, but not limited to, video and photographic images, after any existing contract to house the data expires.
(d) A contract entered into pursuant to this section shall prohibit the American data storage company that is under contract to house the data collected by the uncrewed vehicles from using, selling, renting, trading, or otherwise sharing the data with any other entity. The data remains under the sole ownership and control of the law enforcement agency that collected the data.
(c)
(e) For purposes of this section, an “American data storage company” means a partnership, corporation, limited liability company, or other business entity formed under the laws of, and headquartered in, this state or the laws of any other state of the United States or the District of Columbia, that provides services related to storing digital data, including, but not limited to, through cloud storage, and has adopted security measures to protect stored data from unauthorized access, modification, or destruction, and that has dedicated servers or hard drives located in the United States.
Text of AB 1160 as amended, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions