WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators John Hickenlooper, Michael Bennet, Mark Warner, Tim Kaine , and Angus King recently introduced the Immigration Enforcement Identification Act to increase transparency, accountability, and safety in immigration law enforcement. This bill prohibits law enforcement officers from obscuring their faces and requires that they clearly display their agency, name, and a unique identifier while conducting immigration enforcement functions.
“We are deeply concerned about reports of ICE agents taking families off the street without identification,” said Hickenlooper. “Our bill is about promoting trust and transparency in our communities, and enforcing basic due process rights.”
“Masked immigration enforcement agents performing arrests without identification is deeply troubling,” said Bennet. “We must hold all law enforcement to the same standard of accountability. This legislation protects due process rights, prioritizes safe community encounters, and upholds proper immigration enforcement.”
“Communities around the country have been clear: we should not have armed, masked, and unidentified individuals prowling around neighborhoods and snatching people off the street. This conduct poses a great risk for everyone involved, from the officers themselves to well-intentioned bystanders who may misunderstand the situation,” said Warner. “Despite the risks, our local police officers, state troopers, national guardsmen, and even members of the armed forces interact with communities with full-faced transparency – the kind that creates trust and helps hold us all to higher standards. I’m proud to introduce this legislation to hold ICE to the same standards that the vast majority of American law enforcement are held to.”
“In recent months, we’ve seen how some ICE officers and agents – without clear indication that they are law enforcement and often wearing masks – conducting immigration operations have caused fear and unnecessary danger on our streets and even in sensitive locations like county courthouses,” said Kaine. “This legislation would require ICE officers and agents to visibly identify themselves as law enforcement, helping to enhance safety and mitigate risk of violence if people misunderstand what’s happening. Our bill would also help to protect these officers and agents and their families from doxing and physical harm by giving them the tool to take their personal information such as their home addresses off the internet.”
“This legislation is simple: the bad guys wear masks, not law enforcement officers. Our police, first responders and public safety officials play an important role in keeping our communities safe and free from harm, but there also needs to be accountability and transparency in the line of duty,” said King. “The uptick in immigration agents not clearly identifying themselves while on the job has eroded an already diminishing trust with the communities they serve. The Immigration Enforcement Identification Act would set reasonable, commonsense standards for immigration officer identification, and provide law enforcement personnel and their families with the appropriate resources to prevent doxxing.”
According to the Department of Homeland Security, ICE does not have a “face-covering” policy. In recent months, ICE and agencies supporting ICE have conducted immigration enforcement in plain clothes, out of unmarked cars, and while wearing imprecise or inscrutable insignia that make them impossible to identify.
The Immigration Enforcement Identification Act will require all federal law enforcement and state and local law enforcement partners to be identifiable while conducting immigration enforcement functions. This includes federal law enforcement organizations such as ICE, Customs and Border Protection, Border Patrol, Federal Bureau of Investigations, Drug Enforcement Agency, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, U.S. Marshals, and state and local partners working with the federal government on immigration enforcement. The bill also contains commonsense exceptions for certain tactical missions and officer safety.
This bill will also help protect law enforcement officers and their families by providing personal data privacy services for immigration enforcement officers whose duties may put them at risk of being targeted by threats, intimidation, harassment, stalking, or a similar action. These services can help law enforcement officers and their families monitor their sensitive personal information – including their personal phone number, home address, or other information that could be used to commit crimes against them – and remove it from websites, platforms, and data brokers.
This legislation is supported by: Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP), Immigration Hub, American Immigration Lawyers Association, and Service Employees International Union (SEIU).
Full text of the bill is available HERE.
###