SB 627 “would make it a crime for a law enforcement officer to wear a facial covering in the performance of their duties,” and specifically applies to federal officers as well, though the state lacks jurisdiction over them.
“The bill would define a law enforcement agency for these purposes as any entity of a city, county, or other local agency, that employs anyone designated by California law as a peace officer, any federal law enforcement agency, or any law enforcement agency of another state,” the preamble to the law states.
The language specifically excludes state police, such as the California Highway Patrol (CHP), who are currently providing protection to former Vice President Kamala Harris. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) assigned CHP officers to protect Harris after President Donald Trump declined to extend her Secret Service protection.
The bill was co-sponsored by State Sen. Anthony Weiner (D-San Francisco) — who often authors the state’s most radical legislation, including a “sanctuary state” law for transgender surgery, and another law (since repealed) that decriminalized loitering, which led to an explosion in child prostitution and exploitation.
Demonstrators wearing masks hold signs outside the Federal Building during a protest on Friday, June 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Wally Skalij)
The bill is clearly aimed at ICE officers, and states that “the routine use of facial coverings by law enforcement officers has significant implications for public perception, officer-community interactions, and accountability,” adding that masks “should not obscure officer identity or hinder accountability.”
Critics of masks say that they are “un-American,” but also claim that protesters who wear masks at violent demonstrations are simply exercising their First Amendment rights and are at risk of being punished.
FILE – A woman stands off with a law enforcement officer wearing a Houston Field Office Special Response Team patch outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs building during a protest in Portland, Ore., June 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane, File)
ICE uses masks because of intense, violent opposition from radical left-wing groups to immigration enforcement — opposition that is often encouraged by elected Democrats, such as Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, who specifically asked members of the public to film ICE officers in the course of their duties. The masks are deemed necessary to prevent such efforts from targeting ICE officers and their families in their private lives.
Brandon Gomez, 10, who said his classmate’s parents were detained by ICE, joins other demonstrators protesting a recent raid, covering his face out of fear of being identified, in Oxnard, Calif., Friday, July 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
California legislators acknowledged that they probably do not have the power to enforce SB 627 against federal officers, but passed it anyway and sent it to the State Senate.
The bill passed 44-29. Gov. Newsom has not commented on it.
Ironically, California had some of the most draconian mask mandates during the coronavirus pandemic, requiring people who were not sick or at risk to wear masks in almost every setting outside their homes.
The California bill is part of an ongoing nationwide campaign by left-wing groups to force ICE officers and other federal law enforcement officers to abandon masks, precisely so that officers can be targeted personally.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of The Zionist Conspiracy Wants You, now available on Amazon. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
Photo: file
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