Nassau County Republicans pass mask ban after raucous debate

Nassau County Republicans approved a sweeping ban on the public use of face coverings after a raucous debate on Monday. They claimed the measure would combat crimes committed during protests.

Presiding Officer Howard Kopel said the Mask Transparency Act was introduced in response to “antisemitic incidents, often perpetrated by those in masks” since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel. Progressives called the measure part of a “culture war” that targets demonstrators supporting Palestine in the ongoing war.

The bill, passed by a vote of 12-0 with all seven Democrats in the Legislature abstaining, creates a misdemeanor offense punishable with a $1,000 fine and up to one year in jail. It makes exceptions for religious and health reasons, but broadly bars groups from wearing masks in public, regardless of criminal activity.

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said he plans to sign the bill.

“Unless someone has a medical condition or a religious imperative, people should not be allowed to cover their face in a manner that hides their identity when in public,” he said in a statement.

Nassau Legislator Mazi Pilip of Great Neck proposed the bill, saying she was tired of people being harassed and intimidated.

“I have been to CUNY, Columbia, local high schools, community meetings, rallies in Great Neck,” she said. “I have heard the people speak loudly and clearly. They want this done.”

Democrats and civil libertarians in Nassau said the bill will be impractical to enforce, unable to withstand legal challenges and likely to lead to profiling and unjustified stops.

“This puts the police of this county in a very dangerous, difficult position,” Democratic Legislator Arnold Drucker said during the debate Monday. “They're now going to be asked to confront people in the effort to enforce this law.”

Democratic legislators introduced their own emergency legislation earlier in the day that they said "enhances penalties against criminals who use face coverings in the commission of a crime and are convicted of a misdemeanor or felony" and "addresses glaring deficiencies contained within a Republican anti-mask bill – one that legal experts warned will be overturned by the courts if passed." Their bill was not on Monday evening's agenda.

“Our bill respects individual freedoms by not imposing blanket prohibitions on wearing masks in public. Law-abiding citizens could wear masks for health, safety, religious, or celebratory purposes without fear,” Minority Leader Delia DeRiggi-Whitton said in a statement. “Unlike the broad and punitive Republican bill, our approach avoids unconstitutional overreach and respects personal liberties.”

Debate on the bill became volatile as both those for and opposed lined up to speak, and police arrested one woman opposing the bill, carrying her out of the room in handcuffs.

Kiana Abbady said she opposed the bill.

“You have chosen to participate in a culture war without recognizing that you are feeding right into a very dangerous demon,” Abbady said.

Lawmakers then cut her microphone after her allotted time expired and asked police to escort her out of the legislative chamber. Several of Abbady’s supporters surrounded her. A confrontation ensued and video posted to social media showed a supporter being carried out of the building.

Nassau police did not immediately identify the woman arrested or the charges.

Susan Gottehrer, Nassau County regional director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said the law was a "dangerous misuse of the law to score political points and target protestors."

"Barring people who speak out from protecting themselves and their identities puts their health and well-being in danger, particularly people with disabilities, people of color, and those with unpopular views," Gottehrer said in a statement. "Masks protect people who express political opinions that are unpopular. Making anonymous protest illegal chills political action and is ripe for selective enforcement, leading to doxxing, surveillance, and retaliation against protesters."

The move takes the lead against an issue vexing officials across the state. During the COVID-19 pandemic’s health emergency in 2020, state lawmakers lifted a ban on wearing masks in public.

Since then, Mayor Eric Adams and Gov. Kathy Hochul have both explored imposing a partial ban on masks, citing people committing crimes while hiding their faces. Hochul has so far tailored her comments against masks on the city’s subways.

Neither Hochul nor Adams responded to requests for comment.

Lawmakers in the state Assembly and Senate have also made similar proposals.

State Democratic lawmakers Jeffrey Dinowitz, an assembly member from the Bronx, and James Skoufis, a senator from Orange County, have sponsored a bill to criminalize wearing masks during protests or riots. The measure will have to be reintroduced in the next session, and Dinowitz said he is still crafting his legislation to strike the right balance between civil liberties and protecting people from intimidation.

“There’s a big distinction between people who are wearing a mask for whatever legitimate reason and people who are covering their entire face and their heads for the sole purpose of hiding their identity,” he said in a phone interview. “If it ever came down to any legal action, that would be up to a judge or a jury to decide.”

Proponents of banning masks in public point to an 1845 state statute aimed first at insurrections by Hudson Valley tenant farmers who used disguises to attack police. The law was later used to combat the Ku Klux Klan. It has mostly been enforced as disorderly conduct, a violation punishable by $250 and up to 15 days in jail.