The New Jersey Legislature approved three immigration-focused bills Monday over opposition from Republicans who said they trample on federal authority and prioritize politics over public safety. Democratic lawmakers said the bills are necessary to protect New Jersey immigrants from President D onald Trump’s mass deportation effort. Two of them are rewritten versions of bills vetoed by former Gov. Phil Murphy on his last day in office two months ago. “As an immigrant myself, I know the fear that does exist in our immigration communities. There’s a real, living anxiety that at any moment, someone could be taken off while doing the most routine tasks — dropping kids off at school, going to work, grocery shopping, simply living their lives. ” said Assemblyman Balvir Singh (D-Burlington). “And that fear is not imagined. It is real.” The three bills would: restrict local, state, and federal law enforcement officers from concealing their identities while conducting official duties; limit health care agencies and government entities from collecting and sharing certain data from patrons; and codify the attorney general’s Immigrant Trust Directive, which restricts when state and local police can cooperate with federal immigration enforcement. The three bills now head to Gov. Mikie Sherrill for her signature or veto. Sherrill, who took office on Jan. 20, has said she backs efforts to ban U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents from wearing masks and writing the Immigrant Trust Directive into law. Since taking office, Sherrill has condemned the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement tactics. Last week, the state sued the federal government over the purchase of a Roxbury warehouse to be used as an ICE facility.  Advocates have called for a stronger version of the codification bill to be passed, but said it’s important to have even the weaker iteration written into statute because the directive can be withdrawn unilaterally by a future administration. The bills did not pass without a fight. Republicans held a rally in front of the Statehouse ahead of the voting sessions Monday to protest the three bills and sharply criticized them later before lawmakers voted on them. Sen. Mike Testa (R-Cumberland) attempted to amend the codification legislation to require local and state police to alert federal agents if a migrant is convicted of murder, rape, or human trafficking, an amendment that was shot down by his Democratic colleagues. That legislation passed in the Senate 22-13 and in the Assembly 50-21. “We can and should have a thoughtful conversation about immigration policy, but we should never pass legislation that prioritizes political gamesmanship over public safety,” Testa said. Assemblyman Erik Peterson (R-Hunterdon) riles up the crowd at a rally against illegal immigration outside the Statehouse in Trenton on March 23, 2026. (Photo by Dana DiFilippo/New Jersey Monitor) The bill to prohibit law enforcement from using masks to hide their identities also drew disagreement in the Senate, where Sen. Holly Schepisi (R-Bergen) criticized it for focusing solely on law enforcement officers. She proposed an amendment to make it a disorderly persons offense for someone to wear a mask while committing a crime like rioting or looting, but that amendment was tabled by her Democratic colleagues. “This is about balance and basic fairness. If transparency is the goal, it should not apply to only one group,” Schepisi said. Schepisi warned that attacks on federal immigration agents have skyrocketed since Trump’s crackdown began and the bill would lead to “intentional targeting of federal agents and their families” by “cartels, extremist groups, and people who are now looking to take upon themselves justice.” Sen. Robert Singer (R-Ocean) seconded that sentiment, citing recent attacks on synagogues and other politically motivated attacks around the country. “More and more dangerous people are here, yet we don’t want to protect the people who protect us. Shame on us!” Singer said. Assemblywoman Dawn Fantasia (R-Sussex) predicted the bill would be challenged in court. The White House has also previously said it would not comply with the legislation if it is signed into law. “We cannot interfere with federal operations. We cannot burden federal officers carrying out federal duty. We cannot dictate how federal laws are enforced. We can’t regulate them, control them, mask them, dictate their conduct, unmask them. And every single time a state tries, it’s been struck down in court,” Fantasia said. “I don’t know how many more times New Jersey has to run into a courtroom and lose taxpayer dollars chasing headlines before we internalize that we don’t make this decision.” Republicans were not all unified in their opposition. Sen. Jon Bramnick (R-Union) noted that local police officers, state troopers, politicians, and others face public anger and risk but don’t go around masked. “This is an important moment in our history,” Bramnick said. “In our country, it is time to unmask everyone, so we know who is who in this country.” The mask ban bill passed 24-14 in the Senate and 52-18 in the Assembly. The data privacy bill passed the Senate 23-14 and the Assembly 52-21. Sen. Benjie Wimberly (D-Passaic) pointed to the death toll of people killed by poorly trained immigration agents, as well as reports that the Trump administration may have hired some Jan. 6 rioters to help with immigration enforcement. “We all should be concerned,” Wimberly said. Republished courtesy of New Jersey Monitor, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501 (c) (3) public charity. New Jersey Monitor maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Terrence T. McDonald for questions: [email protected]. The post NJ Legislature Approves Trio of Immigration Bills in Divided Votes appeared first on Jersey City Times. ...read more read less