Limit 09 of nine · Agent identification
Identified agents, recording allowed
~1,618 arrests in 16 days by agents “many lacking identifying information.”
The problem
Unidentifiable federal agents — masked, in plain clothes, in unmarked cars — are becoming the default mode of enforcement, and that anonymity is by design: it strips the public’s ability to know who is detaining them or hold anyone accountable, in any federal operation. A U.S. senator’s office documented roughly 1,618 arrests in one metro area over sixteen days by agents “many lacking identifying information,” and a federal court found the masking served “to terrorize Americans into quiescence.” With federal oversight dismantled, a state ID-and-recording law restores the minimum proof of who did what.
What the law does
Requires the state’s own officers to show ID and not mask on duty during cooperation, keeps cameras recording, and protects the public’s right to record.
Where it stands
- Alaska: None
- Alabama: None
- Arkansas: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Arizona: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- California: Full
- Colorado: None
- Connecticut: Full
- District of Columbia: None
- Delaware: None
- Florida: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Georgia: None
- Hawaii: None
- Iowa: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Idaho: None
- Illinois: None
- Indiana: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Kansas: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Kentucky: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Louisiana: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Massachusetts: None
- Maryland: None
- Maine: None
- Michigan: None
- Minnesota: None
- Missouri: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Mississippi: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Montana: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- North Carolina: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- North Dakota: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Nebraska: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- New Hampshire: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- New Jersey: Full
- New Mexico: None
- Nevada: None
- New York: Full
- Ohio: None
- Oklahoma: None
- Oregon: Full
- Pennsylvania: None
- Rhode Island: None
- South Carolina: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- South Dakota: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Tennessee: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Texas: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Utah: None
- Virginia: None
- Vermont: None
- Washington: Partial
- Wisconsin: None
- West Virginia: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Wyoming: None (state law mandates cooperation)
- Puerto Rico: None
Methodology v3.4 · scored Jun 10 2026
The model language
Read the full model bill →“Any law enforcement officer on duty within the State shall visibly display, in a manner observable by members of the public, the officer’s name or unique identifying number, the agency the officer represents, and the officer’s badge or other agency-issued identification.”
What we propose
Require visible ID (name or number, agency, badge), bar non-medical face coverings (narrow tactical, PPE, and religious exceptions), keep body cameras recording during federal cooperation, and protect the public right to record — with civil enforcement. Model: Oregon HB 4138; Connecticut SB 397.
Who’s already done it
6 states have ID/mask/recording provisions; 5 at full strength — CA, CT, NJ, NY, OR. Oregon’s HB 4138 (Apr 2026) is the cleanest template; New York’s MELT Act is the live federal test.
On the record
- AAUP v. Rubio (D. Mass., Sep 30 2025) — masking finding against the government
- LA Press Club v. Noem (9th Cir., Apr 1 2026) — injunction affirmed on First Amendment retaliation grounds; terms narrowed on remand
- Oregon HB 4138 (Apr 9 2026); Connecticut SB 397 (May 4 2026)
Status: live — the state-officer slice survives; the federal-officer reach is being tested (New York’s MELT Act).
One of nine.
Not the whole fight.
See where your state stands on all nine limits, or read the model bill section that closes this one.
Check your state → ← Back to the Nine