Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) introduced legislation today requiring Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to identify themselves and remove masks during routine immigration enforcement activities, citing concerns about unidentified officers conducting operations across Virginia communities.
The bill, co-sponsored with Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA), establishes the same identification standards for ICE agents that currently apply to state troopers, sheriffs and local police officers. Warner says the legislation responds to increased ICE presence in Virginia and repeated instances of masked agents causing panic during arrests.
“We think the standard ought to be for ICE the same it is for the state police or for your local cop that you should be able to identify yourself, you should be able to see your face,” Warner said during a media availability Thursday.
The senator emphasized that existing rules prevent state and local law enforcement from wearing masks while carrying out their duties. He argues the same transparency should apply to federal immigration enforcement.
“I can’t go on the Senate floor wearing a bag over my head and, you know, introduce a bill. I think the same should be the case for law enforcement,” Warner said.
The legislation includes exemptions for undercover operations and SWAT team activities. It also provides resources for ICE officers concerned about online harassment, known as doxxing, allowing them to scrape personal data from the internet and obtain privacy protections.
Warner said that this balanced approach has already garnered support from law enforcement organizations, immigration groups and the Service Employees International Union, which represents many migrant workers.
The bill comes as ICE’s budget reaches $37.5 billion, larger than the FBI’s entire budget and bigger than most military budgets worldwide except for the top 15 countries. Warner notes this funding level exceeds even the Israeli Defense Forces budget.
“With these resources, what we’re trying to say is that, you know, existing rules for state troopers, for your sheriff, for your local policeman, they don’t come masked to carry out their duties,” Warner said.
The senator criticized what he calls “arbitrary raids” where people are picked up and deported without criminal records, often while dropping off children at school or going to work.
When asked about ICE’s denial that agents engage in masking practices, Warner pointed to video evidence. “The videos I’ve seen, and I’m saying this happens every time, is that they’re covered. And I sure as hell have not seen any indication of their law enforcement status,” he said.
Warner also announced legislation with Kaine to repeal health care cuts from what he calls “the big ugly bill,” referring to recent Republican tax legislation. The cuts are projected to cause 11 million Americans, including over 300,000 Virginians, to lose health care coverage through Medicaid reductions.
The health care bill would reinstate Medicaid programs and extend Affordable Care Act subsidies that support private marketplace insurance. Without these subsidies, Warner warns another 6 to 7 million Americans could lose coverage due to monthly cost increases of $600 to $800.
“This is not charity, this is an obligation we have to our veterans,” Warner said, noting that many rural hospitals depend on Medicaid revenues.
On housing policy, Warner celebrated bipartisan legislation that passed unanimously out of the Banking and Housing Committee this week. His portion of the bill focuses on converting blighted buildings, particularly abandoned strip malls, into housing units.
The housing package builds on the existing HOME program and includes increases in modular housing to boost supply. Warner points to Henrico County as a model, where the land bank and Housing Trust Fund collaborate to buy property while the county waives sewer connection and permitting fees.
“Housing, end of the day, we’ve got to bring a whole lot more housing. We’re about 4.7 million units short,” Warner said.
He noted that the average age for first-time home buyers has risen to 38, compared to the 20s a decade ago, calling this shift a barrier to middle-class opportunities.
Warner also announced reauthorization of the Fox Suicide Prevention Program, named after former Sergeant Fox, which has delivered $4.5 million to locally based suicide prevention programs in Virginia. The program, created with Veterans Committee Chairman John Boozman (R-AR), aims to address high veteran suicide rates.
Regarding recent job cuts, Warner responded to a report showing 62,000 job cut announcements in July, up 140% from June, with many attributed to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) impact.
“In these town halls, 70, 80% of people either had a family member or knew someone that had been affected by doge, whether it was as a government contractor or government employee,” Warner said, referencing recent community meetings in Winchester, Charlottesville and Chesterfield.
The senator cited a Democratic report claiming DOGE efforts have cost taxpayers $13 billion without saving money, attributing costs to the uncertainty and chaos of firing and rehiring employees.
Warner expressed concern about artificial intelligence eliminating entry-level analyst positions in both government and private sectors, calling for society-wide solutions to address AI-related job displacement.
“All those starter jobs that are even coming out of college, whether it’s in the government as an analyst or in the financial sector as an analyst, a lot of those jobs are never going to come back because AI can do it quicker, faster, in a frankly more efficient way,” he said.
