California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed a bill that bars local and federal law enforcement agents, including those from the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), from wearing masks on duty. This step was taken in response to federal agents wearing face masks during immigration raids.
Newsom said the ban, which comes into effect from January 1, 2026, is aimed at protecting residents from “secret police” roaming the streets. This would make California the first US state to prohibit federal law enforcement officers from hiding their identities.
However, the law would make exceptions for undercover agents, medical masks such as N95 respirators or tactical gear, and it would not apply to state police. Similar proposals have been introduced
by Democrats in other states.
“Public safety depends on trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve — but Trump and Miller have shattered that trust and spread fear across America. California is putting an end to it and making sure schools and hospitals remain what they should be: places of care, not chaos,” said Newsom in a statement.
‘Dystopian Sci-Fi Movie’
Newsom said the state is pushing back against the practice of masked agents detaining people on the streets without identification or badge numbers. “The impact of these policies all across this city, our state and nation are terrifying.”
“It’s like a dystopian sci-fi movie. Unmarked cars, people in masks, people quite literally disappearing. No due process, no rights, no right in a democracy where we have rights,” he said.
The Trump administration has defended the use of masks, citing the risk of harassment in public as they carry out Trump’s mass deportation drive. Obscuring their identities is necessary for the safety of the agents and their families, officials argue.
Trump Administration Pushes Back
Bill Essayli, the acting US attorney for Southern California, said on the social platform X that the state does not have jurisdiction over the federal government and he has told agencies the mask ban has no effect on their operations. “Our agents will continue to protect their identities,” he said.
Tricia McLaughlin, Homeland Security assistant secretary for public affairs, called it “despicable and a flagrant attempt to endanger our officers.”
“While our federal law enforcement officers are being assaulted by rioters and having rocks and Molotov cocktails thrown at them, a sanctuary politician is trying to outlaw officers wearing masks to protect themselves from being doxxed and targeted by known and suspected terrorist sympathisers,” she said in an email.
However, Newsom said that concerns over doxing agents or publishing their personal information online, were unfounded. “There’s an assertion that somehow there is an exponential increase in assaults on officers, but they will not provide the data,” he said.
(with inputs from AP)
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