A Nassau County bill barring groups of people from using face coverings to hide their identities in public was signed into law on Wednesday after a rancorous debate that pitted police reform advocates against groups critical of Israel in its ongoing conflict with Hamas.
At the bill signing, County Executive Bruce Blakeman called on New York City and state policymakers to follow Nassau County’s lead.
“Mayor Eric Adams has been very vocal that he would like the New York City Council to pass a similar piece of legislation as have other Democrats,” he said.
A spokesperson for City Hall clarified that while Adams supports banning masks on the subway, he has not proposed any legislation to the City Council regarding masks worn at protests or in non-health-related situations.
“We will continue to work with our partners at the city and state levels to determine whether there is a legal path to prohibiting the use of masks when not being used for health reasons,” spokesperson Liz Garcia said in an emailed statement.
Nassau County’s ban bars anyone older than 16 from wearing face coverings as a disguise while in groups and acting with intent to intimidate or harass. It makes exceptions for people who wear masks for health or religious reasons and entrusts local police to make that distinction.
Violating the law is a misdemeanor punishable by a $1,000 fine and up to a year in jail, which is stricter than the previous statewide penalty of $250 and up to 15 days in jail.
Nassau County’s Republican majority voted in favor of the bill last week following a contentious public comment period that resulted in one arrest. Democrats in the Legislature abstained from the vote after proposing their own legislation focusing specifically on penalties against criminals who use face coverings in the commission of a crime and are convicted of a misdemeanor or felony.
Both Adams and Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed legislation to ban face coverings during specific events after two high-profile incidents involving masked anti-Israel protesters earlier this summer.
While Nassau’s ban was drafted and signed in less than a month, Hochul called the issue complicated and said she intends to take her time in crafting legislation.
Hochul’s office did not respond to requests for comment on Nassau’s ban. Her earlier comments suggested banning face coverings during the commission of a crime while noting that “protesting is not a crime.”
At Wednesday’s bill signing, Blakeman featured speakers critical of protesters who they claimed wore face coverings to intimidate Jews. Shabbos Kestenbaum, a prominent Jewish activist, flew from California to attend the signing.
“You do not have a constitutional right to bully, intimidate and harass Jewish students on college campuses,” Kestenbaum said, to applause. “This is a common-sense piece of legislation, and it is a shame that this is not being adopted across the United States, but I do hope that someone like Kathy Hochul is watching.”
Numerous groups have voiced opposition to Nassau’s ban, including the Council on American-Islamic Relations and Disability Rights New York, which have both called the law illegal.
Susan Gottehrer, Regional Director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said the law only empowers a police force she called “racially biased.”
“Masks protect people who express political opinions that are controversial,” she said in an emailed statement. “Officials should be supporting New Yorkers’ right to voice their views, not fueling widespread doxxing and threatening arrests.”